The Centre for Democracy and Technology Europe (CDT Europe) has shared its input on the European Commission's initiative, the European Democracy Shield. This non-legislative proposal aims to address significant risks to democracy in the EU, building on the European Democracy Action Plan. The initiative covers issues such as democratic integrity, participation, transparency, and technology accountability. Recognizing declining trust in democratic institutions and a shrinking civic space across Europe, CDT Europe offered recommendations to tackle these challenges while upholding fundamental rights.
Previously, CDT Europe's priorities included active engagement in developing the Regulation on the Transparency and Targeting of Political Advertising, alongside work on the Digital Services Act and AI Act. These efforts continue into implementation and enforcement stages. CDT Europe is pleased with the proposal for the Democracy Shield as it aims to bring coherence between previously adopted legislation designed to strengthen European democracy. Respect for fundamental rights and values is seen as crucial to these efforts.
In their submission, CDT Europe outlines several considerations they believe should be incorporated to ensure that the proposal strengthens democracy while maintaining fundamental rights. These considerations include preserving freedom of expression and access to information within existing legislation when addressing disinformation; tackling hyper-personalized recommender systems that spread disinformation; recognizing civil society's role in creating a healthy online information ecosystem; addressing invasive spyware technologies used against journalists and political figures; and considering AI risks in democratic processes per EU legislative standards.
Read the full submission here.