So here we have it, not “12 April 2008” and not “Competitiveness Council” but the infamous Fish: The negotiating mandate for the Commission for the ACTA agreement was on the agenda of the
2862nd meeting of the COUNCIL OF THE EUROPEAN UNION (Agriculture/Fisheries) date : Luxembourg, Monday 14 April 2008
List of “A”-items:
7. Recommendation from the Commission to the Council to authorise the Commission to open negotiations of a plurilateral anti-counterfeiting trade agreement
7759/08 WTO 49 PI 15 UD 48 MI 101 JUSTCIV 56 COPEN 52 DROIPEN 29 RESTREINT UE
approved by COREPER, Part 2, on 02.04.08
“A”-Items are adopted as they are without further deliberations.
(DROIPEN is the notified Substantial Criminal Law Working Committee, “Restreint ue” meant the dossier was classified. The only “classified fish” on the Fishery Council and Coreper agenda.)
Backtracing the Fish
As we can see it was earlier “approved” by Coreper, part 2. Coreper is the Committee of Permanent representatives in the Council, our diplomates.
2222nd meeting of the PERMANENT REPRESENTATIVES COMMITTEE (Part 2)
…31. Recommendation from the Commission to the Council to authorise the Commission to open negotiations of a plurilateral anti-counterfeiting trade agreement
7759/08 WTO 49 PI 15 UD 48 MI 101 JUSTCIV 56 COPEN 52 DROIPEN 29 RESTREINT UE
Backtracing the Fish II: Article 133 Committee
And here is document from 26 of March coming from the Article 133 Committee, it explains:
The Commission submitted on 20 November 2007 a Recommendation from the Commission to the Council to authorise the Commission to open negotiations of a plurilateral anti-counterfeiting trade agreement. A revised version of the Recommendation was submitted to the Council by the Commission on 29 February 2008.
In other words the negotiating mandate was written by the Commission for the Council. They even had to amend their initial proposal, the Article 133 committee then adopted a “compromise proposal” from the Presidency:
The Recommendation was examined by the Article 133 Committee (Deputies) at several meetings. The Recommendation was also examined by the Working Party on Intellectual Property. Following the discussion at the meeting of the Article 133 Committee (Deputies) on 17 March 2008, all delegations could agree on the text on the basis of a compromise proposal by the Presidency.
and this “compromise proposal” was then sent via the adoption road:
It is therefore suggested that the Permanent Representatives Committee invite the Council, as an “A” item at a forthcoming meeting, to:
• authorise the Commission to negotiate a plurilateral Anti-Counterfeiting Trade
Agreement;
• OT DECLASSIFIED
• appoint relevant committees to assist in this task;
• issue the appended negotiating directives OT DECLASSIFIED
Negotiating Directive
We can’t observe the negotiating directives because it is classified. But what we find are declassified snippets from their adopted negotiations mandate, the SEC(2007) 1377’s explanatory memorandum.
I wonder when the council will provide a website where you can find all information (council texts, decision etc) by TOPIC.
Would probably save thousands of hours of EU affairs professionals and interested stakeholders every month.
[…] The fishy mandate of ACTA If you thought there was something fishy about the European Commission engaging in secret negotiations at ACTA behind the backs of the European Parliament and against the interests of Europe's digital society, you'd be right. I missed this when it was first posted back in April, but it turns out that the Commission sought permission to negotiate not from a relevant part of the Council of the EU such as trade or competitiveness, but from the Fisheries committee. […]