Project FOCUS
Promoting Fundamentals of Charter Use in Society
FOCUS is a project which aims to raise public awareness of the EU Charter of Fundamental Rights, its value, and the capacity of key stakeholders for its broader application.
Within the FOCUS project, Verfassungsblog organizes and publishes scholarly blog symposia and blog posts on urgent topical questions concerning the protection of fundamental rights within the EU and the role of the EU Charter of Fundamental Rights. The project aims to stimulate and make accessible expert knowledge regarding the Charter’s strengths, weaknesses, impact on case law, and its broader role in European fundamental rights protection.
Funded by the European Union. Views and opinions expressed are however those of the author(s) only and do not necessarily reflect those of the European Union or the European Commission. Neither the European Union nor the granting authority can be held responsible for them. FOCUS project is funded by the European Commission’s Citizens, Equality, Rights and Values (CERV) programme and has received funding from the European Union’s Horizon Europe research and innovation programme under Grant Agreement No. 101143236.
All information about the FOCUS project can be found here: focuscharter.eu
LATEST POSTS
How the EU Commission Backs up Pushbacks at the EU-Belarussian Border
In December 2024, the European Commission issued a communication to the European Parliament and the Council discussing the current situation of so-called ‘hybrid threats’ at the EU-Belarussian border. With the goal of stopping irregular arrivals of migrants and its facilitation by Belarus and Russia, the EU Commission outlines how EU primary law, namely Art. 72 TFEU, could be utilized by Member States to circumvent the Common European Asylum System (CEAS) and curtail the protection afforded by fundamental rights for migrants. By advising member states to make use of this legal pathway for the current situation at the EU-Belarussian border, the EU Commission indirectly justifies the current pushback practices from Poland, Lithuania and Latvia. Continue reading >>
A Right to Anonymity in the Digital Age
Although digital anonymity is associated with a wide range of opportunities, it also stands in the way of successful criminal prosecution. The right to respect private and family life under the the EU Charter as well as the right to protection of personal data are of fundamental importance for natural persons. However, since life is increasingly taking place online, anonymity can be exploited to spread hate, discriminatory content, and fake news. Considering these risks, the ECJ has opened the door to data retention in Europe and thereby restricted digital anonymity. Continue reading >>Data Retention Laws and La Quadrature du Net II
La Quadrature du Net II has been criticized for allowing generalized metadata retention measures. However, it is important not to lose sight of the fact that the law must not become a mechanism for protecting criminals. The scale of online rights violations are a real problem. P2P networks are not only a threat to copyright protection, but also an environment for the distribution of content related to serious crime. It is therefore necessary to strike a balance between these two concerns and to propose solutions that adequately protect users without guaranteeing impunity for criminals. Continue reading >>
Squaring the Circle
La Quadrature du Net II, which allows for the general retention of IP addresses to combat copyright infringements committed online, should not be viewed as carte blanche for general data retention measures by the Member States. Instead of watering down fundamental rights protection on a case-by-case approach, Member States should agree on guarantees and safeguards as well as a list of serious crimes allowing only the restricted use of targeted data retention in specific cases. Continue reading >>
The Challenges of Nuance
Five Questions to Sabine Leutheusser-Schnarrenberger Continue reading >>