Liberal deputy leader Turcan anounces PNL to challange bill on personal data protection in Constitutional Court

The National Liberal Party (PNL) will notify the Constitutional Court over the bill on the protection of personal data in criminal proceedings, PNL deputy chairperson Raluca Turcan said on Tuesday.

"We publicly announce that the National Liberal Party is filing a challenge with the Constitutional Court against the bill initiated by PSD Senator Serban Nicolae, who claims to transpose the European Directive on the use of personal data for the purpose of criminal law enforcement, whereas this act actually amends through an ordinary law an organic law, specifically the Criminal Procedure Code, and turns mobile phone operators into information agents about the secret wiretap warrants issued by judges," Turcan said in Parliament, according to Agerpres. 

She argued that the PSD - ALDE governance uses the European legal framework as a pretext to impose anti-Romanian and anti-European measures.

"Here's another example of how the current PSD - ALDE government uses the EU framework as a pretext for anti-Romanian and anti-European measures. This reality obviously brings to mind the public manifestations that will be increasingly numerous because Romanians will no longer endure this type of anti-Romanian and anti-European rule," Turcan added.

Last week the Chamber of Deputies plenary adopted the bill on the protection of individuals with regard to the processing of personal data by competent authorities with a view to preventing, detecting, investigating, prosecuting and combating crimes, or sentence serving, for enforcing educational and safety measures, as well as on the free movement of such data.

The bill stipulates that the processing of personal data with a view to carrying activities aimed at maintaining public order and security shall be performed only if this is set forth under law and required to prevent danger at least on a person's life, bodily integrity, health or property thereof and to fight crime.

"Phone operators are required to set in place the organizational, technical and procedural measures to provide to the person concerned the necessary information according to Art. 13 and Art. 16 to 21, and in order to ensure the transmission of a response about the processing undertaken under the terms of Art. 11 or in connection with the notification of the subjects in the event of a security incident," the bill stipulates.

In addition, the operator is required to inform the subject, in writing, on the handling of the requests filed as per this law. The answer is sent free of charge in 60 calendar days at the most.

Upon request, unless the law provides otherwise, the operator shall communicate to the subject the following additional information: the legal basis of the processing, the period for which the personal data is stored or, if that is not possible, the criteria used to determine that period, if applicable, the categories of the recipients of personal data, from other states or international organizations included, any other additional information, depending on the specifics of the processing activities, especially when personal data is collected without the knowledge of the person concerned.