IViR Lecture: Information Policies of the Coronavirus Crisis

IViR is pleased to announce that
Ádám Földes
will give a lecture entitled
Information Policies of the Coronavirus Crisis
on Friday 3 June 2022

It is the first time since World War II that countries introduced some form of state of emergency on such a broad scale and thereby imposed considerable restrictions on fundamental rights. In most EU countries state of emergency rules were not designed to regulate such long-lasting events and surveys show that EU citizens find restrictions of their individual freedoms less and less justified. It is not just a matter of perception, but in fact the restrictions of freedom of information, expression, assembly and association are also a threat to democracy and rule of law. An enduring restriction of these freedoms weakens democratic discourse, undermines trust in government and thereby puts a strain on democratic political systems.

In his presentation Ádám will talk about his research in which he’s trying to find answers to the questions: What is the policy content of measures that legislative, executive and judicial branches have taken in EU member states in the field of freedom of information in the context of the pandemic? Is there any concept behind restricting access to or distributing information or are these just piecemeal ad hoc (re)actions? Is there any pattern to be identified? If there is a concept, what are the values these policies aim to further, national security (‘threat to the life of the nation’), protecting health of individuals, maintaining a functioning economy, preserving democracy?
With the findings of this research, he intends to contribute to the policy discussions of the pandemic at national and EU levels and hopes for a transit back from emergency rules to normalised administration in the near future.

Ádám Földes is a legal advisor of the Policy and Advocacy team at the international secretariat of Transparency International (TI). He’s a visiting researcher at IViR, working on his paper of his re:constitution Fellowship 2020/21.

re:constitution – Exchange and Analysis on Democracy and the Rule of Law in Europe is a joint programme of the Forum Transregionale Studien and Democracy Reporting International, funded by Stiftung Mercator.

Date: 3 June 2022
Time: 16.00 – 17.30 CET (Amsterdam)
Place:
IViR Room, 5.24, REC A, Nieuwe Achtergracht 166, 1018 WV Amsterdam.
– Online via Zoom (you will receive the Zoomlink via e-mail on the morning of the lecture).

See also the flyer.

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