By Nicolas Petros Kaparti
For the wrong reasons, Cyprus is once again under the "microscope", following the recommendation of the new Special Committee of the European Parliament on the Pegasus software. What if last month the Government Spokesman, Marios Pelekanos, denied to Reuters any involvement of Cyprus[/URL] in reports that the powerful Pegasus spy software was linked to a British government network, the European Parliament is determined to examine each case, including that of Cyprus, in order to establish whether the procedures provided for by EU law in relation to the management of the software have been respected.
As has been announced in recent days, the European Parliament's new Special Committee is composed of 38 MEPsfrom all political groups, and is mandated to investigate allegations of breaches of EU law in the use of surveillance software by, among others, Hungary and Poland.
Speaking to the Cyprus Times, AKEL MEP and avice-president of the new Pegasus Special Committee[/URL], George Georgiou[/B], referred to a diabolical tool and explained that Cyprus will be put under the microscope in the context of the investigations.[/B]
According to Georgiou, the Special Committee will investigate complaints related to the violation of EU law in the use of the surveillance software, while examining existing national laws governing surveillance and whether the Pegasus software was used to monitor the mobile phones of politicians, officials and journalists in EU member states.
Asked which cases the Special Committee will examine in relation to Cyprus, Georgiou said that the case of the notorious "spy van" will be re-examined, while pointing to the question raised by Dutch MEP, Sophia in' t Veld, to the Commission on how Cyprus handled the Pegasus issues.
"The van case may have been closed in court but we can come to press this issue to see whether or not there was Pegasus inside the van and how Cyprus handled this issue. Did it handle it adequately? Through proper judicial ethics? On the basis of what law did it try this case? Is Cyprus' national law consistent with European standards? There are many issues," Georgiou explained.
"We need to clarify what is happening with Cyprus. Is it really a station for the sale and importation into Europe of this software? These questions need to be answered, but the question already prescribes the situation. That is, that there are indeed companies in Cyprus which are linked to parent companies in Bulgaria, NSO, and through Cyprus and Bulgaria these software are exported to other European countries," Georgiou added.
He stressed that "there is a risk of being targeted again, as happened with passports, that Cyprus is acting as a Trojan horse, undermining then the nationalities and now the security of European citizens".
Asked to comment on from whom the Special Committee will ask for evidence on the Cyprus case, Georgiou replied "that it will ask from whoever it thinks that evidence should be obtained, whether they are ministries or companies. Where it is deemed necessary, the Commission will ask for evidence."
Conducting specialised hearings and fact-finding missions
As regards the procedures to be followed to formulate the Committee's final report - which will be submitted to the plenary of the European Parliament within 12 months together with its recommendations on the management of the use of surveillance software in the EU - Mr. Georgiou explained that there will be specialised hearings covering a wide range of critical issues surrounding the Pegasus case.
In addition, according to Mr Georgiou, in addition to the hearings, the Special Committee will carry out a series of fact-finding missions to Member States such as Spain, Poland, Hungary and Greece, as well as to third countries, such as Israel, which are reported to be involved, in one way or another, in the scandal.
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