During the confinement imposed by the Covid-19 pandemic, internet connections, mobile phones and applications have allowed people to talk to family and friends, organize business meetings, and access cultural and entertainment contents. But through these very technologies, citizens generate masses of data, which in the hands of governments and tech companies can end up becoming a risk for democracy and jeopardize fundamental rights. It is in this context that the Foreign Section of Esquerra Republicana in Brussels organized the online debate “Overcoming Pandemics in the Digital Age: How to Guarantee Rights” on Wednesday, with German Pirate Party MEP Patrick Breyer as the keynote speaker.

“The more the digital world enters our lives, the more pressure there will be on our privacy. Europe must be a bulwark of fundamental rights, including digital rights,” said Jordi Solé, Esquerra’s Secretary for International Affairs who chaired the debate.

“Fundamental rights and democracies are being tested in the extraordinary emergency situations we are experiencing with the coronavirus crisis. We need to ensure that the restrictions on freedoms that citizens accept during the pandemic are not perpetuated once it is over,” said Mr Breyer, who has been an activist for the defence of civil liberties, consumer and citizen rights, especially in the areas of privacy, citizen participation and democracy. He considers this crisis is “an opportunity for more debate and more public pressure in favour of e-privacy rights and laws governing access to personal data.”

The more the digital world enters our lives, the more pressure there will be on our privacy. Europe must be a bulwark of fundamental rights, including digital rights

Jordi Solé Esquerra’s Secretary for International Affairs

In this regard, Mr Breyer warns that apps that record and track the virus may signify more disadvantages than advantages: “It is dangerous for a government to be able to control how many people are gathered in a given place, it poses a risk for democracy. Anonymity and privacy must be preserved” he explained during the webinar, which was attended by about 40 people from all over the world.

Esquerra’s Foreign Section in Brussels was established in December 2018 and was the first of the party’s sections abroad. Esquerra now also has sections in London and Berlin. “One of the aims of the Brussels section is precisely to help create and strengthen links with other left-wing and progressive political parties and organizations in both Belgium and other European countries in order to build common views on achieving a more egalitarian society and sustainable development, as well as contributing to a more federal EU, one that places human rights and fundamental freedoms at the