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Viviane Reding

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Viviane Reding
European Commissioner for Justice, Fundamental Rights and Citizenship
Incumbent
Assumed office
9 February 2010
PresidentJosé Manuel Barroso
Preceded byJacques Barrot (Justice, Freedom and Security)
European Commissioner for Information Society and Media
In office
22 November 2004 – 9 February 2010
PresidentJosé Manuel Barroso
Preceded byJán Figeľ
Olli Rehn (Enterprise and Information Society)
Succeeded byNeelie Kroes (Digital Agenda)
European Commissioner for Education and Culture
In office
13 September 1999 – 21 November 2004
Serving with Dalia Grybauskaitė
PresidentRomano Prodi
Preceded byMarcelino Oreja (Culture)
Succeeded byJán Figeľ (Education, Training, Culture and Multilingualism)
Personal details
Born (1951-04-27) 27 April 1951 (age 73)
Esch-sur-Alzette, Luxembourg
Political partyChristian Social People's Party
Alma materUniversity of Paris
ProfessionJournalist

Viviane Reding (born 27 April 1951 in Esch-sur-Alzette) is a Luxembourg politician, currently serving as European Commissioner for Justice, Fundamental Rights and Citizenship. Before starting a professional career as a journalist for the leading newspaper in Luxembourg, the Luxemburger Wort, she obtained a doctorate in human sciences at the Sorbonne. From 1986 to 1998, she was President of the Luxembourg Union of Journalists. On November 27, 2009, she was upgraded in the "Barroso II Commission" to Vice-President responsible for Justice, Fundamental Rights and Citizenship, and is affiliated with the European People's Party (EPP).[1][2]

She is married and has three children.

Political career

She started her political career in 1979, as a Member of the Luxembourg Parliament and held the following positions:

She then became leader of Luxembourg’s EPP delegation in the European Parliament from 1989 to 1999 and she was a Member of the group's office.

Within the European Parliament, she has held positions as President of the Petitions Committee for about 3 years, and Vice-President of the Social Committee and the Civil Liberties and Internal Affairs Committee for about 2 years each.

From 1981 to 1999, she was Communal conciliator of the city of Esch, in which she was President of the Cultural Affairs Committee from 1992 to 1999.

From 1988 to 1993, she was national president of the Christian-Social Women and from 1995 to 1999 Vice-president of the Christian Social People's Party.

From 1999 to 2004, she was appointed Commissioner for Education, Culture, Youth, Media and Sport and in 2004 her responsibility changed to Information Society and Media. She is currently looking into the regulation on prices of roaming within the EU.

She has earned the following prizes and distinctions:

Commissioner

While serving in the European Commission under President Barroso, Viviane Reding found a relatively popular policy in seeking to lower roaming charges of mobile phones when travelling within the European Union, stating: "For years, mobile roaming charges have remained unjustifiably high. We are therefore tackling one of the last borders within Europe's internal market".[3] Her legislation to cap roaming charges was approved by the Parliament in April 2007.[4]

On 7 April 2006 the Commission launched the new ".eu" TLD for websites for EU companies and citizens wishing to have a non-national European internet address. This has proved popular with 2.5 million being registered by April 2007. It is now the seventh most popular TLD worldwide, and third in Europe (after .de and .uk).[5]

Reding has also proposed that major European telecom companies be forced to separate their network and service operations to promote competition in the market. The companies, including France Telecom and Deutsche Telekom, would still own their networks but the separate management structure would be obliged to treat other operators on an equal basis in offering access to the network. This is opposed to separate ideas to force a full break up of such companies.[6]

In 2008, the EU Parliament voted to pass the "Telecoms Package" which would render the entire markets of the region into one market, making it easier to sell internet and phone services in EU, with the goal of making the telecom prices cheaper for customers in EU. Among the many amendments to the proposal, amendment 138 was voted in favor of with 574 votes for, and 73 against. This particular amendment would require any termination of internet subscription to be heard in front of a judge. Viviane Reding said afterward that she hoped she could force the removal of the amendment, thus to some observers overruling the democratic process of the 647 cast votes.[7]

On 7 July 2010, Reding had an official meeting with the Secretary General of the Council of Europe, Thorbjørn Jagland, in order to launch joint talks on the EU's accession to the European Convention on Human Rights.[8] On that very occasion, she was assaulted by a man with mental health problems in front of the Palace of Europe.[9]

Controversy over Roma

Main article: French Roma repatriation

After the French Interior Ministry circular of 5 August 2010, in a public statement, Reding likened the 2010 French deportations of the Roma to those made from France by the occupying German forces during World War II: "I personally have been appalled by a situation which gave the impression that people are being removed from a Member State of the European Union just because they belong to a certain ethnic minority. This is a situation I had thought Europe would not have to witness again after the Second World War".[10]

The French government's claim that it was expulsing people on legal rather than ethnic grounds was later claimed to be "openly contradicted by an administrative circular issued by the same government" mentioning the illegal Romani camps specifically ("en priorité ceux des Roms").[11] This mention could be explained by the fact that Roma account for the overwhelming majority of foreign migrants setting up camps in France, and that "most Roma from the two countries [Bulgaria and Romania] are thought to be in France illegally".[12] French President Nicolas Sarkozy pointed out that the directive in question was canceled as soon as his government became aware of it. He stated that France continues to welcome refugees and that "we refuse the creation of slums... that are unworthy of the values of the French Republic or of European ideals." He also pointed out that 80% of the camps removed during August 2010 were of "gens du voyage", i.e. less than 20% were Romani camps; that most of the campers thus removed where not foreign citizens; and that all removals were done based on judicial decisions, i.e. they were not unilateral police operations as would be based on a circular directive.[13]

The French government responded by saying Reding had made an "unseemly blunder" and defended France as "the mother of human rights." President Sarkozy denounced Mrs. Reding's comments as "scandalous" and stated that "if Luxembourg wants to take in Roma, that is no problem" as far as France is concerned.[14] He also pointed out that Mrs Reding had been silent during larger-scale expulsions by other countries in earlier years, including by Italy specifically of its Roma during 2009, and when police rejected Romani travelers trying to enter Luxembourg. French Immigration Minister Eric Besson said that in her statement Reding "intentionally skids, if I may say, that is she uses an expression aimed to shock, that contains an anachronic fallacy, and that creates a false amalgam".[14]

Mrs Reding announced her intention to sue France at the European Court of Justice within two weeks. She subsequently privately recanted the historical comparison in her initial statement.[15] Her office apologized for the analogy.[16]

Whilst some media coverage has supported her actions, others called for her immediate resignation[17]

Fellow Commissioner for Employment, Social Affairs and Inclusion, László Andor (Hungary) declared that Reding did not mean the Holocaust, but the 'Great Devouring', the treatment of Europe's Romani population during the second world war. He said her comparison is historically accurate and he supports all her words.[18]

Notes

  1. ^ "Barroso gets new EU Commission team", BBC News, 25 November 2009. Retrieved November 28, 2009.
  2. ^ "Barroso II: 13 EPP Commissioners receive key portfolios", European People's Party, 27 November 2009. Retrieved November 28, 2009.
  3. ^ Roaming Charges Portal European Commission.
  4. ^ European parliament backs roaming price cuts Computer Business Review Online.
  5. ^ .eu Domain Names Top 2.5M in Year One Huffington Post.
  6. ^ EU Commissioner favours telecoms break-up Financial Times.
  7. ^ EU Parliament: Only judges can order 'Net disconnections.
  8. ^ European Commission and Council of Europe kick off joint talks on EU's accession to the Convention on Human Rights, hrea.org.
  9. ^ Viviane Reding agressée, Les Dernières Nouvelles d'Alsace Template:Fr icon.
  10. ^ "EU threatens France with legal action over Roma 'disgrace' — EUbusiness - European Union business news search and analysis". Eubusiness.com. 2010-09-14. Retrieved 2010-09-18.
  11. ^ See original circular pdf at: http://ovh.softdom.com/Circulaire_du_5août_2010.pdf
  12. ^ "BBC News - Q&A: France Roma expulsions". Bbc.co.uk. 2010-09-14. Retrieved 2010-09-18.
  13. ^ lefigaro.fr. "Le Figaro - Politique : Roms : à Bruxelles, Sarkozy maintient son cap". Lefigaro.fr. Retrieved 2010-09-18.
  14. ^ a b lefigaro.fr. "Le Figaro - International : Roms : l'Élysée fustige les critiques de Bruxelles". Lefigaro.fr. Retrieved 2010-09-18.
  15. ^ lefigaro.fr. "Le Figaro - International : Viviane Reding, la dame en rouge qui défie la France". Lefigaro.fr. Retrieved 2010-09-18.
  16. ^ http://www.nytimes.com/2010/09/17/world/europe/17union.html
  17. ^ Moore, Michael Scott (2010-09-15). "France Has Acted Systematically against an Entire People". Spiegel Online International. Spiegel Online. Retrieved 2010-09-17.
  18. ^ Phillips, Leigh (17 September 2010). "Reding did not mean the Holocaust, but the 'Great Devouring,' Andor says". EUobserver. Retrieved 18 September 2010. {{cite web}}: Cite has empty unknown parameter: |coauthors= (help)
Political offices
Preceded by Luxembourgian European Commissioner
1999–present 		Incumbent
Preceded byas European Commissioner for Culture European Commissioner for Education and Culture
1999–2004
Served alongside: Dalia Grybauskaitė 		Succeeded byas European Commissioner for Education, Training, Culture and Multilingualism
Preceded byas European Commissioner for Enterprise and Information Society European Commissioner for Information Society and Media
2004–2010 		Succeeded byas European Commissioner for Digital Agenda
Preceded byas European Commissioner for Justice, Freedom and Security European Commissioner for Justice, Fundamental Rights and Citizenship
2010–present 		Incumbent

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