Compliance with the law is an obligation for the public and even more so for the state, members of the House of Representatives' Legal Affairs Committee said on Wednesday during discussions on the way in which people are informed about traffic violations recorded by cameras and about the payment of fines from a human rights perspective.

MEPs examined a communication from Data Protection Commissioner Irene Loizidou Nicolaidou on a website where motorists can enter their identity card or other identification data, as well as their vehicle registration number, to find out whether they are entitled to fines.

The website contained a police warning about possible criminal proceedings.

This was an “attempt at intimidation,” the MPs said.

A state official said 100,000 mailed fines were returned and 65,000 were sent for personal delivery, but only 10,000 of those were delivered.

A representative of the company that operates the traffic monitoring said 25,000 fines had been paid.

He said there was unrest in the company as employee safety was increased.

In addition, the company did not have full access to the addresses, so the Justice Department promoted a bill to fix the problem, which would include notifying car owners of violations via text message.

The Committee learned that the Deputy Minister of Technology was against paying fines through CY Login as it would deter the public from registering.

In addition, it was pointed out that the post office will inform the company if a violator refuses to accept the notification.

A police spokesman explained that there were no errors in the use of the platform, but that improvements were possible based on the recommendations of the data protection officer.

The representative of the Cyprus Bar Association expressed concern about the investigation of violations on the platform, as a first-time violation should not be treated in the same way as a repeated violation.

The Justice Commissioner said she had an alternative way of delivering the fines and would present her ideas upon request.

After the meeting, MEPs said that the Data Protection Commissioner had not been consulted on the platform and that her recommendations should be adopted.

They also spoke of bullying and a violation of people's basic rights through the website and called on the public to abide by the law.

MEPs also proposed that violators should be allowed to pay fines in installments.




Source: CyprusMail.com
Author: Rebekka Gregoriades