Unauthorized activity for a foreign power

Interior Min. Vít Rakušan of STAN is pushing hard for an amendment to the penal code from MP Martin Exner of STAN and others for making it a crime to engage in unauthorized activity for a foreign power. Rakušan said in Parliament yesterday that all three secret services agree on the wording. However, the Supreme Court said in the legislative-review process for a similar proposal that it had fundamental objections, in part because it was vague and was apparently designed to leave determination of whether activity is criminal to practical application of the law. The very name of the new Para. 318a - Unauthorized Activity for a Foreign Power - is misleading, the Court added, because it suggests that there can be legitimate and illegitimate activities for a foreign power, just as there are legitimate and illegitimate forms of business. If Rakušan wants to ban "unauthorized" activity, he should clearly define it and perhaps also set up an office for issuing permits for doing legitimate work for foreign powers.