Metamorphosis Foundation supports the initiative of EDRI, a European Digital Rights initiative that Metamorphosis is part of, in calling out the Commission’s Digital Omnibus as a major rollback of EU digital protections. You can read the full press release here.
Source: EDRi
The European Commission’s proposed Digital Omnibus represents one of the most significant rollbacks of digital rights protections in the EU to date. Although it is presented as a technical exercise aimed at simplifying and harmonising legislation, CSOs such as EDRi warn that it would reopen and weaken key pillars of Europe’s digital rights framework, including the GDPR, the ePrivacy Directive, and parts of the AI Act. For North Macedonia, a country actively aligning with EU standards and aspiring to strengthen democratic governance through digital transformation, these developments should not be perceived as distant or irrelevant.
Even though North Macedonia is still not an EU member, European regulatory standards shape how digital policies evolve across the region. Our institutions, companies, and CSOs tend to align with EU norms, mostly through legal harmonisation or through our dependence on EU-based technologies and platforms. In case the EU weakens its privacy safeguards or limits the scope of personal data protection, this will send a very strong message that such weakening оf the rules is acceptable, making it more difficult for countries like ours to insist on stronger, citizen and human rights centered standards. This is especially concerning in the process of us trying to advance transparent and accountable e-services, build public trust, and ensure inclusion of vulnerable communities in the digital sphere.
For North Macedonia, the risks are especially critical. Weakening EU privacy rules may lead to broader acceptance of practices that allow companies to access data from personal devices more easily, profile individuals without meaningful consent, or use sensitive information for training AI systems with limited oversight. These tendencies disproportionately harm vulnerable communities that are already exposed to discrimination, data misuse, and limited ability to challenge algorithmic decisions. In case the regulatory environment shifts towards “corporate convenience” as opposed to public protection, these communities could face even deeper digital inequities.
In such case, this rollback in the EU could undermine years of effort to promote responsible digital governance, which may encourage institutions to adopt similar “lighter” approaches to data governance, placing efficiency above rights, or speed above safeguards. This would directly contradict our ongoing efforts to ensure that digital transformation works for protecting and serving the citizens, and not at their expense or harm.
This is why these developments around the Digital Omnibus should be closely followed and publicly discussed in North Macedonia, as what happens in the EU directly influences our digital future. As we shape our own legal frameworks, digital transformation strategies and e-services, we must insist that privacy, transparency, and accountability remain non-negotiable foundations, without allowing for regional trends to normalise weaker protections or reduce digital rights to a matter of administrative convenience. Instead, we should focus on responsible digital transformation that requires strong safeguards, inclusive processes, and a commitment to protect all communities, especially those most at risk.
Share:
