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66 The LSE Identity Project <strong>Report</strong>: June 2005applications. Under current plans, every Belgian citizen will receive an identificationcard bearing his or her name and photograph, and two digital certificates, one of whichcan be used for authentication, the other as a digital signature for documents such asdeclarations or application forms. 149In February 2003, the Parliament approved the introduction of BELPIC, and the newcards were tested in 11 municipalities (communes) until September 2003. Followingthis, the government decided to roll out the cards to around nine million citizens by theend of 2006. Every Belgian citizen will be required to own an electronic ID card by theend of 2009. 150It appears that the Belgian Government is intentionally making spelling mistakes on itscards in order to confuse fraudsters, 151 which can only lead one to conclude that theyaccept that the card can be forged.FranceThe French have a long history of identity documents, numbers, and markings. In 1832,the French stopped branding criminals, but the following year they implemented acentral store of information on repeat offenders. In the 1800s all movement within thecountry was monitored through the use of internal passports, permitting police to followthe travels of migrants. Eventually this was abandoned on grounds of civil liberties inthe 3 rd Republic. But at the same time, the new Government invented a new identitycard with a fingerprint and central records storage, implemented in the 1920s, thoughonly in one French Department (Seine). This system was not implemented across theentire country due to strong resistance, mainly from the French Human Rights League,the CGT Union. 152 This changed under the Vichy regime. The system was thengeneralized and complemented by an identification number, together with themandatory declaration of any change of residence address. 153In response to the fall of the Vichy regime, the card was changed in 1955 to removereference to religious belief (particularly the tag ‘Juif’). The central records-file wasalso abolished. In 1974 the Government decided to phase out the collection of thefingerprint, and began moving towards an optional card, where the holder’s address hadonly an indicative value. This gradual reduction in the regime represents a strongerregard for civil liberties in the face of identity cards.A first attempt to introduce a digitized ID card (originally promised to combat illegalimmigration, terrorism, and identity theft) was halted in 1981 after a change ofGovernment, but 1987 saw the introduction of a new identity card, made of plastic anddesignated as ‘secure’. 154 This is the form of the current national ID card. It is notmandatory and, while a fingerprint is taken, it is not digitized and does not appear on the149 ‘Privacy and Human Rights 2004’, Electronic Privacy Information Center and Privacy International, October2004, available at http://www.privacyinternational.org/phr.150 ‘Price hike for Belgium’s e-ID cards’, Expatica, July 26, 2004.151 ‘Belgians in cunning misspelt ID card plan’, Jan Libbenga, The Register, May 26, 2005.152 Audition de M. Gérard NOIRIEL historien, directeur d’Etudes à l’Ecole des Hautes Etudes en Sciences Sociales(EHESS), presentation given to the Commission Nationale de L’Informatique et des Libertés, February 15, 2005.153 Audition de M. Pierre Piazza, presented to the Commission Nationale de L’Informatique et des Libertés, April 8,2005.154 Décret n°87-178 du 19 mars 1987 portant création d'un système de fabrication et de gestion informatisée descartes nationales d'identité. Journal officiel du 20 mars 1987, pages 3174-3175.
The LSE Identity Project <strong>Report</strong>: June 2005 67card. It is stored securely, and only on paper. While it can be accessed by a judge, in aspecific case where the police already have a suspect, conditions for access are tightlyregulated. 155A central database has been introduced, but it is limited only to the delivery of the cardsystem. The information on the database is kept to a minimum, and apart from theinformation on the card, it includes information on the history of the card, though noaudit trail of its use is generated. This information may only be accessed by thoseresponsible for the management of the card system. Although the police may accessinformation in the database, they are limited to accessing the name, sex, birth date, andcard number, only in circumstances involving an offence. 156 The linking of one file withany other is disallowed. There are also strict rules regarding the reading of the cards:when read electronically, the card information cannot be stored unless it is for cardmanagement purposes. Contact with the central register is only permitted to verifywhether the card has been stolen. 157 To this day, in France there are continued negativeresponses to the centralisation of personal information. 158Currently, there are two separate innovations planned for the French card. One isemerging from the Ministry of State Reform, the other from the Interior Ministry.France I: E-Government Strategic PlanThe French Minister for State Reform is overseeing the implementation of a strategicplan to provide services to citizens, the private sector, and the public sector supportedby e-government initiatives. 159 The plans emphasises the need for user-friendly andaccessible solutions that create a climate of trust.In its plan to enhance e-government, the French Ministry of State Reform aims for auser-oriented system, allowing for multiple forms of identification. The emphasis is onsimplicity and proportionality, and the amount of information collected will beminimised to increase the confidence of users. The French Ministry of State Reformacknowledges that e-government gives rise to two contradictory requirements:- simplifying registration and personal data management for the users would entailbreaking down the barriers between government departments, making exchangesflow more smoothly without the user being systematically asked repeatedly fordocuments, for example, which he has already supplied;- upholding the protection of personal data, which may in fact restrict theinterconnections between government departments.The French Ministry of State Reform is clear on how to resolve this conflict:“Government guidelines are clear: do not authorise uncontrolledgeneralised exchanges between departments. However, the155 Article 5, ‘Décret n°55-1397 du 22 octobre 1955 : Décret instituant la carte nationale d'identité’, available athttp://www.legifrance.gouv.fr/texteconsolide/PQHEU.htm156 Article 11.157 Article 12.158 Audition de M. Gérard NOIRIEL.159 The French E-Government Strategic Plan (PSAE) 2004-2007,http://www.adae.gouv.fr/IMG/rtf/Le_plan_strategique-GB.rtf.
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