Forum: Does M’sia need privacy laws?
By Florence A Samy, The Star
The Bar Council public forum entitled ‘Privacy: Does it exist in Malaysia? Is it time to legislate?’ also saw panelists calling for a speedy introduction of the much-awaited Data Protection Bill.
Stringent laws such as a Privacy Act, should be drawn up to protect a person’s privacy, a forum heard.
The Bar Council public forum entitled ‘Privacy: Does it exist in Malaysia? Is it time to legislate?’ also saw panelists calling for a speedy introduction of the much-awaited Data Protection Bill.
Criticism was also voiced out against the invasion of privacy of Selangor exco member and Bukit Lanjan assemblyman Elizabeth Wong who tendered her resignation after private semi-nude pictures were distributed publicly.
Wong, who is now overseas, had said the pictures were taken without her consent while she was sleeping at home.
Some participants also called for the abolishment of archaic laws such as those against oral sex.
One participant suggested amending the Federal Constitution to include the words “right to privacy” and allowing judges to interpret each situation before them.
Bar Council president Datuk Ambiga Sreenevasan, in her opening address, said the public must take personal responsibility in the fight against invasion of privacy.
“If someone sends you a picture, delete it and don’t spread it around. The media also needs to play its part by not sensationalising such news,” she said, adding that “what happened to Wong is a terrible invasion of privacy, causing a great lady to resign.”
Panelist Sonya Liew, who heads the initiative for privacy in the council’s Human Rights Committee, said there was no specific law to deal with privacy although there were certain provisions in current laws.
“We should have a Privacy Act, especially given the easy availability of surveillance and image capturing images in the market.
“This Act can fully encompass the different areas of privacy not covered under the Data Protection Bill,” she added.
Panelist and MCA think tank Institute of Strategic Analysis and Policy Research (Insap)’s chief executive officer Fui K. Soong said privacy existed in Malaysia but it was everyone’s responsibility to protect it.
“Different societies have varied views of what morality is. It is a challenge to come up with a privacy law as we cannot just take one case and treat it as a norm,” she said.
Bar Council Human Rights Committee deputy chairman and panelist Andrew Khoo questioned whether a privacy legislation could be used to legislate morality.
“Different people have different standards of morality. How do we decide which standard should be applied?” panelist and Malay Mail online editor U-En Ng said.
The question to ask was where should the line be drawn if a person was elected on purity grounds, Ng added.
“I find it peculiar that so many preach a moral high ground yet so many are obsessed over whether she took her clothes off or not,” said Ng, who resigned as editor to make a stand over the Wong issue.
