UNAIR NEWS – On Wednesday afternoon, June 24, 2020, Leiden University in collaboration with Human Rights Law Studies (HRLS) held the second of Leiden Lecture Series entitled “Covid Compared Constitutionally: Emergency Measures & Privacy Issues in Indonesia and the Netherlands “. The webinar invited participants in a constitutional comparative study of privacy issues in Indonesia and the Netherlands during Covid-19 pandemic.
HRLS Coordinator and UNAIR Human Rights expert, Dr. Herlambang P. Wiratraman as a speaker, opened the discussion by explaining that Indonesian constitution has not explicitly regulate the right to privacy. The 1945 Constitution of the Republic of Indonesia only guarantee norms leading to the right to privacy.
“In Article 28F jo. Article 28G paragraph (1) of the 1945 Constitution of the Republic of Indonesia, it is regulated that every person has the right to store information, protect himself and his dignity, as well as feel safe and protected from threat of fear. However, there is no single article that guarantees the right to privacy, “said the Leiden University alumnus.
Herlambang said that the leaking of 230 thousand COVID-19 patient identities in Indonesia was disturbing. Data such as name, place of birth date, gender, medical history, Covid-19 status, etc. are hacked and sold on a darkweb. He said that the incident was not the first time happened in Indonesia and would be repeated if the government did not take serious juridical steps.
“We see that this year there have been cases such as the incident experienced by Ravio Patra, hacking of FH UGM’s Constitutional Law Society Instagram account, and several online shops also experienced leaks. This is a very serious problem because a large economic impact can happen if these private data are in the wrong hands, “said the academic.
Therefore, Herlambang urged the government to immediately ratify legal products that regulate the protection of personal data, such as the Personal Data Protection Bill that has never been passed. He added that Indonesian law should guarantee the right to privacy in the Big Data era. He added, there is urgency to guarantee these rights because Indonesia had ratified an international agreement, the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights through Law No. 12 of 2005, where the agreement regulates the guarantee the right to privacy in Article 17.
“Quoting the theory from Yvonne McDermott, in this era of Big Data, a legal system should uphold these four values, privacy, transparency, autonomy, and non-discrimination. Indonesia should immediately catch up so that these 4 values are regulated in our legal system, “concluded Herlambang.
Author: Pradnya Wicaksana
Editor: Khefti Al Mawalia
