Privacy Protection Act

Privacy Protection Act
A resolution to improve worldwide human and civil rights.


Category: Human Rights

Strength: Significant

Proposed by: Christian Democrats

Description: The General Assembly,

Believing that each and every person has the right to keep certain affairs private,

Recognizing that a void in international law currently exists with regard to this matter,

Seeking to provide basic protection of the right to privacy for the good of all peoples,

1. Declares that every person has a right to privacy that extends to all lawful actions that occur out of public view and to all lawful actions, places, and other matters for which a subjective expectation of privacy and a reasonable, or objective, expectation of privacy exist;

2. Prohibits infringement on the right to privacy by member states, their political subdivisions, and all state (governmental) actors thereof within their respective areas of jurisdiction subject to this resolution and past and future resolutions enacted by this Assembly;

3. Affirms that this resolution does not protect privacy with regard to unlawful actions (or matters) and actions that occur within public view;

4. Further affirms the legality of the following under the law of this Assembly as not infringing on the right to privacy:

Conducting or attempting to conduct a legal arrest or pursuing a criminal suspect;

Conducting a search or seizure with a warrant or similar authorization because of a possible legal violation by the person or possibly involving the person who is being searched, whose property is being searched, or whose property is being seized;

Conducting a search or seizure without a warrant or similar authorization because a compelling public interest exists (for example, there is an imminent threat to public safety);

Monitoring or conducting legal surveillance of a criminal suspect or an associate;

Requiring that a person testify about something that is private when violations of the law are suspected or during the course of a lawful trial;

5. Allows persons to waive their privacy rights so long as uncoerced and informed consent is provided;
6. Clarifies that reasonable, or objective, expectations of privacy might vary regarding similar actions, places, or other matters in different jurisdictions because of differences in culture and so forth;

7. Notes that this resolution provides only minimum protections of the right to privacy and that member states themselves or this Assembly may enact greater protections of the right to privacy than what is provided in this resolution; and

8. Expresses the openness of this Assembly to further debate and consideration of legislation regarding privacy rights in more specific areas, especially for circumstances in which the rights and obligations of the individual are unclear or unassured.