In the aftermath of revelations made by ex-NSA employee Edward Snowden about violation of privacy of individuals by states in the name of surveillance, right to privacy became one of the highly debated rights. There is no doubt that the state must secure privacy of its citizens, but it also has a responsibility towards safety of the citizens. There exist different views related to privacy and surveillance. One view is that the state has no right to look into the private affairs of an individual while the other view is that there is no harm in putting someone suspicious under the surveillance as it is the duty of the State to prevent any untoward act in the society. Considering the contrasting views about privacy and surveillance, this article explores the position existing in the United Kingdom and aims to answer several questions pertaining to the Privacy v. Surveillance debate.
BALANCING THE PRIVACY V. SURVEILLANCE ARGUMENT: A PERSPECTIVE FROM THE UNITED KINGDOM
Assistant Professor of Law at Jindal Global Law School, O.P. Jindal Global University (India).
He holds a master’s degree in Law from Queen Mary University of London and bachelor’s degree in commerce as well as law from University of Delhi. He has written international articles on anticipatory bail law in India, copyright law and freedom of speech and expression. Before moving to academia, Vaibhav worked at the Offices of Advocate General of State of Nagaland, India, and Additional Solicitor General of India. His areas of interest include free speech, media law, and criminal law.
Resumo
Após as revelações feitas pelo ex-funcionário da Agência de Segurança Nacional (NSA) Edward Snowden sobre a violação da privacidade de indivíduos pelos estados em nome da vigilância, o direito à privacidade tornou-se um dos direitos mais debatidos. Não há dúvida que o Estado deve garantir a privacidade dos seus cidadãos, mas também tem a responsabilidade pela segurança dos mesmos. Existem diferentes visões relacionadas com privacidade e vigilância. Uma visão é que o Estado não tem o direito de examinar os assuntos privados de um indivíduo, enquanto a outra visão é que não há mal em colocar alguém suspeito sob vigilância, pois é dever do Estado impedir qualquer ato indevido na sociedade. Considerando as visões contrastantes sobre privacidade e vigilância, este artigo explora a posição existente no Reino Unido e visa responder a várias questões relativas ao debate Privacidade vs. Vigilância.
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Como citar este artigo
Chadha, Vaibhav (2022). Balancing the Privacy v. Surveillance argument: a perspective from the United Kingdom. In Janus.net, e-journal of international relations. Vol13, Nº. 1, May-October 2022. Consulted [online] on the date of the last visit, https://doi.org/10.26619/1647-7251.13.1.12
Article received on 15 August, 2021 and accepted for publication on 27 January, 2022
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