The United Nation General Assembly has passed a unanimous resolution to protect the people's right to privacy in a unanimous vote. The new resolution seeks to protect individuals from unlawful surveillance using digital means.
The passing of the resolution, which took place on Wednesday, comes hot on the heels of the controversies surrounding the U.S. government's surveillance programs.
The resolution was proposed by both Brazil and Germany after reports of U.S. activities on international data collection were made public. The controversies were further heightened by the fact that the U.S. ntelligence agnecies had also spied on German Chancellor Angela Merkel and Brazilian President Dilma Rousseff. The allegations surrounding American eavesdropping activities had sparked international outrage and debate in many countries.
The resolution adds a few clauses to the general human rights of privacy due to the fact that recent changes in technology have brought about a need to update the current definitions of privacy. The new resolution calls upon the United Nations members to uphold the following clauses:
a. To respect and protect the right to privacy, including in the context of digital communication;
b. To take measures to put an end to violations of those rights and to create the conditions to prevent such violations, including by ensuring that relevant national legislation complies with their obligations under international human rights law;
c. To review their procedures, practices and legislation regarding the surveillance of communications, their interception and collection of personal data, including mass surveillance, interception and collection, with a view to upholding the right to privacy by ensuring the full and effective implementation of all their obligations under international human rights law;
d. To establish or maintain existing independent, effective domestic oversight mechanisms capable of ensuring transparency, as appropriate, and accountability for State surveillance of communications, their interception and collection of personal data;
While the resolution can be considered a large step in the right direction to safeguarding the privacy of governments as well as their citizens against digital espionage, enforcing U.N. resolutions remains problematic due to the fact that these agreements are non-binding. It means governments and their agencies can simply choose to ignore these clauses without fear of any consequences.
