7 September 2008
The Australian Privacy Foundation challenges Parties and candidates participating in the 2007 A.C.T. Election to make clear their positions on the following critical matters.
The imposition of RFID Tags on prisoners, staff and visitors at the new corrective services facility is degrading, and counter-productive to rehabilitation of offenders. The plan must be halted.
Further information is at http://www.privacy.org.au/Papers/Ltr-ACTCSM-070705.pdf.
Cameras rarely save lives or reduce crime, and their purchase, installation and ongoing operation divert scarce resources from more productive uses. Camera installations and supporting infrastructure must be evaluated, and ineffective ones removed. New proposals must be subjected to sceptical evaluation and no longer approved as kneejerk reactions to public safety concerns.
The Government presses ahead with too many projects without the benefit of informed views from the public. Processes must be adapted to ensure that, at an early stage in the process, information is distributed, and consultations take place with representatives of the affected public, and with advocacy organisations such as the Australian Privacy Foundation and Civil Liberties Australia.
An example of such a project is the mooted introduction of swipe cards in schools. For further information, see http://www.privacy.org.au/Papers/Ltr-ACTEd-070926.pdf.
The Human Rights Commission is powerless, and is simply used as a rubber stamp. The HRC must be re-constituted, in order to make an actual contribution to human rights in the Territory.
The arrangement whereby the federal Privacy Commissioner also performs that function in the A.C.T. is not serving the needs of A.C.T. residents. The arrangement must be rejuvenated and upgraded, so that an active advocate for privacy rights exists within the A.C.T. government.