PRESS RELEASE
10 March 2016

The public must have a say on proposed intrusion on right to privacy

Amnesty International is warning the Government that any proposed legislative change coming out of the review of Intelligence and Security in New Zealand cannot be pushed through Parliament under urgency.

The report from the first independent review of intelligence and security was released yesterday and recommends giving the GCSB the power to collect New Zealanders’ private data.

Responding to the report, Amnesty International said that any shift in the state's powers to encroach on the freedom and privacy of its people must go through a robust democratic process.

“We need an assurance from the Government that any proposed surveillance legislation will be properly debated and put up for scrutiny by the public,” Amanda Brydon, Advocacy Manager at Amnesty International.

“Amnesty International was appalled by the Government's use of urgency in 2014, where legislation was pushed through Parliament under urgency with no proper democratic process to consider international law and human rights obligations.

“This is not how a democracy operates and for issues as complex as this we must be given the chance to examine the harm of encroaching on citizen’s rights.”

Amnesty International welcomed the calls in the report for clarity on the role of the security agencies and the recommendation for greater checks and balances on surveillance power. However proposals from the review also have serious implications for the human rights of New Zealanders regarding their ability to enjoy their right to privacy and their freedom of expression in a society that values at it's core, the principles of freedom and democracy.

The Government’s ability to spy on it’s citizens is a global concern as powers that once seemed exceptional now become the norm.

Amnesty International recognises that governments can take measures that interfere with privacy if doing so is necessary, for example to protect other rights, but actions must be targeted, based on sufficient evidence of wrongdoing and authorised by a strictly independent authority, such as a judge.

However the organisation warns that under no circumstances is the practice of mass surveillance justifiable.

“There’s no questions that mass surveillance programmes are serious threats to human rights, they trample individual’s right to privacy and gravely threaten people’s capacity to freely express and share ideas and opinion,” said Amanda Brydon.

“However what we’re seeing is politicians around the world justifying this breach of human rights in the name of security.”

Amnesty International along with 10 other NGOs have taken a case to the European Court of Human Rights to determine the legality of mass surveillance. A response to this case by the government of the UK is due at the end of the month.

Amnesty International has also raised grave concerns with the UK government’s Investigatory Powers Bill, highlighting amongst other things that it lacks basic protections, including proper independent judicial oversight. Furthermore the huge and complex Bill is being rushed through Parliament on an impossibly short timetable.

“Amnesty International is strongly calling on the New Zealand government not to follow the practice of their counterparts in the UK, but rather provide for a process that allows for proper scrutiny and ensures legislation is consistent with New Zealand’s obligations under international law,” advises Amanda Brydon.

ENDS/

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