Loop Jamaica published an article on August 3, 2020, about the Press Association of Jamaica (PAJ) urging the government to reconsider the Data Protection Bill as it may pose a threat to journalism. Here’s a quick summary just for you
The Press Association of Jamaica (PAJ) urges the government to withdraw and to revise specific provisions of the Data Protection Act, although legislation is already in effect. The PAJ stated that its assessment of the potential risks to journalism posed by the initial Bill led to its initial, far-reaching submission.
Key points:
- The PAJ stated that while the Office of the Information Commissioner will now after the fact, be subject to Parliament’s oversight committee, this does not address the clear and present risk of the chilling effect of the Office’s judgement on the publication of the news. The Media Association of Jamaica (MAJ) shares this concern, which has also expressed dissatisfaction with the passage of the Act.
- It added that forcing disputes through the judicial system could well lead to the killing of important pieces of journalism and would, arguably, amount to the granting of a license for the imposition of prior restraint, which in journalism is almost always unacceptable.
- “We find it incredible that our legislators have ignored the negative and problematic effects of that legislation in all the references to the implementation of data protection legislation in Europe, hell-bent on their race to implement the tapes,” the statement added.
- Reporting that it is not too late, the PAJ called on the government to “cry cree,” rethink and submit the legislation to Parliament for reconsideration.
Reference: loopjamaica.com
Contributed by: Sabrina Shim from Jamaica. Sabrina is a member of the WISC Discord group from the G5 Cyber Security Foundation Ltd. Learn more about WISC (Women in InfoSec Caribbean) at wiscaribbean.org. WISC is a non-profit initiative supporting Caribbean women and girls to develop a career in Information Security.