Beijing must ensure people's right to privacy

The case of Li Guanfeng, the 17-year-old son of the prominent People's Liberation Army singing artist Li Shuangjiang, is hitting the headlines again. A defence lawyer publicised a sternly worded statement last month, appealing to the public to respect the rights of his client, who has been detained, with four others, on suspicion of gang rape.

The statement reaffirmed the junior Li's status as a juvenile, condemned the ongoing "media trial" and dismissed the rumours circulating about the case. The lawyer urged media outlets and internet users to stop creating false information and airing groundless views, and claimed to reserve the right to sue those who infringe the suspect's legitimate rights.

In particular, the lawyer called on the public to comply with the Law on the Protection of Juveniles. By invoking this law, he presumably aims to address the infringements on Li's right to privacy. Under this law, the suspect's personal details, including his name, address, photos, videos or any other information that may reveal his identity, should not be disclosed to the public.

It is a positive signal that the Li family is ready to resort to the law to fight against the smear campaign and unauthorised disclosure of personal information. But it remains doubtful whether anybody will actually be sued. The damage to the minor's reputation has been done, and cannot be undone. If a lawsuit is filed, further media coverage and online commentaries will follow and add to the damage. Even if a lawsuit were successful, it would be questionable whether the verdict could ultimately solve the problem.

Nevertheless, privacy is a fundamental human right, enshrined in a number of international human rights instruments. It is also a crucial element of human dignity and other individual freedoms. The right to privacy enables a person to be free from outside intrusion both from state agencies and other citizens.

In mainland China, despite extensive academic discussions, the right to privacy has yet to be recognised as a constitutional right. The fact is that the protection of privacy relies on other constitutional rights such as the right to reputation, the inviolability of residence, and the privacy of correspondence. The Chinese government issued its first and second national human rights action plans in 2009 and 2012, but both plans made no explicit mention of privacy as a human right.

Currently, China does not have a statutory definition of "privacy", "personal data" or "personal information", let alone a uniform national law that specifically addresses the protection of this right. While a draft law on personal data protection was reportedly submitted several years ago, it was unclear when the proposed law would become a reality.