AFFIRMATIVE PRIVACY — GENERAL 7

PRIVACY IS ESSENTIAL FOR DEMOCRACY

PRIVACY IS KEY FOR DEMOCRACY

Fred H. Cate, Brookings Institution, 1997; PRIVACY IN THE INFORMATION AGE, E E2001 -mf p p. 24

The need for private space to develop, and reflect on, ideas and opinions is critical in a democracy. The exercise of independent judgment, according to Westin, requires time for sheltered experimentation and testing of ideas, for preparation and practice in thought and conduct, without fear of ridicule or penalty, and for the opportunity to alter opinions before making them public.... Without such time for incubation and growth, through privacy, many ideas and positions would be launched into the world with dangerous prematurity.17

DEMOCRACY PROTECTS INDIVIDUAL'S PRIVACY

Ann Cavoukian, Ph. D, Info. and Privacy Commission in Ontario, and Don Tapscott, Alliance for Converging Technologies, 1997; WHO KNOWS, EE 2001 -mfp p. 14-15

In a democracy, citizens have many freedoms. We can hold a wide range of political views, religious beliefs, views on the economy, opinions on how our schools should be run, views on the environment and on our health care system, you name it. Freedom of thought is intrinsic to a democracy.

Privacy protects that freedom of thought. With privacy intact, you can pick when, where, and with whom you choose to share your views. That's what freedom is all about, free will and selfdetermination. You get to decide-not the state, not the police, not your boss, not your mother, not your partner, not your friends, not your neighbors.

Perhaps the only way to truly appreciate privacy is to imagine what life would be like without it. In Big Brother; Simon Davies writes: "People who have no rights of privacy are vulnerable to limitless intrusions by governments, corporations, or anyone else who chooses to interfere in your personal affairs. Imagine a world where government had an unfettered right to demand information from you, or to remove money from your bank account, or even to enter your house. The tragic history of many of the world's countries shows us that a nation denied the right of privacy is invariably denied all other freedoms and rights."'