An international conference on pandemic response and human rights debate in the digital age was staged by Taiwan Nov. 23, underscoring the government’s commitment to safeguarding universal values.
Jointly organized by the National Human Rights Commission and Academia Sinica, the one-day event was attended by domestic and foreign experts, officials, representatives and scholars, including Chen Chu, president of the Control Yuan and chair of the NHRC; Bijan Moini, Berlin-based Society for Civil Rights head of legal; and Park Kyung-sin, Korean University law professor and Seoul-based Open Net executive director.
In her opening remarks, Chen said the Joint Statement on Data Protection and Privacy in the COVID-19 Response was issued by 16 organizations such as the United Nations, World Health Organization and Office of the U.N. High Commissioner for Human Rights. It spotlights the collection, use, sharing and further processing of data to help limit the spread of the virus and aid in recovery acceleration, especially through digital contact tracing.
According to Chen, in the post-pandemic era, it is necessary to continue evaluation of the impact and challenges to human rights caused by pandemic response measures. Facing global health crises, the government is expected to strike a balance between public interests and health rights, she said.
NHRC is overseen by the president and nine members of the Control Yuan. Following the Paris Principles adopted in 1993 by the U.N. General Assembly, it is set to review abuse and discrimination grievances, as well as draft the National Human Rights Report and advise government agencies on related policymaking. (DL-E)
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