IO, Jakarta – A work meeting discussing the Personal Data Protection Draft Law was held between Commission I of the House of Representatives (Dewan Perwakilan Rakyat – “DPR”) and the Ministry of Communications and Informatics in Commission I Meeting Room, Parliamentary Complex, Senayan, Jakarta, on Tuesday (25/2/2020). Minister of Communications and Informatics Johnny G. Plate started by explaining the scope of personal data protection, starting from the concerns of data owners to the required sanctions against abuse of personal data. “In general, the scope of personal data protection includes the public sector, whether the government or private, whether individual or corporation, with or without legal entity,” he said.
Johnny hopes that he can finish his discussion of Personal Data Protection Draft Law with the DPR and validate it into Law as quickly as possible. He wants Indonesia to be the fifth ASEAN country and 133rd country in the world to have a Personal Data Protection Law.
Johnny further stated that the ASEAN countries that already have Personal Data Protection Law include Malaysia, Singapore, the Philippines, and Thailand. He pushes for this law as it ensures protection of citizens’ personal data. “Personal data protection in many countries emphasizes regulations on scope of validity, mostly extra-territorial; the classification of personal data types; the principles of personal data protection; the rights of personal data owners; validity requirement for processing personal data; and sanctions against misuse of personal data,” he said.
The Personal Data Protection Draft Law suggested by the Government includes excerpts from personal data protection rules in countries that are harmonized with relevant rulings in various sectors. “Therefore, the Government opines that the Personal Data Protection Draft Law is a framework for a stronger, more comprehensive regulation for protecting human rights and processing personal data, whether domestically or cross-border,” Johnny said.
He further stated that the Personal Data Protection Draft Law is the legal basis for Indonesia in protecting its national sovereignty, safety, and personal data of its citizens, no matter where the personal data is located. “The Draft Law includes legal actions both within and outside of Indonesian territory, whether it is within or outside of Indonesia’s national jurisdiction – as long as it has legal consequences within Indonesian territory or it legally affects an Indonesian citizen,” Johnny said.
Furthermore, in order to ensure that there are legal consequences for violators of personal data rights, the Draft Law also regulates administrative sanctions, civil sanctions and criminal sanctions for such violations. “An administrative sanction can be in the form of written warning, damages claim, or administrative fines. Criminal sanctions are to be directed towards personal data misuse, while civil disputes are resolved by means of compensating the victim,” he said. (des)