Australian Privacy Charter Council
© Australian Privacy Charter Council, 2002
This document is at http://www.privacy.org.au/apcc/index.html
Welcome to what was the former home page of the Australian Privacy Charter Council (http://www.apcc.org.au/) That site has now been closed and archived.
The content formerly on the APCC site has been moved to the site of the Australian Privacy Foundation (new address: http://www.privacy.org.au/apcc).
The Australian Privacy Charter Council was designed to promote respect for all aspects of privacy, a basic human right recognised in international conventions, but as yet only partly enshrined in law in Australia.
In 1992 the Australian Privacy Charter Council was established, chaired by Justice Michael Kirby, and consisting of individuals from information technology, telecommunications, health care and credit industries, as well as lawyers, academics, privacy advocates and community leaders.
The Privacy Charter was the Council's main achievement. This Charter was launched in December 1994, and since then has been recognised around the world as a significant contribution to the formulation of privacy rights. It is a concise statement of the criteria which need to be met if individuals are to have confidence that their right to privacy is respected. The Privacy Charter extends beyond information privacy (a.k.a. "data protection") into areas such as privacy of the person (including the body), privacy of communications, and freedom from surveillance.
The Charter's influence was seen in particular in the inclusion of the right to anonymity in the Federal Privacy Commissioner's 1998 National Principles for the Fair Handling of Personal Data. This newly accepted right was subsequently incorporated in the amendments to the Federal Privacy Act in 2000 to cover the private sector.
The Privacy Charter Council operated independently of the Australian Privacy Foundation until 2002 when, having served its purpose, it was wound up. It handed the Privacy Charter to this Foundation as a still-current and relevant benchmark standard.
Please see the Australian Privacy Foundation site for a copy of the Privacy Charter, the history of the Council and the Foundation, and lots more on privacy in Australia.
The reader is encouraged to explore the Australian Privacy Foundation website for opportunities of membership and contributions in this on-going struggle for personal privacy in Australia. Please visit and bookmark: http://www.privacy.org.au/
Date of closure of this site: May 2003
email: enquiries@privacy.org.au
Mailing Address:
The SecretaryCameron J. (1994) 'Draft Australian Privacy Charter released', (1994) Privacy Law & Policy Reporter 1, 7 (1994) 136, at http://www.austlii.edu.au/au/journals/PLPR/1994/106.html
Dixon T. & Greenleaf G. (1995) 'Privacy Charter launched' Privacy Law & Policy Reporter 2, 1 (February 1995) 20, at http://www.austlii.edu.au/au/journals/PLPR/1995/13.html
Dixon T. 'Privacy Charter sets new benchmark in privacy protection' Privacy Law & Policy Reporter 2, 3 (April 1995) 41, at http://www.austlii.edu.au/au/journals/PLPR/1995/30.html
CLC (1996) 'Communications Law Centre wants IPPs revised in line with Australian Privacy Charter', Privacy Law & Policy Reporter 3, 9 (September 1996) 171, at http://www.austlii.edu.au/au/journals/PLPR/1997/4.html
APCC Home-Page (this page)
Created: 13 February 2000
Last Amended: 2 June 2003
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