香港南华早报就北京市公共安全图象信息系统管理规定采访徐灿律师

       就此问题香港南华早报记者李荣德采取了北京国联律师事务所律师徐灿先生，徐灿律师就此发表了自己的见解，徐灿律师认为：在公共场所安装监控探头肯定会对公民的个人隐私形成某种程度的威胁，但是出于公共安全的需要，公民个人让渡一些自由给政府，不仅是社会公共安全的需要，也是符合自己的利益诉求的，这就是卢梭在〈社会契约社〉中的观点。但是，政府因此便有了妥善地管理有关采集的信息的义务。而对一些因管理不善或恶意使用有关信息，造成对公民隐私权相关的人格权侵害的，有着规范性法律文件应制定出明确的有操作性的罚则。

      南华早报于次日在有关报道中刊发了徐灿律师的观点。全文如下：Headline: Surveillance regulations spark fears over privacy


Byline: Raymond Li



Beijing municipal authorities issued a draft regulation to speed up the installation of surveillance cameras in the capital, raising concerns the government is encroaching on individuals' privacy.

The draft regulation stipulates that the equipment must be installed in major public venues, such as government compounds, public areas attracting large crowds and important public infrastructures.

The guidelines, which are open for public comment until the end of the month, explicitly bar surveillance cameras from private premises.

They also spell out penalties and fines for any breach of privacy, despite the threadbare privacy protection offered by the mainland's statutes and civil codes.

Mainland authorities said the surveillance in public spaces was intended to address rising street crime and the threat of international terrorism.

Xu Can of the Beijing-based Guolian Law Firm said the new regulation went some way towards offering protection of privacy while addressing public security issues.

"However, it stops short of clarifying what entities can set up such surveillance infrastructure and how these facilities should be managed," Mr Xu said.

In Beijing, 263,000 surveillance systems have been installed by traffic police, government agencies and even schools and private companies.

They can be accessed by almost anybody, including security guards. Under existing regulations, the entities are barred from divulging their database.

But Mr Xu said "such footage is susceptible to abuses in the hands of voyeurs".

He said increasing surveillance in public places would no doubt lead to greater paranoia, "but that is a sacrifice the public might have to make in return for a sense of physical safety".