The December meeting organized by Eastern Mediterranean University (EMU) Faculty of Law in collaboration with the Personal Data Protection Board was hosted by EMU. The event took place on Friday, 1 December 2023 at 10:00 a.m. at EMU Senate Meeting Hall. Prior to the meeting, “Rights regarding the Protection of Personal Data in TRNC” workshop which focused on the protection of personal data right as well as other related rights was held.
EMU Rector Prof. Dr. Hasan Kılıç, Vice Rector Prof. Dr. Mustafa Tümer, Law Faculty’s Acting Dean Assoc. Prof. Dr. Arzu Alibaba and faculty academic staff members were present in the said workshop. Welcoming everyone during his speech delivered at the beginning of the meeting, Prof. Dr. Kılıç wished that the workshop would be beneficial. Moderated by the Chair of the Personal Data Protection Board Assist. Prof. Dr. Kaan Kutlay, the workshop was held with the participation of specialists from the EMU Faculty of Law and Technopark.
Presentation on “Relation between the Right to Information and Personal Data”
EMU Faculty of Law Vice Dean and Personal Data Protection Board member Assoc. Prof. Dr. Demet Çelik Ulusoy stated that the goal of organizing the workshop is to bring together academic and technical expertise in the context of the right to personal data protection. EMU Faculty of Law academic staff member Assist. Prof. Dr. Can Azer who had contributed the preparation process of the Right to Personal Data Protection Act (ref. no. 89/2007), attended the event with his presentation titled “Relation between the Right to Information and Personal Data”. Focusing of the rights to information and personal data protection, Assist. Prof. Dr. Azer addressed the issue of public authorities avoiding providing information by citing personal data as a reason for not sharing information and data. Conveying the connection between the right to access personal data and right to information, Assist. Prof. Dr. Azer also provided explanations on the concept of overriding public interest in the context of freedom of expression and the protection of personal data.
Discussion on “Protection of Personal Data within the scope of Right of Personality”
In the event, EMU Faculty of Law Civil Law Major academic staff member Assist. Prof. Dr. Emine Koçano Rodoslu delivered a presentation titled “Protection of Personal Data within the scope of Right of Personality”. In her speech, Assist. Prof. Dr. Rodoslu examined the protection of personal data in the context of personality rights, focusing on the law of obligations and civil law. In her presentation, Assist. Prof. Dr. Rodoslu emphasized that the right to the protection of personal data is a value of personality rights and pointed out considerations that should be taken into account in cases of conflict between the right to the protection of personal data and other values related to personality rights, such as freedom of the press and the privacy of private life. Particularly addressing the development of the right to the protection of personal data in conjunction with freedom of the press, Assist. Prof. Dr. Rodoslu discussed the concept of overriding public interest, emphasizing that the primary legal basis for the processing of personal data is consent and elaborating on the conditions under which consent would be considered valid.
“Data Transfer and Data Security”
During the workshop, Necdet İcil, the Chair of the Board of Directors of the Technopark, who made significant contributions to the preparation of Law (ref. no. 89/2007), provided information to the Personal Data Protection Board on “Data Transfer and Data Security” topics. İcil drew attention to the circumstances under which data transfer occurs and explained the legislative process of Law (ref. no. 89/2007). In his speech, referencing European Union regulations, İcil highlighted the lack of adequate attention to data security. He emphasized the importance of data protection officers and spoke about impermeability tests and data security systems in relation to data security.
Following the workshop, the Personal Data Protection Board held its regular December meeting hosted by EMU. The workshop began with an opening speech by Assist. Prof. Dr. Kaan Kutlay, the Chair of the Personal Data Protection Board. The former chair of the board, Hürol Mear, and Assist. Prof. Dr. Raziye Nevzat, a former member of the board, also participated in the meeting to exchange views with the new chair and members.
