The right to privacy includes the right of individuals to lead their lives in a manner that is reasonably secluded from public scrutiny, and the right to make personal decisions regarding their lives. The importance of privacy and the multitude of practices through which privacy is breached are not fully appreciated by policymakers, businesses as well as the general public in Sri Lanka.
This paper discusses the importance of the right to privacy and seeks to critically respond to several developments in Sri Lanka. It suggests that in order to effectively protect the right to privacy, it is essential to incorporate a justiciable right to privacy within the chapter of the Constitution on Fundamental Rights. However, this alone would not be sufficient as the meaningful enjoyment of a constitutional right to privacy would depend on access to legal remedies, an effective institutional framework as well as societal acceptance of the value of privacy.
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