On November 2, the Department of International Law (DIL) of the Secretariat of Legal Affairs received a visit from the Permanent Observer Missions of the European Union, the Kingdom of Spain, the Swiss Confederation and the Holy See to learn about the content of the Updated Principles on Privacy and the Protection of Personal Data adopted by the OAS General Assembly in 2021, and previously adopted by the Inter-American Juridical Committee (CJI) that same year.

The event consisted of two presentations by the DIL, followed by an informal dialogue to exchange opinions and identify opportunities for joint work, as part of a series of talks that the DIL has undertaken on different topics both with the Permanent Missions to the OAS and with Observers as well with other strategic partners.

The protection of privacy and, in particular, personal data, has been on the Organization's agenda since 1996 since, by mandate of the General Assembly, the CJI and the DI have worked on various documents in this regard.

As it seeks to contribute to the development of a framework in the countries of the Americas to safeguard a person´s right to the protection of their personal data and to self-determination with regard to information, the CJI has approved reports on “The Right to information: access and protection of information and personal data in electronic format” (2000); a “Proposed Declaration of Privacy Principles and Protection of Personal Data in the Americas” (2012); and the “Legislative Guide on Privacy and Protection of Personal Data in the Americas” (2015).

The Updated Principles seek to identify the basic elements of effective protection and, as an instrument of inter-American soft law, serve the Member States as a point of reference for strengthening their respective legal frameworks and steer the collective development of the region towards a harmonious protection of personal data.