Protection of Fundamental Rights: Privacy, Honor, and Home
Protection of Fundamental Rights
Trial Balance: Triple Test
Adaptation: Control approval on the measure to determine whether conditions exist to meet the intended purpose.
Necesidad: No other equally effective measure exists to achieve the desired purpose.
Proportionality: Strictly to determine if the limit imposed on the fundamental right is reasonable and proportionate to the aim pursued.
Criteria for Interpretation of Rules
- Pro Homine (Favor Person): Apply the most favorable standard.
- Progressivity: Does not support legislative setbacks in the same structure. Human rights cannot be weakened or reduced.
- Evolutionary Interpretation: Interpret in accordance with current living conditions.
- Block-Constitutional Rights: Interpretation according to the block of constitutional rights.
- Feedback Rights: Between national and international levels, applying the most favorable rule.
Bodies Responsible for Ensuring Protection
- Human Rights Committee
- American Commission on Human Rights
- American Court of Human Rights
Privacy and Private Life
Intimacy: Very personal aspects of life, reserved for individuals and their families, outside the knowledge of the state or others.
Private Life: Issues, behaviors, documents, and reports that the owner does not want to be known (Cea Egaña) Art. 19 No. 4.
Exceptions: Consent of the owner / public interest / when acts constitute crimes.
Includes: Family / Sentimental Relationships / Economic Aspects / Health
Relationship with Honor: Violation of privacy does not involve disgrace but offends dignity / Violation of private life affects honor.
Protection of Privacy: Art. 17 Covenant of Civil and Political Rights and Art. 11 of the Covenant of San José de Costa Rica.
Resource Protection and Habeas Data
Right to Image:
- Positive: The individual’s ability to reproduce, expose, or publish their external image.
- Negative: Power to prohibit a third party from conducting such operations.
Inviolability of the Home (Art. 19 No. 5)
General rule: Protection applies regardless of the title held on the property.
Exceptions:
- Search: Act stemming from a competent entity with an injunction or cause.
- Relief: Violation made by bona fide claim to rescue.
- Health Inspections: Records made in homes and businesses providing basic services.
- Blatant Crime: When the criminal is found in the act.
Inviolability of all forms of communication / exceptions / protection mechanisms.
Right to Protection of Honor
Honor is the set of ethical qualities that allow a person to deserve consideration from others.
Scope
- Owner of the Right: Natural persons / families
- Range: Living persons / Deceased persons / Seniors / Minors / Chileans / Foreigners
Legal Persons and Honor
Majority opinion: Legal persons do not have honor; their representatives do.
Minority opinion: Affects the name or brand of the legal entity.
Crimes Against Honor
Slander: Allocation of a particular but false crime, prosecutable ex officio.
Defamation: Any expression uttered or performed to dishonor, discredit, or show contempt.
Injury Through Advertising
Libel made by the media with a higher penalty due to wider reach.
Protection Mechanisms
- Resource protection
- Judicial decision in case of collision of rights
Habeas Data
Constitutional action for individuals named in a register or database to access and request correction of information causing prejudice. Heard by the civil judge on duty.
Grounds for Habeas Data
- Lack of action on requests for information, modification, suspension, cancellation, or deletion.
- Refusal to process requests for reasons other than national security or interest.
- Withholding an application for national security or interest.
- Violation of Articles 17 and 18 of Law 19.628.
General Grievance Procedure
- Failure to respond within two working days or denial of information.
- Violation of Articles 17 and 18 of Law 19.628: Notification by ballot, five-day response period with proof.
- Final decision within three days of the deadline for submissions.
Procedure to Claim (National Security/Interest)
Applies only to public bodies, filed before the Supreme Court.
Residual Procedure
For any other offense covered by the summary procedure.
Penalties
Fines of 1-10 or 10-50 UTM for infractions related to economic, financial, commercial, or banking data.
Fines of 2-50 UTM for lack of timely information or delay in modification. Suspension from office for five to fifteen days for public officials.