Towards A Shared Legal Ecosystem for International Data Flows in Asia

Ninety of the best experts and high-level government officials in the region gathered on 7 February 2018 at ABLI’s Forum “Towards A Shared Legal Ecosystem for International Data Flows in Asia”.

This key event was the first time in Asia that representatives from government, data protection regulators, industry and the legal community across 19 jurisdictions met to discuss how to achieve a common Asian framework to share and transfer information across international borders.

The fragmented data privacy laws and data localisation requirements in Asia are considered one of the biggest stumbling blocks to the development of the digital economy and e-commerce and for pushing up the costs of doing business in the region. The Forum is part of ABLI’s Data Privacy Project which aims to help address these challenges. More information about ABLI’s Data Privacy Project can be found here

The Forum also acted as a catalyst for other privacy events in Singapore this week, including seminars and workshops organized by the Personal Data Protection Commission, the Ministry of Trade and Industry and the Singapore Academy of Law. We are delighted that ABLI’s jurisdictional reporters played prominent roles at these side events.

Link to the Forum’s programme here.

Link to the Forum’s news release here.

Link to the paper prepared by Professor Graham Greenleaf, who chaired the session, for Session II of the Forum “The Legal and Business Risks of Inconsistencies and Gaps in Coverage in Asian Data Protection Laws” which summarises the gaps and inconsistencies in coverage as a basis for discussion here.

– The Welcome address being delivered by The Honourable the Chief Justice Sundaresh Menon

– The Honourable the Chief Justice Sundaresh Menon, the ABLI Secretariat and the Data Privacy Project Jurisdictional Reporters

– L to R

1.     Mr Leong Keng Thai, Deputy Chief Executive, Personal Data Protection Commission (Singapore)

2.     Ms Tran Thanh Ha, Deputy Director General, Department for International Cooperation, Ministry of Information and Communications (Vietnam)

3.     Mr Stephen Kai-yi Wong, Commissioner, Privacy Commissioner for Personal Data (Hong Kong)

4.     The Honourable the Chief Justice Sundaresh Menon, Chief Justice, Supreme Court of Singapore

5.     Mr John Edwards, Privacy Commissioner, Office of the Privacy Commission (New Zealand)

6.     Mr Tan Kiat How, Commissioner, Personal Data Protection Commission (Singapore)

7.     Mr Yeong Zee Kin, Assistant Chief Executive/Deputy Commissioner, Personal Data Protection Commission (Singapore)

8.     Ms Ivy Patdu, Deputy Privacy Commissioner, National Privacy Commission (Philippines)