191 / 192
12.113
Section 63C was included under the Amendment Ordinance to exempt DPP1(3) and
DPP3 from application when their application will prejudice any of the following matters:
(a) identifying an individual who is reasonably suspected to be, or is, involved in a life-
threatening situation;
(b) informing the individual’s immediate family members or relevant persons of the
individual’s involvement in the life-threatening situation;
(c) the carrying out of emergency rescue operations or provision of emergency relief
service.
12.114
The term “immediate family member” is defined under section 63C(2) to mean, “in
relation to a person…another person who is related to the person by blood, marriage,
adoption or affinity”.
12.115
This exemption aims to cover the handling of personal data in emergency or
catastrophic situations where victims or missing persons require immediate assistance
and rescue. It will facilitate law enforcement agencies as well as rescue and relief
agencies to ascertain the identities of the persons involved in the incident, to locate
missing persons and to verify unconfirmed identities of persons who are in distress. These
agencies may need to collect personal data from the involved individuals, or approach
organisations or individuals holding relevant personal data to assist in rescue-related
work. Exemption from DPP1(3) and DPP3 would facilitate these operations and be in the
interest of the victims.
Section 63D— Transfer of Records to Government Records Service
12.116
Section 63D provides as follows:
Personal data contained in records that are transferred to the Government Records Service
is exempt from the provisions of data protection principle 3 when the records are used by
the Government Records Service solely for the purpose of –
(a) appraising the records to decide whether they are to be preserved; or
(b) organising and preserving the records.
12.117
In order to preserve Hong Kong’s documentary heritage, it is necessary for government
bureaux and departments to transfer records of historical value, including those
containing personal data, to the Government Records Service for archival purpose.
Transfer of such records containing personal data has to comply with the requirements
of DPP3. Given the vast array of purposes and functions performed by different
government bureaux and departments in collecting personal data, the transfer of the
personal data to the Government Records Service might not fall within a purpose
directly related to that when the personal data was originally collected and it is
impracticable to obtain the prescribed consent of the data subjects concerned for their
personal data to be preserved by the Government Records Service. The introduction of
this exemption under the Amendment Ordinance is therefore of practical significance in
balancing the right to personal data privacy with the public interest of freedom of
information.