‘Privacy’ (II)
Privacy goes beyond one’s personal life in the house or in the room. It also extends to personal issues of confidentiality that require others to seek and obtain permission before accessing them with the eyes, ears or hands. It is not right to open and read other people’s diaries without permission. It is wrong to […]
Privacy goes beyond one’s personal life in the house or in the room. It also extends to personal issues of confidentiality that require others to seek and obtain permission before accessing them with the eyes, ears or hands. It is not right to open and read other people’s diaries without permission. It is wrong to open handbags or wallets without the express permission of the owner. Authorization has to be sought before opening the drawer or wardrobe of others. The diaries, wallets, handbags, drawers and wardrobes may contain items or information that pertain to the personal life of an individual, which he would not want unauthorized persons to see or get to know. Similarly, it is wrong to open the refrigerators or cabinets of other people because they may contain food items, beverages or medical herbs which the owner may not wish others to see. Photo-albums and GSM handsets are parts of the items, which we must not access without the permission of the owner; whether they belong to our wives or husband. The album may contain pictures, which the owner may not ordinarily like others to see, including pictures taken in early life. The phone book of one’s GSM handset, too, may contain numbers and text messages that are strictly confidential. Permission has to be sought before looking at these items.
It is also a violation of other people’s privacy to discuss their employment or service matters as contained in their files (open or confidential) with others. Service or medical records of other people must not be disclosed without the owner’s permission. Those who handle files in offices and hospitals owe it a duty to preserve and protect the privacy of their staff or patients respectively. It is not right to discuss or disclose the nature of the ailments of a patient to unauthorized persons. It also amounts to a breach of the privacy and confidence of customers for a bank staff to disclose details of credit or debit of any particular account without the authorization of the holder of the account. In fact, it is not right for anyone who by privilege knows about a person’s personal matters to disclose such without permission. For instance, anyone who by chance or by design knows and manages internal crisis of a particular family should not discuss such with unauthorized persons.
Respecting the personal right of every individual is a basic requirement for Islamic fraternity. If someone is reading or writing a letter, it is wrong to peep into it, unless permission is granted to do so. If two individuals are involved in a discussion over the telephone, it is wrong to eavesdrop or listen slyly to their conversation. It is also an encroachment upon other people’s right to open our audiotapes in a manner that will disturb their peace of mind. It does not matter whether the tape that is playing is of music or of religious preaching. We must learn to keep the volume of our tapes such that it does not constitute public nuisance, especially when one is sharing an apartment with others as obtains in university or college halls of residence. We pray to Allah (SWT) to guard us against searching the drawers, bags, purses, or going through diaries, books, files and other personal items that do not belong to us without the owner’s prior or express permission, amin.