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The press release published recently on the website of the National Center for Personal Data Protection of Moldova says that on January 31, 2015 NCPDP issued the Decision on Termination of the Processing of the Personal Data that Were Illegally Disclosed through the Video Entitled "Cruel Revenge of Former Lover" by PRO TV Chisinau. The decision provided that PRO TV Chisinau was "to delete/destroy the personal data of the relevant recordings immediately and inform NCPDP within 10 days about the actions taken to enforce the Decision".
On March 4, ICS Pro Digital SRL challenged the Decision of NCPDP in administrative court. "We qualify this Decision as unjustified and illegal, based on an erroneous interpretation of legal provisions, as well as on failure to acknowledge all circumstances in order to solve fairly the case, and hence liable to be canceled entirely", says the claim signed by the plaintiff in the person of Catalin Giosan, Manager of ICS Pro Digital SRL.
According to Sergiu Bozianu, Deputy Head of the NCPDP's Department for Record-Keeping and Oversight, "the move of PRO TV Chisinau caused utter puzzlement and shows that they do not regret the incident, despite their earlier statements".
Sergiu Bozianu stated that NCPDP, as the only public authority empowered to oversee the protection of individual rights and freedoms, requested PRO TV Chisinau to stop processing personal data. The NCPDP officials commented the matter during the public debate on the right to privacy in the media organized by the Press Council. In particular, NCPDP requested "deleting cash data", specified Sergiu Bozianu.
It is worth reminding that after the broadcasting of the video about the teacher from Ungheni, there were numerous critical opinions voiced in the media and through social networks, as well as demands that PRO TV Chisinau apologize publicly. Besides, at the meeting on January 29, the Press Council took action and recommended PRO TV Chisinau to apologize publicly during their newscast for having violated professional ethics. In turn, media organizations have sent an open letter to the management of PRO TV Chisinau, urging them to apologize publicly for the broadcasting of the video.
Despite pressure from civil society, the only outcome was that on January 23 PRO TV Chisinau published a public apology on their website, stating that "PRO TV Chisinau regrets these errors and apologizes to the teacher from Ungheni and everybody who felt offended by the broadcasting of these materials".
When asked by Media Azi to comment on the administrative lawsuit started by PRO TV Chisinau against NCPDP after about three months since the broadcasting of the video, Petru Macovei, director of the Independent Press Association, secretary of the Press Council, said that it showed that the TV channel "only mimed remorse, hoping to avoid trial". Petru Macovei said that, as far as he knew, the teacher featured in the video also sued PRO TV Chisinau and the TV channels risks a hefty fine. In addition, the management of the TV channel disregarded a number of appeals from various public institutions and NGOs, urging the TV channel to provide a public apology during their newscast that initially featured the video material.
Pro TV have acted unprofessionally, admitted the broadcasting of a material that tramples on the privacy of a person. At the Press Council meeting attended by the Director of the News Department at PRO TV Chisinau, Artur Corghencea, he "hinted that they had made a number of mistakes when broadcasting the video and that professional ethics had been violated. However, after extensive discussion, the only outcome was a phone call to the teacher from Ungheni and the publication of a public apology on their website. All other measures were dismissed", concluded Petru Macovei.
At the next week's meeting, the members of the Press Council are planning to adopt a statement about the behavior of PRO TV Chisinau, in the light of the latest developments.
