The Right of Access to Information and the Right to Privacy : A Democratic Balancing Act

This publication gathers presentations from an international and trans-disciplinary workshop held at Södertörn University in December 2016. The workshop entitled The Right of Access to Information and the Right to Privacy: A Democratic Balancing Act was one of the many events which celebrated the 250th anniversary of the Swedish Freedom of the Press Act, the first legal instrument in the world laying down the right of access to official documents. A starting point for the workshop was the assumption that the right of access to information and the right to privacy are both necessary pre-conditions for a democratic society. Researchers from a broad range of fields were invited to discuss how these assumptions should be examined, and how the balance between the two interests should be assessed when conflicting with each other. The objective of the workshop was to broaden our understanding of various national and disciplinary approaches to the democratic balance between the right of access and the right to privacy. Among the conclusions we may draw from the workshop, and the articles emanating from it, is the confirmation of the need to strike the balance between the right of access and the right to privacy. This is certainly difficult, but since the two interests are both of such importance for democracy, we constantly need to make the effort. The articles in this volume contain information on some of the areas that need our further attention