Nicosia, Cyprus. Police union Isotita criticised the force’s decision to disclose that a driver involved in a Nicosia traffic accident was an off-duty police officer, raising concerns over privacy and the handling of personal information.
The criticism followed a police announcement that the 44-year-old officer was suspended on the instructions of Deputy Police Chief Panikos Stavrou after testing positive for alcohol following a road collision. The officer faces criminal and disciplinary investigations.
Disclosure concerns
Isotita spokesman Nicos Loizides said the union did not object to police confirming an individual’s profession when specifically asked, but questioned whether there was a legal basis for proactively publishing such information.
“The conclusion would therefore be that in every road collision, every positive alcohol test and every positive drug test, the police press office should publish the professions of the drivers involved,” Loizides said.
Call for clarification
Loizides called for clarification of the rules governing the disclosure of professional identities where individuals are not acting in their official capacity at the time of an alleged offence.
He said there was a distinction between taking disciplinary action against a police officer and making the officer’s occupation public.
Personal data
Loizides argued that personal data and information relating to police personnel should be treated separately.
“It is not by chance that our institution is being questioned when documents containing the names of police officers circulate so freely,” he said.
The union representative also criticised what he described as the public exposure of officers involved in incidents.