‘The Duty to Remember v the Right to be Forgotten: Holocaust Archiving and Research, and European Data Protection Law’: Notes from Arye Schreiber’s seminar hosted by NINSO, the Northumbria Internet & Society Research Interest Group

Abstract

Justice is elusive, particularly if it is the mirror of society and law: the seminar given by Arye Schreiber is a powerful statement underlining the boundaries the law sets to justice, giving a new perspective with regard to the horrific happenings during the Holocaust. “Justice” in this context, represents the interaction between a painful sentiment of “never will I forget but always will I need to remember”, guided by the moral imperative to provide justice for victims, through Holocaust research. The seminar brings together two bodies of literature on Holocaust research and privacy laws, arguing that privacy illustrated a major barrier to justice for Holocaust victims and continues to be an impediment in light of the new data protection regulation, the General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR).

The present contribution is a report of Arye Schreiber’s seminar organised by the Northumbria Internet & Society Research Interest Group (NINSO). The NINSO group is a multidisciplinary research group that shares research interests on technology and its significance in law, computer-science, social sciences, and engineering. Being interested in a holistic outlook of technological developments, it frequently organises seminars that aim to strengthen both, collaborations as well as the quality of academic research in this area.

Keywords: Obstruction of Justice, Holocaust, General Data Protection Regulation