Demand for cameras in special education classrooms taken to court

KEDİ-Acceptance, Equality, Inclusion, Employment- Autism Association and the Shadow Educators Association have filed a lawsuit in the 8th Chamber of the Council of State, requesting the stay of execution and subsequent cancellation of the relevant articles in the Ministry of National Education's Regulations on Private Educational Institutions and Special Education Institutions.

Pointing out that there have been complaints reflected in courtrooms regarding psychological and physical violence faced by children with special needs in educational institutions, Serap Dikmen Ahmetoğlu, Chairperson of the Board of Directors of the KEDİ Autism Association, said, "We are concerned about the safety of children due to the incidents that have occurred. We want cameras to be installed in special education classrooms to protect them from all forms of violence, and for the necessary legal regulations to be made for this. Furthermore, the right of families to access the special education their children receive can also be ensured in this way. We believe that this will also increase the awareness level of parents regarding special education within the framework of student, teacher, and parent integration."

Regarding the process recorded, Ahmetoğlu stated the following:

"Examining national and international legislation, the KDK issued a recommendation decision stating that necessary work should be carried out in cooperation with a multidisciplinary approach that will strengthen the participation and communication of all relevant parties, including school administrators, teachers, students, and families. The KDK also informed us that, following the MEB's negative response, our right to file a lawsuit had arisen. We will seek our legal rights, and we will certainly ensure the safety of our children and the improvement of the quality of their education."

Stating that the MEB cited the Personal Data Protection Law (KVKK) as one of the reasons for its refusal, Attorney Suna Ağı pointed out that there are exceptions in the law.

"Article 5/2 (b) of the KVKK provides an exception for cases where it is mandatory for the protection of the life or physical integrity of the person himself/herself or another person who is unable to express his/her consent due to impossibility or whose consent is not legally recognized. Many individuals with special needs have difficulty understanding or expressing situations such as assault or abuse they encounter. In this direction, it is clear that the legislator's purpose is not to violate the right to education and even the right to life of people in need of protection. Moreover, if a balance is to be observed between rights, the best interests of the child must be observed, as included in the international conventions to which we are a party and in our national legislation. Article 5/2 (f) of the KVKK also specifies the exception that 'data processing is mandatory for the legitimate interests of the data controller.' In other words, the camera system will also be in the interest of the personnel who may be under suspicion for a student who has been subjected to violence elsewhere or by another person."

News Source: 12punto