Little is known about the broader approach to the proposed ID system. The lack of transparency around such reform, is of concern particularly given the potential for digital registration to adversely impact socially and economically marginalised groups.121 At the planning and development stages of all digital identity systems, it is imperative to conduct meaningful consultations with a variety of stakeholders in order to establish whether the benefits outweigh the risks and to ensure a “do no harm” approach.122 According to guidance produced by the Engine Room, consent processes should be designed with the input of vulnerable groups, and risk assessments should also take into account those who will be left out due to a lack of the correct documents.123 Myanmar has a long history of using state surveillance activities to oppress political and ethnic opposition. Privacy International has highlighted the dangers associated with plans to make mandatory the collection of biometric information for mobile phone SIM card registration in Myanmar. They have pointed out that the alarming lack of legal safeguards in Myanmar would enable surveillance to be used to “arbitrarily target individuals and minorities”. They refer to the “legal void” in the regulation of data processing in Myanmar. Myanmar “does not have a data protection law in place” and broad scope to access information from telecommunications companies.124 In the case of digital identity systems, it is imperative that good data protection laws are in place that cover both data sharing and data retention.125 Of particular concern regarding the risks of state surveillance related to digital registration, is that Muslim communities throughout Myanmar have reported increased state surveillance, disproportionate scrutiny and harassment by state authorities after submitting passport applications.126 Given the lack of efficiency in the administrative systems in Myanmar, updating and improving filing systems relating to registration has potential to improve cumbersome civil documentation processes. If harnessed effectively towards social protection, it could also potentially streamline and improve access to services for those included in citizenship registration.127 With the right legal protections in place, where replacements of destroyed, confiscated, lost and stolen documents are hard to come by, it could potentially help to protect records of civil documents thus protecting citizenship and easing the evidentiary requirements of citizenship applications.128 According to MoLIP, the e-ID system would be rolled out in accordance with the 1982 Citizenship Law and one of the expressed purposes would be the national verification of Rohingya populations in Rakhine state.129 Without the Citizenship Law being brought into line with international standards, and without tackling arbitrary, corrupt and discriminatory administrative processes, the risks for marginalised communities, especially Rohingya, are very high.130 The recent past holds several warnings to international agencies and private companies. Data collection for the national census in 2014, also required Rohingyas to identify as Bengali. In this respect, Myanmar went against the advice of the UNFPA, which was providing technical and financial support.131 Due to this requirement, a large proportion of Rohingya refused to participate and were thus left out of national census data. As such, the census, which was widely understood as an attempt to erase Rohingya from national data sets, was widely criticised. Financial and logistical support was also provided by the UK, Australia, multiple European governments and the United States.132 P. Green, T. McManus & A. de la Cour Venning, ‘Genocide achieved, genocide continues: Myanmar's annihilation of the Rohingya’ (2018) available at: http:// statecrime.org/data/2018/04/ISCI-Rohingya-Report-II-PUBLISHED-VERSION-revised-compressed.pdf [accessed 13/11/2020] 121 M. Gilman, ‘Poverty Lawgorithms: A Poverty Lawyer’s Guide to Fighting Automated Decision-Making Harms on Low-Income Communities’ Data & Society (2020) available at: https://datasociety.net/wp-content/uploads/2020/09/Poverty-Lawgorithms-20200915.pdf [accessed 13/11/2020] 122 N. Brinham, ‘When Identity Documents and Registration Produce Exclusion: Lessons from Rohingya Experiences in Myanmar’ (2019) available at: https://blogs.lse. ac.uk/mec/2019/05/10/when-identity-documents-and-registration-produce-exclusion-lessons-from-rohingya-experiences-in-myanmar/ [accessed 11/11/2020]. 123 The Engine Room, ‘What to look for in Digital Identity Systems: A Typology of Stages’ (2019) available at: https://www.theengineroom.org/wp-content/ uploads/2019/10/Digital-ID-Typology-The-Engine-Room-2019.pdf [accessed 13/11/2020] 124 Privacy International, ‘Myanmar: Dangerous Plans for Biometric SIM Card Registration Must be Scrapped’ (2019) available at: https://privacyinternational.org/newsanalysis/3303/myanmar-dangerous-plans-biometric-sim-card-registration-must-be-scrapped [accessed 11/11/2020]. Myanmar does, however, have a 2017 law protecting the privacy and security of citizens, which to some degree, regulates private individuals acquisition and use of data (as opposed to the state). 125 The Engine Room, ‘What to look for in Digital Identity Systems: A Typology of Stages’ (2019) available at: https://www.theengineroom.org/wp-content/ uploads/2019/10/Digital-ID-Typology-The-Engine-Room-2019.pdf [accessed 13/11/2020] 126 Burma Human Rights Network, ‘BHRN Releases Report on Discrimination Against Muslim Passport Applicants’ (2018) available at: http://www.bhrn.org.uk/en/ report/1051-bhrn-releases-report-on-discrimination-against-muslim-passport-applicants.html [accessed 13/11/2020] 127 M. Panguestu, ‘Harnessing the power of digital ID’, World Bank Blogs (August 2020), available at: https://blogs.worldbank.org/voices/harnessing-power-digital-id [accessed 11/11/2020] 128 UNHCR, ‘Strategy on Digital Identity and Inclusion’ (2018) available at: https://www.unhcr.org/blogs/wp-content/uploads/sites/48/2018/03/2018-02-DigitalIdentity_02.pdf [accessed 11/11/2020] 129 Khin Yadanar and Zin Oo, ‘Fourth-Year Performances of the Ministry of Labour, Immigration and Population’ Myanmar Digital News (April 2020) available at: http:// www.mdn.gov.mm/en/fourth-year-performances-ministry-labour-immigration-and-population [accessed 13/11/2020] 130 ISI and European Network on Statelessness, ‘Country Position Paper: Statelessness in Myanmar’ (2019) available at https://statelessjourneys.org/wp-content/uploads/ StatelessJourneys-Myanmar-final.pdf [accessed 13/11/2020] 131 Although ethnic data was collected, it was not included in the public census report and have not yet been made public. 132 The Republic of the Union of Myanmar, The 2014 Myanmar Population and Housing Census: The Union Report, Census Report Volume 2: page ii, available at: https://reliefweb.int/sites/reliefweb.int/files/resources/Census%20Main%20Report%20%28UNION%29%20-%20ENGLISH_1.pdf [accessed 13/11/2020] 120 24