Violation of Rights at Schools: Violation of Personal Data Protection and Legal Dimension of Body and Belongings Search.

Schools are where human rights, children's rights, and culture of democracy are taught. Although schools aim to ensure children attain these crucial objectives, various practices violating children's rights can be occasionally witnessed at schools. While trying to ensure security and discipline in educational institutions, school administrators and teachers may behave in a way that can violate the rights of children. Rights of administrators and teachers over children are not unlimited, and certain sanctions can be imposed in case of violations of children's rights. With the rapid increase in digitalization, the issue of processing the personal data of children, who are more fragile and in need of protection than adults, has gained a more important dimension. Schools are at the forefront of institutions processing children's data most intensely. Illegally misused data may have various negative effects on students. In accordance with human rights, children also have privacy and personal immunity as well as adults. In schools, one of the practices that cause the violation of these fundamental rights is the unlawful search of students, their bags and lockers by school administrators, teachers and other school staff. These unlawful acts include crimes of unfair search, abuse of office and maltreatment pursuant to the Turkish Penal Code. This study aims to reveal the violations of rights regarding the body and belongings searches and other personal data protection at schools. Within this context, all the practices and activities for ensuring security and discipline at schools should be carried out in accordance with human rights and with a child-friendly approach, in a way that also takes the best interests of the children into consideration. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]