Despite growing condemnation from the public against government over the secrecy in handling information relating to Covid 19 patients, human rights lawyer Tshiamo Rantao says confidentiality of patients needs to be protected, even though it has a huge public interest. The lawyer, who is also the convener of the Human Rights and Law Reform Committee of the Law Society of Botswana (LSB), remarked during a televised media briefing last Wednesday. He opined that while there is a need to disclose personal information of positive patients of the disease, as it in public interest so as to protect the public their right to privacy is very important. “This is a difficult balancing exercise that government through ministry of health is embroiled in. It is a matter of Public Interest vs Patient Confidentiality hence not ease issue,” he charged. Rantao elaborated that the disclosure of patient information can help government to be able to balance its efforts of tracing the virus but it could be also violating individual’s right to privacy. “In my opinion I think government could only succumb to pressure when the patient is the one who gives the consent that his or her personal information be divulged to third…