[kictanet] Digital privacy discussions: Day one,

[Barrack Otieno]

Hi Liz and Grace,

Indeed the discussion comes at an interesting time. Furthermore it is
my wish that we  could have the discussion in a local language due to
the fact that majority of us think in mother tongue and speak in
English based on the outcome of the Survey.

To understand the issues it would be good to have a universal
understanding and or definition of privacy which in my humble opinion
does not exist. I wish to posit that the word privacy might be alien
in most local dialects in the global South based on Social Cultural
norms and is part of the goodies that arrived on the Ship. For example
whereas our fore fathers were scantily dressed this was not considered
indecent exposure since there were cultural systems in place that
established the necessary checks and balances.
It is this systems that were key in weeding out errant members of the
Society (terrorists etc) and assisted Communities to win wars which
were largely a contest for resources as it is today.
Looked at from another perspective a society that respects systems and
procedures and keeps standards  is likely to value privacy. Privacy
and trust are a product of norms or standards by which people decide
to live. In proper English i would refer to the same as value systems.
With this

1) Government is a public good and a product  based on the value
systems of the people within the jurisdictions it controls as such i
would not be quick to say that National Security  is a means used to
justify breaches in National Security. In democratic nations the
thinking of the leaders reflects the thinking of the electorate.

2) If a Survey would have done in the US on the Apple versus CIA/FBI
issue to break into the terror suspects Cellphone, i wonder what the
majority of citizens would have said just to validate point 1 above. I
welcome opinions from other listers

3) The tech Industry needs to work closely with government, academia
and civil society through the multi stakeholder model. Concepts like
Privacy require educating / sensitizing the public on the value or
good of embracing the same. As it is a key member of the technical
community is now holding a key position in government and by extension
helping the masses understand the value of technology in National
building.

This is my humble opinion for now.

On 4/6/16, Grace Mutung'u (Bomu) via kictanet
<kictanet at lists.kictanet.or.ke> wrote:
> Liz,
> This is a timely discussion coming at a time when the fight against
> terrorism is a global issue requiring concerted efforts from all.
> I will attempt to answer the first question. While citizens expect the
> government to guarantee their other rights (including privacy), they are
> also guaranteed other rights. It is therefore a question of balancing
> security and other rights.
> There have been many discussions on how to achieve this balance. Most agree
> that there are circumstances when there can be lawful interception of
> communication or access to communication data because privacy is not an
> absolute right. However, interception and access must be within a
> framework.
>
> IHRB
> <http://www.ihrb.org/pdf/reports/2016-1-15_Lawful_Interception_Government_Access_User_Data.pdf>
> vouches
> for a human rights approach to lawful interception and access by government
> and suggests the following guidelines:
>
> 1. Prerequisites to Communications Surveillance (surveillance as a last
> measure, surveillance laws, targeted surveillance, human rights safeguards)
> 2. Authorisation Processes (judicial/independent (sometimes executive)
> authority before surveillance)
> 3. Oversight (by an independent body)
> 4. Notification of Individuals under surveillance
> 5. Remedy (linked to notification as one needs to know they have been under
> surveillance)
> 6. Transparency (educating public on surveillance and remedies, publishing
> reports on surveillance)
> 7. Provision for Framework Review (to review the laws and regulations on
> surveillance to monitor human rights compliance, efficacy etc)
>
> I look forward to Kenya's privacy law so that we can interrogate how far it
> achieves this balance.
>
> Regards,
>
> On 6 April 2016 at 09:34, Liz Orembo via kictanet <
> kictanet at lists.kictanet.or.ke> wrote:
>
>>
>> Dear listers,
>>
>> Today we begin our online discussions on digital privacy.
>>
>> By electing a government, we give it a responsibility to protect our
>> security and in the course of that, they make policies by which our data
>> is
>> collected and used.
>>
>>
>> Nanjira had shared a CIGI-IPSOS research (here
>> <http://ipsos-na.com/news-polls/pressrelease.aspx?id=7159>) on digital
>> security and trust done early this year which found out that:
>>
>>    - 75% of Kenyans law enforcement agencies should have a right to
>>    access the content of their citizens’ online communications for valid
>>    national security reasons
>>    - 66% agreed that tech companies should not build technologies that
>>    prevent the law enforcement agencies from accessing the content of
>> their
>>    communication.
>>
>>
>>
>>    1.
>>
>>    Are ‘National security’ and ‘terrorism’ being used as a means to
>>    justify government breaches of security?
>>    2. Is data collection proportionate and justified? And how secure are
>>    our government's’ information systems from other parties
>>    3. How can the tech industry work with the government on security
>>    while ensuring people's right to privacy are not infringed?
>>    4. What are your concerns on government collection of data and
>>    surveillance?
>>
>>
>>
>> Karibuni.
>> --
>>
>> Best regards.
>> Liz.
>>
>> PGP ID: 0x1F3488BF
>>
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>
>
>
> --
> Grace L.N. Mutung'u
> Nairobi Kenya
> Skype: gracebomu
> Twitter: @Bomu
>
> <http://www.diplointernetgovernance.org/profile/GraceMutungu>
>
> PGP ID : 0x33A3450F
>


-- 
Barrack O. Otieno
+254721325277
+254733206359
Skype: barrack.otieno