[kictanet] Fwd: [Internet Policy] Nigeria Social Media Bill is Back

Thu Mar 17 08:29:27 EAT 2016

There's a worrying trend across Africa to roll back reforms and democratic
progress in freedom of speech and association.

Africans across the continent must stand up and be counted.

Ali Hussein
Tel: +254 713 601113
On Mar 17, 2016 7:08 AM, "Ahmed Mohamed Maawy via kictanet" <
kictanet at lists.kictanet.or.ke> wrote:

> Asante Barrack. Any pointers on how the Kictanet community can be of value
> to this discussion?
> On 17 Mar 2016 7:03 am, "Barrack Otieno via kictanet" <
> kictanet at lists.kictanet.or.ke> wrote:
>
>> Listers,
>>
>> This might be of interest.
>>
>> Regards
>> ---------- Forwarded message ----------
>> From: "livingstone Kalu" <innovativekalu at gmail.com>
>> Date: Mar 17, 2016 6:03 AM
>> Subject: [Internet Policy] Nigeria Social Media Bill is Back
>> To: <internetpolicy at elists.isoc.org>
>> Cc:
>>
>> There’s a battle going on in Nigeria over a dangerous bill that threatens
>> free expression online. The good news is that people in Nigeria are
>> fighting back, and it recently appeared that the draft law — nicknamed the
>> “Social Media Bill” by concerned citizens — was beaten back
>> <http://www.punchng.com/senate-may-dump-anti-social-media-bill/>. But
>> last week, the Senate revived the bill with little notice. Unless the
>> global community stands in support of those fighting for free expression in
>> Nigeria, we may soon see this vaguely worded, misguided
>> legislation move forward — and the bad ideas that it contains get copied
>> and pasted into legislation in other countries where free expression is
>> under attack.
>>
>> Specifically, the draft bill — officially called “An act to prohibit
>> frivolous petitions; and other matters connected therewith” — would require
>> any person submitting a petition to the government to have an accompanying
>> affidavit, making it much more difficult, and costly, for people to
>> complain about public services or graft. Further, the text imposes harsh
>> penalties for tweets or text messages that convey false statements about a
>> wide range of actors — from “a group of persons” to an “institution of
>> government.” Nigerians who violate these provisions could be fined up to
>> N2,000,000 ($10,000) or spend up to two years in jail.
>>
>> In short, the bill criminalizes speaking out against individuals or
>> groups online, including expressing dissent against the government, with
>> vague and disproportionate restrictions that do not strictly adhere to
>> legitimate purposes.
>>
>> What’s worse, the language in the draft bill is so broad that it’s not
>> clear that internet users would even understand how to comply with the law.
>> It would be difficult to determine whether a post is intended to “set the
>> public against” a vaguely defined group. At the same time as being
>> overboard, the bill is illogically specific. It targets WhatsApp, the
>> private messaging application, and Twitter, the micro-blogging platform.
>> That’s a particular threat to journalists in Nigeria who use these
>> platforms to report on issues of public interest, and it could knock out a
>> vital tool for combating corruption and keeping government accountable.
>>
>> The threat to free expression is compounded by the threat to innovation
>> in Nigeria. Already the continent’s largest economy, Nigeria has 15 million
>> Facebook users and over 97 million mobile internet subscriptions. Its
>> technology sector is rapidly expanding. This restrictive law would only
>> deter investment and discourage further development of Nigeria’s internet
>> ecosystem.
>>
>> Fortunately, activists in Nigeria are continuing to speak out, protesting
>> both on and offline. In addition, if the bill passes into law, there may be
>> legal avenues for fighting it. There are strong protections for free
>> expression in Nigeria’s constitution, and Nigeria has also ratified the
>> African Charter on Human and Peoples’ Right, which guarantees this right.
>> Furthermore, free expression is protected under international law, and the
>> United Nations has specifically stated that the right to free expression
>> applies online.
>>
>> About two weeks ago, Senate President Bukola Saraki reassured activists
>> when he stated that section 4 of the bill would not be passed
>> <http://www.punchng.com/anti-social-media-bill-wont-be-passed-saraki/?utm_source=dlvr.it&utm_medium=twitter>.
>> (He appeared to be referring to section 3(4), which prescribes the
>> penalties for social media.) Yet the Senate has since suddenly revived the
>> bill and set a Public Hearing — part of the legislative process — for
>> Monday, March 7. Whether or not section 3(4) is struck from the text, the
>> Social Media Bill should not be passed.
>>
>> Nigerian President Buhari has stated that he would not sign any bill that
>> doesn’t comport with Nigeria’s constitution, and the Social Media Bill
>> clearly does not. Yet the unrelated Cybercrime Act of 2015 is now in force,
>> and through sections 24(a) and 24(b), imposes harsh penalties for speech in
>> the name of security that violate the right to free expression. Clearly,
>> it’s best to stop this bill now, before it gets any closer to becoming law.
>>
>> It’s not only Nigeria’s leadership, free expression, and innovation
>> that are at stake. In internet law and policy, even when a law is beaten
>> back, it often gets reanimated in legislatures across the globe.
>>
>> To fight back, the global community that cares about free expression
>> needs to unite behind common principles,and spread the word: when users’
>> rights are under attack, we have your back. As members of the Nigerian
>> Senate hold the public hearing, they should not be left in doubt regarding
>> the dangers of the Social Media Bill or any other bill that clamps down on
>> expression online. It should be withdrawn immediately. Nigerians have
>> spoken out, and their leaders should listen.
>>
>>
>> Regards,
>>
>> Livingstone Kalu
>>
>> innovativekalu at gmail.com
>>
>> eStream Networks
>>
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> The Kenya ICT Action Network (KICTANet) is a multi-stakeholder platform
> for people and institutions interested and involved in ICT policy and
> regulation. The network aims to act as a catalyst for reform in the ICT
> sector in support of the national aim of ICT enabled growth and development.
>
> KICTANetiquette : Adhere to the same standards of acceptable behaviors
> online that you follow in real life: respect people's times and bandwidth,
> share knowledge, don't flame or abuse or personalize, respect privacy, do
> not spam, do not market your wares or qualifications.
>
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