[kictanet] KICA Amendment- Regulation of Social Media
Ephraim Percy Kenyanito
ekenyanito at gmail.com
Thu Oct 24 12:12:07 EAT 2019
Hi Mercy,
If you read the proposed 84IA. on licensing, one can quickly see thatit
is unenforceable legally especially on the indefinite data retention
requirements under subsection 2(c).
Additionally the whole proposed licensing regime do not provide
sufficient details about the conditions for the granting of the license
or authorisation. In fact, it is not clear whether the issuing will
automatically follow the payment of the fee, or if further conditions
have to be met by applicants, and in this case which ones. In other
words, the vagueness of the rules might provide authorities with
unlimited discretionary power while deciding whether to grant the
license or authorisation. As such, the rules also fail to provide
content providers with the legal certainty they need to provide their
services. Nor do the rules provide for the possibility, for anyone who
has been refused a license or authorisation, to apply to the courts for
judicial review of the refusal decision.
I would also add from our Policy Brief on the Right to Blog which can be
found here:-
https://www.article19.org/wp-content/uploads/2018/02/Right-to-Blog-EN-WEB.pdf
“….licensing and registration schemes for all bloggers, whatever they
do, are deeply inimical to protection of the right to freedom of
expression and in flagrant breach of international law…..there is no
legitimate reason why bloggers – or in fact members of the general
public – should be subject to mandatory licensing to express themselves.
An important source of legal authority on the subject is an opinion of
the Inter-American Court of Human Rights issued in 1985. Most tellingly,
the Court dismissed the argument that licensing schemes were necessary
to ensure the public’s right to receive truthful information or high
standards of publication and found that such systems ultimately prove
counterproductive.
Similarly, the UN Human Rights Committee has repeatedly held that
mandatory licensing schemes for print media constitute a violation of
the right to freedom of expression. The UN, OAS and OSCE special
mandates for freedom of expression have also stated that individuals
should not be required to obtain a licence or register….”
---
Best Regards,
*Ephraim Percy Kenyanito*
Senior Programme Officer: Digital*
*
*ARTICLE 19*
Defending Freedom of Expression and Information
W www.article19.org <http://www.article19.org/>
Tw @article19org <http://twitter.com/#!/article19org>
Fa facebook.com/article19org <http://www.facebook.com/article19org>
PGP Fingerprint:B0FA394AF73DEB7AA1FDC7360CFED26DE6BA8DC1
Book a meeting: https://calendly.com/ekenyanito
On 10/24/19 11:27 AM, kanini mutemi via kictanet wrote:
> Thank you for the views- please keep them coming.
>
> Let’s also look at this from a Freedom of Expression point of view
> because at the root of it ‘bloggers’ (and anyone who shares anything
> online) are expressing themselves.
>
> */Is it constitutionally sound to require registration before
> expression? Think of it as a ‘license to speak’. Is this justifiable
> in our constitutional framework?/*
>
> On Thu, 24 Oct 2019 at 11:20, Wamathai (HapaKenya) <w at hapakenya.com
> <mailto:w at hapakenya.com>> wrote:
>
> Good morning,
>
> I have many thoughts on this but to be honest it is such a bad idea.
>
> I see this bill as the continuation of attempts to muzzle free
> speech and freedom of the media online that was initially started
> by the state. In the past, there was a reliance on existing vague
> laws but some of them have been declared unconstitutional hence
> the change of tact.
>
> In the past, this kind of intimidation has primarily targeted
> influencers and bloggers but also ordinary online users have been
> targeted. To be targeted, all they do is just brand you a blogger,
> a loose term used by politicians & the media to refer to online
> users (and not just organized online content creators). In 2015,
> Nancy Mbindillah was arrested in Embu for 'insulting' the
> Governor. She was basically arrested for expressing her opinion on
> various operations in the County
> <https://www.ifree.co.ke/2015/01/24-year-old-nancy-mbindalah-held-in-custody-then-pardoned-for-undermining-the-embu-governor/>.
> I fear that this law will be used to target anyone who shares
> uncomfortable opinions or facts under the banner of 'undesirable
> content'.
>
> The attempts to license organized online content creators (we can
> call them bloggers and influencers) is a regional trend with
> Tanzania charging $930 and Uganda having proposed regulations on
> the same. The basic idea, like in Kenya with this new bill, is to
> create an environment where free speech is punished and those who
> haven't registered under the regulations are also punished.
>
> The long term effects of this law is disastrous to free discourse
> and if you bring in the online media element, freedom of the media
> as well. In my opinion, as an online content creator and an
> official of the Bloggers Association of Kenya (BAKE), this law
> should not be allowed as it goes against fundamental freedoms and
> rights as guaranteed by the constitution.
>
>
>
>
> -----
>
>
> James Wamathai | CEO, hapakenya.com <http://hapakenya.com/>
>
> m: 0777-555101e: w at hapakenya.com <mailto:w at hapakenya.com> |
> Twitter: @Wamathai <http://twitter.com/wamathai>
>
>
> Follow Hapa Kenya: /Twitter/: @HapaKenya
> <http://twitter.com/hapaKenya>, /FB/: fb.com/HapaKenya
> <http://fb.com/HapaKenya>
>
>
>
> On Wed, 23 Oct 2019 at 12:15, kanini mutemi via kictanet
> <kictanet at lists.kictanet.or.ke
> <mailto:kictanet at lists.kictanet.or.ke>> wrote:
>
> Good morning Listers,
>
> As GG had alerted us last week, there is a bill before the
> National Assembly that seeks to amend the Kenya Information
> and Communication Act by including a part on Regulation of
> Social Media.
>
> I will lead us on a discussion on this Bill.
>
> Between 2016 to date, we have seen many attempts to regulate
> social media conduct. Interestingly, one such attempt, the
> Computer Misuse and Cybercrimes Act, where many of its
> sections on regulation of social media, have been suspended is
> coming up for hearing today. Now we tackle yet another attempt
> to ‘fix’ social media.
>
> To start with, I will post the definitions proposed in the
> bill of the word ‘social media platform’ and ‘blogging’:
>
> "*/blogging" means collecting, writing, editing and presenting
> of news or news articles in social media platforms or in the
> internet;/*
> */
> /*
> */"social media platforms" includes online publishing and
> discussion, media sharing, blogging, social networking,
> document and data sharing repositories, social media
> applications, social bookmarking and widgets;/*
>
> What are your initial thoughts? What ‘problem’ is Hon. Injendi
> trying to fix with this bill? Who will fall under those
> definitions? Contributions are welcome.
>
>
> --
> *Mercy Mutemi, Advocate*.
>
> */
> /*
>
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>
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>
> --
> *Mercy Mutemi, Advocate*.
>
> */
> /*
>
>
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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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