Final Warnings Ahead of Cyber Bill Enactment

It is expected that Cyber Security and Cyber Crimes Bill will soon be enacted into law, having passed in Parliament last week. 

The Bill has proved highly controversial, with the opposition and civil society warning about its potential negative impact on basic democratic freedoms.   

There is considerable concern that the law would enable the government to listen to private conversations in full at any time. Civil society groups also claim that it falls short of several regional and international set standards on human rights aligned laws such as the African Union Convention on Cyber Security and Personal Data Protection (Malabo Convention). 

As well as infringing the right to freedom of expression and the right to privacy, there are concerns the Bill could also set back the fight against corruption in the wake of the HoneyBee Pharmacy scandal. 

Ahead of its enactment Alliance for Community Action (ACA) Executive Director Laura Miti shared some advice for President Lungu on the subject. 

“There is something I would like to say to President Lungu as he gets ready to sign a Cyber Law whose only purpose is to silence citizens,” Miti writes. 

“It is that, you can, maybe, stop a people from saying what they think. You can't, however, stop them thinking it,” she continues. 

“Unfortunately, as we all know from our personal relationships, forcibly silenced thoughts tend to become actions, most times negative. My advice, Sir, is never refuse to hear what those you have power over think of you. It is self-harming,” Miti advises. 

“Ultimately, though, both the power and the choice are yours,” she concludes. 

Earlier this week Minister of Home Affairs Stephen Kampyongo expressed his happiness with the progression of the Bill and told media that only wrong doers had reason to be scared of its contents.