GOVT IN DIGITAL CRACKDOWN

Malawi plans to introduce a law to tighten control of online media, especially websites, by making online editors of such content liable for any publications which might threaten public order and national security.
The Electronic Transactions Bill is appearing as Bill Number 11 of 2015 on the Order Paper of business in Parliament.
Minister of Information, Tourism and Culture Kondwani Nankhumwa could table the Bill once the 28-day requirement after circulation has been fulfilled.
Nankhumwa, a former chairperson of the Media and Communications Committee of Parliament, yesterday asked for more time to peruse the Bill again.

However, he confirmed that when he was chairing the committee, such issues were raised when the Bill was in draft form.
First drafted in 2013, the Bill seeks to regulate the information and communications technology (ICT) sector by providing aspects governing the formation of electronic agreements, regulating consumer protection in electronic commerce operations such as electronic transaction of the financial and banking sectors, provision of data protection and privacy and management of domain names among others.
However, it is online media which will be especially squeezed as the new Bill has set out a regulatory framework to be followed.
While stating that there would be no limitations to online public communication, the new legislation states that there would be restrictions to prohibit pornography, racial hatred, xenophobia and violence and to “promote human dignity and pluralism in the expression of thoughts and opinions”.
But the Bill has not specified what the meaning of “public order and national security” as well as “facilitate technical restriction to conditional access to online communication” when it comes to transmission of online public information.
This lack of clarity has worried the Media Institute of Southern Africa (Misa) Malawi Chapter, which fears that such vague wording could leave room for further interpretation and abuse by government.
Misa-Malawi Chapter chairperson Thom Khanje said in an interview yesterday that much as the principle of the legislation, especially on online content, was welcome, some aspects of the Bill could be used to limit freedom of information on the Internet.
There are fears that in a bid to “protect public order and security” as stated in Section 28 (1) (e), government could shut down online social media forums such as Facebook and Twitter using such legislation.
Observed Khanje: “What constitutes protection of public order and security? The Bill further says restriction will come in to enhance compliance with the requirements of any other written law. Why not specify the Constitution not just any other law? As we all know, we have archaic laws in this country which the government can use to limit freedom of people on the Internet.”
Khanje, however, added: “The Bill in general is welcome [because even] in the open society era there has to be some regulation to instil responsibility. Where someone is putting up a news site there has to be regulation so that people can seek redress when defamed or injured in any way.”
With the legislation, owners of websites will be required to display names and contact details of the editor or postal and physical address if the website is of a legal entity, according to Section 35 of the Bill.
This means that ownership and editing teams of online media content will become known to the public once the Bill becomes law.
When the bill is passed, the service provider will take down the illegal content once a person informs the service provider of its illegality.