CIPESA, Author at Collaboration on International ICT Policy for East and Southern Africa (CIPESA)

06Dec

Highlights of The African Internet Rights Alliance (AIRA) Work Advancing Online Freedoms

CIPESA December 6, 2020

By CIPESA Writer |

The African Internet Rights Alliance (AIRA), a coalition of civil society organisations from around the continent, has racked up various joint interventions to advance digital rights on the continent. The Alliance works to promote privacy and data protection, affordability and access to the internet, access to information and freedoms of assembly, expression and the media.

The formation of the network was informed by the growing affronts to digital rights on the continent and the need for civil society actors to pool efforts so as to enhance their effectiveness in undertaking research, advocating policy and legislative reform, and capacity building, among other areas of intervention.

Each month, more than half a billion Africans access the internet – this is more than all the internet users in North America and the Middle East combined – and that number continues to grow. As the internet and digital technology become more and more integrated into all aspects of life, governance, and the economy in Africa, the inequalities and challenges we face online are reflected offline. We face new challenges to our human rights in the digital context – including unequal access, censorship and violence online. We must work together to ensure that everyone’s digital rights are respected and protected.

Over the past five years, internet shutdowns, stifling of dissent, poor data governance and various forms of online violence have persisted, perpetrated both by the government and the private sector, despite increased calls for progressive policy and practice. In order to advance collaborative approaches to promote digital rights, a coalition of civil society organisations came together to pool experience and expertise under AIRA. The alliance was unveiled at the 2020 Forum on Internet Freedom in Africa (FIFAfrica20) and also presented at the 2020 global Internet Governance Forum (IGF).

The AIRA members include Amnesty International, ARTICLE 19 Eastern Africa, BudgIT, the Centre for Intellectual Property and Information Technology Law (CIPIT), Co-Creation Hub (CcHub), the Collaboration on International ICT Policy for East and Southern Africa (CIPESA), the Kenya ICT Action Network (KICTANet), Legal Resource Centre (LRC) and Paradigm Initiative (PIN). Many of the alliance members had worked together over the past three years and realised the need for transnational collaboration and coalition-building to protect and expand digital rights across Africa.

Below are some highlights of AIRA’s work

Developed and distributed key digital rights terminology guidance to journalists.
Hosted a media webinar on digital rights, Covid-19 and elections across Africa.
Submitted joint letters to the United Nations and African Commission on Human and Peoples’ Rights regarding the use of Kenya’s Computer Misuse and Cybercrimes Act and Nigeria’s Cybercrimes Act.
Facilitated a joint social media campaign aimed at condemning governments who have unfairly detained journalists.
Supported the revision of the Declaration of Freedom of Expression and Access to Information of the African Commission on Human and Peoples’ Rights (ACHPR); and
Engaged with the media on digital rights challenges and opportunities.

Explaining the spirit behind AIRA
“AIRA was largely borne out of the need for movement building in campaigns for universal access and tackling inequalities and human rights challenges faced by Africans online, which are reflected offline. These challenges vary country by country, sub-region by sub-region and indeed, from one user to the next. However, norm setting requires a unified approach and platforms for collaborative learning and engagement – which AIRA seeks to do, in tandem with other pre-existing digital rights coalitions,” said CIPESA Executive Director Wairagala Wakabi.

“The AIRA coalition is uniquely positioned to undertake value-based, collective interventions and executes strategic initiatives that engage the government, private sector, media and civil society to institute and safeguard digital rights. Instructively, one limb of our multi-faceted digital rights work encourages government to espouse our four values – accountability, transparency, integrity and good governance – as they roll out inevitable digital policies and action plans,” said KICTANet Convenor Grace Githaiga.

“AIRA members vocalise the needs and challenges of millions of individuals across Central, East, Southern and West Africa, including individuals who remain disconnected from the digital sphere, those at risk of being disconnected, and those who are already connected, albeit poorly,” said Legal Resources Centre Legal Researcher Edwin Makwati.

“In the face of COVID-19, Internet shutdowns and stifling of dissent, digital rights across Africa are under threat more than ever before. AIRA is prepared to pool its experience and expertise to advance digital rights and is well positioned to hold governments and the private sector accountable for any violation of those rights,” said Amnesty International Technology Advisor Kiggundu Mark.

“Together, we can do so much,” said Paradigm Initiative Executive Director ‘Gbenga Sesan. “We invite others to join us in the movement to establish, advance and protect digital rights for all on the African continent.”

Learn more about AIRA here

30Nov

Universal Peer Review: Mozambique Should Guarantee Digital Rights

CIPESA November 30, 2020

By Edrine Wanyama |

In April 2021, Mozambique’s human rights record will be assessed under the Universal Peer Review (UPR) process at the United Nations Human Rights Council. The assessment will need to shine a light on Mozambique’s record on online and offline rights to privacy, access to information, and free expression, which are increasingly under threat in the southern Afican country.

The UPR process offers all UN member states the opportunity to declare what actions they have taken to improve the human rights situation in their countries and to fulfil their human rights obligations. In the previous review, nine of the 227 recommendations made to Mozambique were related to freedom of expression, media freedom and access to information. In response, the Mozambican government supported six of the nine recommendations and by implication was to take steps and measures that aim to protect and promote the respective rights. However, various developments in the country make it imperative to reflect on recommendations made during Mozambique’s last UPR assessment, with a view to supporting the realisation of digital freedoms as part of the upcoming review.

Despite constitutional provisions for freedom of expression, freedom of the press and the right to information, in 2018 Mozambique introduced a draconian media law, Decree No. 40/2018. The legislation was revoked two years later in May 2020 following a Constitutional Court petition by six organisations – Media Institute of Southern Africa (MISA) Mozambique Chapter, Association of Journalistic Companies, National Forum of Community Radios, Centre for Public Integrity, Mozambican Bar Association and the Emergency Committee for the Protection of Fundamental Freedoms. The court declared that the decree was unconstitutional since it introduced prohibitive costs on the exercise of the journalism profession for foreign correspondents and local freelance journalists.

Mozambique is ranked 104 out of 180 countries in the 2020 World Press Freedom Index, which is a drop by one position from 2019. Journalists and media houses are threatened by an increasingly shrinking operating space. Indeed, the October 2019 general election was marred by attacks on the media, which included use of threatening messages through social media and SMS. Some journalists, especially in the northern part of the country, were intimidated while others were arrested, persecuted, detained and prosecuted.

More recently, the insurgency in Cabo Delgado and the Covid-19 State of Emergency have elicited state measures that threaten freedom of expression, opinion and the right to access information. Notably, the decree that instituted a state of emergency barred the media from transmitting Covid-19 information that is “contrary to official information”, arbitrarily restricting journalistic information and interfering with editorial independence.

There is some goodwill for openness by the government and increasing numbers of persons using the internet – yet Mozambique has a low score in internet affordability with women being most affected. As of 2018, only 20.8% of Mozambique’s population used the internet, while 26 in every 100 inhabitants had mobile broadband subscription. As of January 2019, the internet penetration rate stood at 17%.

Amidst a narrowing civic space, there are some measures to improve cybersecurity yet, worryingly, the country has dropped on the Global Cybersecurity Index by 23 places. On individual privacy protections online, Mozambique is still without a data protection law. However towards the end of 2019, Mozambique revised its Penal Code, introducing provisions related to the invasion of privacy. The new Penal Code provisions outlawed the interception, recording, transmission or disclosure of online communications, including email, messages, audio-visual and social media content without consent.

To buttress the protection and enjoyment of digital rights, the Collaboration on International ICT Policy for East and Southern Africa (CIPESA), Small Media, Fórum das Associações Moçambicanas das Pessoas com Deficiência (FAMOD) and the Associação de Cegos e Amblíopes de Moçambique have made a joint stakeholder submission on digital rights in Mozambique. The submission focuses on various developments in the country on freedom of expression and opinion, freedom of information and censorship of content, the right to equal access and opportunity, and the right to data protection and privacy on the internet. It draws experiences from Mozambique’s review of January 19, 2016.

Below are some of the recommendations made in the submission:

Enhance capacity building efforts to enforce the right to information law, including encouraging proactive disclosure and compliance with timely responses to information requests.
Repeal provisions of the Covid-19 Emergency Decree, which are contrary to national and international obligations on freedom of expression and access to information and promote open reporting and commentary on issues of public concern.
Institute an independent body to investigate, hold accountable and deter security forces who repeatedly violate journalists’ rights, especially those covering elections and the insurrection in the North.
Implement measures to promote inclusive access for marginalised and vulnerable groups including women, rural communities and persons with disabilities, with funding from the Universal Service Fund.
Enact a data protection law, in line with international and regional standards through multi-stakeholder consultative processes.

See the full submission here.

30Oct

Africa Digital Rights Fund (ADRF) Awards USD 138,000 to Initiatives Addressing the Covid-19 Digital Rights Fallout

CIPESA October 30, 2020

By Ashnah Kalemera |

In its third round, the Africa Digital Rights Fund (ADRF) has awarded USD 138,000 to 11 initiatives responding to the digital rights fallout from the fight against the coronavirus disease (Covid-19). The grantees’ interventions span 22 African countries – the largest geographic footprint of the Fund yet – and address a range of issues including state surveillance, freedom of expression, data rights, repressive legislation, access to information, digital security and resilience.

The Unseen Eyes, Unheard Stories: Surveillance and Data Protection during COVID-19 project by a consortium consisting of ARTICLE 19 Eastern Africa, Kenya ICT Action Network (KICTANet) and Pollicy, has been awarded a grant to review Covid-19 surveillance practices in Kenya and Uganda and adherence to data protection frameworks by government and private entities in the respective countries. The resulting report will inform a webinar, social media engagements and op-eds to promote awareness and understanding of privacy and data protection online. The consortium will also develop and disseminate two documentaries capturing personal experiences of individuals who were subjected to Covid-19 contact-tracing in the two countries.

Unlike Kenya and Uganda , Namibia does not have a data protection and privacy law. In a study to inform consultations on a data protection and privacy bill, the Internet Society (ISOC) Namibia Chapter has been awarded a grant to research the country’s data protection and privacy stance over the past five years, with a focus on Covid-19 regulations.

Still on data rights, the Financial Inclusion Forum will be supported to convene Ghana’s first Data Protection and Privacy Policy Conference as a platform for financial service providers, industry regulators, and government to discuss issues of data protection and privacy in the country’s digital financial services sector. The conference will also serve as an opportunity to synthesise and validate a draft policy model on regulating the collection and sharing of consumer data in the industry.

In a test of the robustness of access to information legislation in Botswana, Nigeria, and Uganda, a grant to EndCode will enable them to explore protocols around access to critical information collected by governments in Covid-19 contact tracing databases. EndCode will use the research findings to develop an instructional video and poster series to promote awareness on the link between access to information and the right to health. This project aims to answer important questions relevant to the present pandemic context while also laying the foundation for future work and engagement with duty bearers on the right of access to information in public health contexts.

As part of its ADRF round two project on identity-driven hate speech, misinformation and harassment in African digital spaces during politically charged periods, Global Voices – Sub-Saharan Africa, Middle East and North Africa also explored native language content as advocacy and information sharing tools to combat the spread of Covid-19. Building on that and earlier work on Writing Toward Freedom: Politics and digital rights in Africa, Global Voices will use the new ADRF grant to investigate how governments attempt to control narratives around Covid-19 by favouring narratives that benefit their position or reputation amidst the pandemic and exploiting the pandemic to further clamp down on digital rights.

In this regard, Global Voices will train journalists from nine countries – Algeria, Ethiopia, Mozambique, Namibia, Nigeria, Tanzania, Tunisia, Uganda and Zimbabwe to investigate and report on the intersection of public health and digital rights – specifically how competing Covid-19 narratives flourished online and the ways in which African governments seized upon the pandemic to crack down on citizens’ rights online. The stories produced by the journalists will be published in Arabic, English, French, Portuguese, Swahili and Yoruba and promoted on social media to raise awareness of digital rights and actual and potential manipulation by governments of narratives around the pandemic.

Similarly, a grant to Tunis-based Streaming HD SARL and ISS Centre will enable them explore the impact of Covid-19 emergency responses on the digital rights landscape in the Maghreb region. In a series of themed podcasts and articles, the project will document voices of local activists and expert testimonies on privacy and contact-tracing apps, mis/disinformation online, freedom of speech restrictions, hate speech and violence against women, information transparency and accessibility, cybercrime and inclusion in Mauritania, Morocco, Algeria, Tunisia, and Libya.

Why fund Covid-19 Digital Rights Initiatives?
The 2020 State of Internet Freedom in Africa report which investigated the measures implemented by governments in Africa in fighting the Covid-19 pandemic shows that the highhandedness with which the governments and their agencies enforced the different Covid-19 preventive measures, including the suspension of rights through emergency declarations and the gagging of critical voices calling for transparency and accountability in handling the pandemic has greatly affected digital rights on the continent. According to the report, prior to and during the pandemic period, several countries enacted retrogressive laws and implemented oppressive measures that served to strengthen the state’s repressive hand at the expense of citizens’ rights.

Covid-19 response measures have re-shaped the operations of civil society organisations across the continent. In some instances, organisations have rushed to adopt various technology tools in order to continue operations while working from home, leading to new security vulnerabilities. The Digital Security Alliance hosted by Defender Protection Initiative (DPI) will assess the digital security risk exposure of 50 Ugandan civil society organisations in their pursuit to adopt technology tools for business continuity. The multi-media assessment report aims to create a shared understanding of security risks associated with technology uptake and enhance the identification of gaps for secure technology use in remote working.

In Somalia, ADRF has previously supported Digital Shelter’s work to strengthen the digital resilience of women human rights defenders. These efforts will continue with support to the Women in Media Initiative Somalia (WIMISOM) to build the digital security skills and knowledge of 150 women journalists (print, broadcast and online) and women-led media organisations as a means of combating growing online threats against the female journalists and their sources.

Whereas countries in Francophone West Africa have recorded increasing digitalisation – further boosting human rights and participatory democracy – a number of governments in the region have passed a series of laws targeting freedom of expression online. Indeed, the Media Foundation for West Africa (MFWA) has documented violations against journalists, media outlets, dissidents, bloggers, and human rights activists in West Africa for their online activities. This, according to MFWA, has led to “a rollback of the improvements in conditions for the safety of journalists, human rights defenders and citizens in the sub-region.”

With an ADRF grant, the Accra-based MFWA will conduct an analysis of recent internet and cyber-related laws in Benin, Burkina Faso, Niger, Mali, Mauritania, and Togo and highlight violations perpetrated against journalists, bloggers, activists, and human rights defenders based on these laws. The resultant policy paper and infographics will form the basis of evidenced-based advocacy for improving digital rights and freedom of expression in Francophone Africa.

Meanwhile, in November 2020 Malawi will undergo its third cycle of the Universal Periodic Review at the United Nations Human Rights Council, during which its mixed democratic credentials and digital rights record will likely feature prominently. Prevailing challenges include lack of an access to information law and limited access to the internet, which has left Malawians vulnerable to misinformation and disinformation. A recent joint civil society campaign which yielded positive policy actions – telecom companies reducing data rates – highlights the potential of coordinated civil society advocacy in influencing the country’s digital rights landscape. Accordingly, with an ADRF grant, the Centre for Human Rights and Rehabilitation (CHRR) will work to consolidate local civil society actions and voices regarding digital rights and coordinate joint strategies against regressive policy and legislative provisions.

Finally, the African Legal Think Tank on Women’s Rights has been awarded a grant to conduct an assessment on the role of the internet in fuelling the growth of human trafficking, including online recruitment and advertisement. With a focus on the Democratic Republic of Congo, The Gambia, and Mauritania, the assessment will feed into the development of a curriculum and a digital campaign targeted at survivors and networks working to combat human trafficking, with the aim of equipping them with tools to influence prevention and protection strategies.

The ADRF third round grantees brings to 33 the number of initiatives supported with a total sum of USD 355,000 since the Fund’s launch in April 2019.

	Round One	Round Two	Round Three
Total Award Amount	USD 65,000	USD 152,000	USD 138,000
Initiatives Supported	1. Access for All 2. African Human Rights Network (AHRN) Foundation 3. Burundi Youths Training Centre 4. Centre for Human Rights, University of Pretoria 5. Freedom of Expression Hub (FoE Hub) 6. Global Voices – Sub-Saharan Africa, Middle East and North Africa 7. Internet Society (ISOC) Namibia Chapter 8. Jonction 9. Kuza STEAM Generation (KsGEN) and Centre for Youth Empowerment and Leadership (CYEL) 10. YMCA Computer Training Centre and Digital Studio	1. Action et Humanisme 2. ADISI Cameroun 3. African Feminism 4. CUTS- Centre for International Trade, Economics and Environment 5. Digital Shelter 6. Forum de Organizacoes de Pessoas com Deficiencia (Mozambique Disabled Persons Orgazations Forum) 7. Global Voices – Sub-Saharan Africa, Middle East and North Africa 8. iWatch Africa 9. Jamii Forums 10. JP MEDIA and Sobanukirwa 11. Mzalendo Trust 12. Rudi International 13. Somaliland Journalists Association (SOLJA) 14. Zimbabwe Centre for Media and Information Literacy (ZCMIL) in collaboration with the National University of Science and Technology (NUST)	1. African Legal Think Tank on Women’s Rights 2. Centre for Human Rights and Rehabilitation (CHRR) 3. Consortium consisting of Pollicy, Kenya ICT Action Network (KICTANet), and ARTICLE 19 Eastern Africa 4. Defe nders Protection Initiative (DPI) 5. EndCode Proprietary 6. Financial Inclusion Forum 7. Global Voices – Sub-Saharan Africa, Middle East and North Africa 8. Internet Society (ISOC) Namibia Chapter 9. Media Foundation for West Africa (MFWA) 10. Streaming HD SARL and ISS Center 11. Women In Media Initiative Somalia (WIMISOM)
Countries Covered	16 – Algeria, Burundi, Egypt, Ethiopia, Gambia, Mozambique, Namibia, Nigeria, Sierra Leone, Senegal, South Sudan, Tanzania, Tunisia, Uganda, Zambia, and Zimbabwe	18 – Algeria, Cameroon, Democratic Republic of Congo, Ethiopia, Ghana, Ivory Coast, Kenya, Malawi, Mozambique, Nigeria, Rwanda, Somalia, Somaliland, Sudan, Tanzania, Tunisia, Uganda, and Zimbabwe	22 – Algeria, Benin, Botswana, Burkina Faso, Democratic Republic of Congo, Ethiopia, The Gambia, Ghana, Kenya, Libya, Mali, Mauritania, Morocco, Mozambique, Namibia, Niger, Nigeria, Tanzania, Togo, Tunisia, Uganda, and Zimbabwe

The ADRF is an initiative of the Collaboration on International ICT Policy for East and Southern Africa (CIPESA) with support from the Ford Foundation, the Swedish International Development Cooperation Agency (Sida), the German Society for International Cooperation Agency (GIZ), and the Omidyar Network.

19Oct

Tanzania Tramples Digital Rights in Fight Against Covid-19

CIPESA October 19, 2020

CIPESA Writer |

Since the first case of the coronavirus disease (Covid-19) was announced in Tanzania on March 16, 2020, the government has been in the spotlight for its handling of the pandemic. It has denied the severity of the pandemic, suspended media houses, and criminalised Covid-19-related speech through enactment and enforcement of repressive regulations.

In turn, there have been growing concerns that these measures are not only hurting the fight against the pandemic, but the wider enjoyment of civil liberties in the country, especially in the leadup to the October 28, 2020 general election.

Tanzania has been criticised for its lackluster response to the Covid-19 pandemic, with the World Health Organization (WHO) citing its lack of transparency. Further, a team of United Nations experts noted that the government was not meeting its commitments on information sharing and transparency, after it stopped releasing statistics on Covid-19 cases at the end of April.

At the end of March, Tanzania’s President, John Pombe Magufuli, is reported to have encouraged people to continue visiting places of worship, while comparing the virus to the Biblical Satan and saying that it “cannot survive in the body of Jesus Christ.”

President Magufuli also rejected the need to restrict movement of citizens, claiming stringent social isolation measures would severely damage the economy, and in June 2020, he declared the country virus-free, “thanks to God” and prayers by citizens.

In July 2020, the United Nation experts stated that Covid-19 had compounded the pre-existing human rights concerns in Tanzania, notably, the right to freedom of expression, including freedom to seek, receive and impart information.

Enactment of repressive regulations

In July 2020, the government repealed the 2018 Tanzania’s Electronic and Postal Communications (Online Content) Regulations and replaced them with the Tanzania Electronic and Postal Communications (Online Content Regulations 2020. The 2020 regulations aggravate the crackdown on free speech as they require the registration of bloggers, online discussion forums, radio and television webcasters.

The new regulations define “news related content”, as “online news information gathering, compiling, editing, publication and broadcasting in a manner similar or that bears a resemblance to traditional media services provision.” In the renew regulations, the definition of an “online forum” has been expanded to cover every possible online fora and “online platforms.” These definitions are so vague that their application is potentially boundless in scope.

Further, they impose annual license fees on the online content services, grant the regulator sweeping powers to suspend media outlets and journalists, and detail a broad list of prohibited content.

Among others, the regulations prohibit the publication of “content with information with regards to the outbreak of a deadly or contagious disease in the country or elsewhere without the approval of the respective authorities.” The penalty for breach of the regulations is a fine of not less than five million Tanzanian shillings (USD 2,140), imprisonment for not less than 12 months, or both.

Regulation 9(g) expands the obligations of online content service providers to immediately take down any prohibited content once ordered by the Tanzania Communications Regulatory Authority (TCRA).

Criminalisation of Covid-19 false news

Besides the enactment of repressive Covid-19-related regulations, the government has also invoked laws predating the pandemic to intimidate, arrest, and detain persons, including whistleblowers and critics, in order to censor what is perceived as Covid-19 misinformation or disinformation.

In March 2020, the Tanzania Prime Minister, Kassim Majaliwa, warned the public against spreading against misinformation around the coronavirus outbreak, stating that those found guilty would be dealt with. He directed the TCRA to monitor and apprehend persons disseminating false news, which he said was causing confusion in society. The government subsequently released a list of qualified persons to educate the public about Covid-19, and directed that all media source information only from those on the list.

These threats were quickly followed up with arrests and prosecution of individuals, and harassment of media houses, some of whom had their licences suspended.

In April 2020, there were numerous individuals arrested and charged due to Covid-19 related content that authorities deemed unofficial. A similar argument was maid against media houses which resulted in having their licenses suspended.

Awadhi Lugoya was arrested and accused of wrongful use of social media, for opening a Facebook account called “Coronavirus Tanzania” and using it to purportedly spread “misleading information” about the pandemic. Mariamu Jumanne Sanane, a third-year student at the University of Dar es Salaam, was arrested in April 2020 after she claimed on social media that there were 230 confirmed cases of Covid-19 and four deaths in Tanzania.

Meanwhile, Afrikana Mlay was arrested over accusations of spreading false information on social media, to the effect that the government was hiding the number of coronavirus disease cases in the country. The police claimed that the post was “intended to create panic and discourage efforts being undertaken by the government in fighting [the] spread of the virus.”

On April 28, 2020, Ibrahim Bukuku, a first-year student at the University of Dodoma, was arrested and charged for allegedly disseminating false and misleading information through a WhatsApp group about an alleged cure for Covid-19.

Similarly, earlier in April 2020, Albert Sengo, a journalist working with Jembe Radio FM in Mwanza region, was charged in court for publishing online content on his “unregistered” online GSENGO TV

On the same day, Albert Msando, a prominent lawyer in the Arusha region, was arrested and later charged with allegedly spreading Covid-19 misinformation over his remarks about the worsening coronavirus situation in Arusha. His arrest came only hours after Arusha Regional Commissioner Mrisho Gambo had directed the police force to arrest any citizen disseminating conflicting public information on Covid-19.

Also in April, the Zanzibar Information Department suspended Talib Ussi Hamad, a journalist with the Tanzania Daima daily newspaper, for six months under the Registration of News Agents, Newspapers, and Books Act No. 5 of 1988 and its amendments No. 8 of 1997. Talib Hamad had allegedly reported about a Covid-19 patient without the patient’s consent. He filed a case in the Zanzibar High Court in July challenging the decision. The Zanzibar government lifted the suspension in August 2020.

Likewise, Mwananchi daily newspaper had its online license suspended for six months and fined five million shillings (USD 2,200) by the TCRA after it posted a photo of President Magufuli out shopping and surrounded by a crowd of people, eliciting online discussion on Tanzania’s approach to addressing Covid-19 and the apparent breach of social distancing guidelines. According to the TCRA, the paper breached the Electronic and Postal Communications (Online Content) Regulations as its report was allegedly misleading and had caused confusion in the community.

Three other media organisations – Star Media Tanzania Ltd, Multichoice Tanzania Ltd and Azam Digital Broadcast Ltd – were on April 2, 2020 fined USD 2,200 each and ordered to apologise for “transmission of false and misleading information” about the country’s approach to managing Covid-19. In addition, Kwanza Online TV was suspended for 11 months in June 2020 for reposting on Instagram a health alert from the US Embassy warning of an “elevated” risk of Covid-19 in the country, which the regulator found to be misleading content that contravened professional standards, arguing that the media house had failed to verify the accuracy of the information in the alert.

On April 30, 2020 two employees of Mwananchi Communications Ltd. – Haidary Hakam and Alona Tarimo, were arrested and charged for allegedly disseminating false information about Covid-19 victims on WhatsApp groups contrary to the Cybercrime Act of 2015.

Undermining citizen participation

These developments are reflective of how the Tanzanian authorities have used repressive laws to crack down on journalists for doing their jobs, especially during the Covid-19 pandemic.

In a country where civil liberties have been eroded over the years, the growing hostility of the government towards dissenting opinions, including on the state’s handling of Covid-19, has forced human rights defenders, journalists, activists, the political opposition, and ordinary citizens to self-censor, and could prompt them to refrain from exercising their right to public participation.

As Tanzania prepares to go to the polls in less than ten days, the government must desist from further affronts on civil liberties, especially the right to freedom of expression and access to information, the lifeblood of any democratic society.

19Oct

#WomenAtWebUg Media Masterclass and Reporting Grant Programme

CIPESA October 19, 2020

Announcement |

The Collaboration on International ICT Policy for East and Southern Africa (CIPESA) is pleased to announce the Women At Web Uganda (#WomenAtWebUg) Masterclass and Reporting Grant Programme. The two-phase programme builds on research conducted and engagements held as part of the Women At Web project of the DW.

The first phase of the programme will see successful applicants participate in a #WomenAtWebUg Masterclass – a workshop on digital rights and digital security. In the second phase, outstanding participants from the Masterclass will receive guided mentorship and a reporting grant aimed at improving the sometimes biased reporting on the violations of women’s online rights in Uganda. Meanwhile, the mentorship will explore themes such as affordability, digital literacy, data privacy, digital economy, women and elections, women in the media, censorship, and self-censorship, the impact of COVID-19, and much more, through a gendered lens. It will relate these to current laws and the role that the media plays in addressing perceptions, supporting advocacy, and holding the state accountable to its obligations.

It is expected that the Women At Web Uganda Masterclass and Reporting Grant Programme will contribute to the increased visibility of the dynamics faced by Ugandan women online, and improved balance, quality and regularity of reporting.

Compensation: Successful grantees will be expected to create various outputs, which may include print articles such as features, broadcast content, multimedia content (animations and infographics) and social media content. A modest allowance will be provided to cater for expenses related to the production of the outputs as part of the programme.

Eligibility: Applicants should be early to mid-career print, broadcast, online or multi-media journalists. Individuals passionate about media platforms such as bloggers and social media enthusiasts with relevant skills are also welcome to apply. Applicants must be based in Uganda.

Application process

To apply, email [email protected] with a subject line stating #WomenAtWebUg Media Masterclass and Reporting Grant Programme. Submissions should include:

Your CV
A short statement of interest (maximum 500 words) that mentions the outputs you intend to produce if selected to proceed past the #WomenAtWebUg Masterclass accompanied with an indicative budget
Two samples of your work (written or other)

Timeframes

Apply by: Monday October 26, 2020
#WomenAtWebUg Masterclass: November 3-4, 2020
#WomenAtWebUg Media Mentoring and Reporting Grant: November 10-30, 2020

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