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04Jun

Internet Freedom in Rwanda – A State of Monitored Media

Author admin Posted on

This year, Rwanda observed 20 years since the 1994 genocide. Many stories were shared online informing both local and global audiences of a time that almost brought the country to a standstill. To date, the scars of the genocide period, during which some media houses fuelled ethnic tensions, influence how the state deals with online media.
Rwandan media law grants journalists and non-journalists the right to “receive, disseminate or send information through internet,” noting that every person “is entitled to the right of creating a website through which he/she disseminates the information to many people.” Additionally, the 2013 Law Regulating Media states that posting or sending information through the internet does not require the user to be a professional journalist.
In spite of having this generous law, some blogs and websites with content critical of the state have been targeted and blocked or shut down over the years. Indeed, there is a commonality between Rwanda and some of the other East African countries, such as Ethiopia, Kenya, Uganda and Burundi, in the 2014 OpenNet Africa Internet Freedom Reports [See Regional Summary here] where laws and regulations restrict internet freedoms including through allowing interception of communication with limited oversight.
In April 2014, there were numerous and unrelated reports of online news journalists being arrested and intimidated with some allegedly fleeing the country. One online news editor reported that his website had been hacked and he disowned recent content published under his name.
Earlier in 2011, the online publication Umuvugizi was suspended for six months while its editor Jean Bosco Gasasira was sentenced to two and half years in jail for civil disobedience and insulting President Paul Kagame on the website. There are recent reports that some government employees use false user accounts on Twitter to intimidate journalists and spread propaganda. Ironically, President Paul Kagame has one of the more active presidential twitter accounts on the continent.
In most cases, national unity and security have been used as the reason for invasive monitoring to clamp down on media houses and bloggers in the country. This bears similarity to Kenya which has battled to control hate speech online in the aftermath of the 2007 post-election violence. [See State of Online Freedom in Kenya]

“Whereas online user rights are recognised in various laws, restrictions applied in the context of national security, sectarianism and genocide ideology should be more explicitly defined.”

Source: Internet Freedom in Rwanda, An OpenNet Africa Report

With a population of 10.5 million, Rwanda’s mobile penetration stands at 63.5% and internet penetration at 19.5%. There are ongoing government-driven initiatives, such as the National Information Communication Technology (ICT) Literacy and Awareness Campaign and Vision 2020, which aim to improve governance, access and ICT skills development. However, this progress in the access to and use of ICTs by citizens and the government remains hampered by regressive laws and regulations. This contributes to self-censorship by both citizens and media when publishing content online which is increasingly becoming the preferred tool of communication.
Read more on the status of the practices, legislative environment, and threats to online freedoms in Rwanda in the 2014 Internet Freedom in Rwanda Report prepared by CIPESA as part of the OpenNet Africa initiative.

04Jun

Internet Freedom in Ethiopia: Firmly gripped on(line) communications

Author admin Posted on

As a country with one of the lowest levels of ICT use in Africa, Ethiopia’s online presence is further hampered by regressive laws on surveillance and interception of digital communications. The country’s sole service provider, the state-owned Ethio Telecom, makes it easy for government to monitor and control citizens’ communications.
Unlike Ethiopia, all the other countries in the East African region have opened up their telecommunications sector to multiple players, which has contributed to increased ICT access levels. See table below indicating number of service providers per country in East Africa.

Country Number of Mobile/Fixed Line service providers Number of Internet Service Providers
Burundi 4 8
Ethiopia 1 1
Kenya 4 32
Rwanda 4 10
Tanzania 12 40
Uganda 7 30

Ethiopia like other countries in East Africa [See Regional summary],has passed numerous laws that contradict its constitution in the areas of free speech, privacy and freedom of expression online

“Everyone has the right to freedom of expression without any interference. This right shall include freedom to seek, receive and impart information and ideas of all kinds, regardless of frontiers, either orally, in writing or in print, in the form of art, or through any media of his choice.”

Article 29 of the Ethiopian Constitution

Laws that pertain to the media, anti-terrorism, and telecoms fraud do more to detract from the rights of citizens than they do to protect them. These laws also give overwhelming powers to state organs to interfere with citizens’ online freedoms, with limited judicial or legislative safeguards. The overbearing mandate held by the Information Network Security Agency (INSA) and the National Intelligence and Security Service (NISS), allows for rampant invasive monitoring and surveillance of mobile networks and internet, mainly targeted at those known or perceived to be critical of the one-party regime. This has prompted widespread self-censorship among online users as the penalties are tough.
The law restricts the use of voice-over-internet protocol services such as Skype and Google Talk, which undermines citizens’ internet rights and reinforces the position of the sole service provider.
The government justifies these stringent controls on the telecoms sector and the affronts to online freedoms to a need to prevent threats to the country’s socio-economic progress and political stability. Most recently, on April 25, 2014, six bloggers of the independent activist group ‘Zone 9’ and a prominent Ethiopian journalist were arrested for allegedly working with foreign organisations and rights activists through “using social media to destabilise the country.” See article here. The group, which has a strong following on social media, had temporarily suspended their activities earlier this year after accusing the government of harassing their members.
Although the National ICT Policy of 2009 lists encouraging public participation in political processes among its objectives, it offers no protection to those who criticise the state nor does it stipulate the ways in which ICT can be used by citizens monitoring governance and transparency.
Despite these restrictions in the online sphere, the country experienced a surge in access to ICT with mobile subscriptions tripling from 6.8 million subscribers in 2010 to 20.5 million subscribers in 2012. Internet usage is estimated at 1.5% of the country’s population of just under 90 million.
The Internet Freedom in East Africa Regional Summary Report indicates a growing demand for internet services throughout the region, but for Ethiopian citizens, the monopoly by Ethio Telecoms and rampant intrusion into citizens’ communications severely limit citizens’ internet freedoms.
Read more on the status of the policies, legislative environment, and threats to online freedoms in Ethiopia in the 2014 Internet Freedom in Ethiopia Report prepared by CIPESA as part of the OpenNet Africa initiative.

04Jun

Online Freedoms in Burundi – Breaking the boundaries of online commentary

Author admin Posted on

Since the liberalisation of the telecommunications sector in 1997, Burundi has seen a consistent growth in mobile phone penetration, which in 2012 stood at 26 mobile phones per 100 users. Some 1.2% of the population has access to the internet, mostly through mobile phones. Whereas these access rates are much lower than in most East African countries, unlike Ethiopia which has a single telecommunications service provider [See State of Online Freedom in Ethiopia], Burundi has eight, including a state-owned entity.
Like the other landlocked countries in the region, namely Ethiopia, Rwanda and Uganda, Burundi is faced with high internet costs due to the connections required to offshore fibre optic cables such as the Eastern Africa Submarine Cable System (EASSy).To support the growth of its telecommunications sector, the country has invested in the Burundi Backbone System (BBS) which is the national internet access infrastructure that currently covers eight of the country’s 17 districts.
Although the coverage is still in its infancy, the backbone system, which is financed by the government, the World Bank and four telecom operators – Ucom Burundi, Africell Tempo, Onatel and CBINE- is working to provide high speed internet at lower costs. Besides, there is the recent launch of BurundiX, the local Internet Exchange Point, which is also aimed to help further reduce access costs.
The National Communications Council (CNC) is tasked with regulating online and offline media in the country. It is mandated to ensure that citizens have access to balanced information and a diversity of opinions including political, social, cultural and economic opinion through the public media.
The CNC is meant to be a neutral entity. However, in May 2013, the Council ordered a 30 day shut down of the discussion forum of an online news publisher – www.iwacu-burundi.org.
The shutdown was as a result of comments posted on the site, which the CNC considered “defamatory against official institutions” and in contravention of the 2003 Press Law. The regulator said the comments constituted an “attack on national unity, public order and security, inciting ethnic hatred, defending criminal activity and insulting the head of state” according to the press law.
In similarity to the CNC in Burundi, the Uganda Communications Commission [See State of Online Freedom in Uganda], and the Rwanda Media Commission [See State of Online Freedom in Rwanda], have faced criticism for their roles in interfering with online freedom.
Freedom of the media and expression is provided for in Burundi legislation. However, with growing internet penetration, the country has adopted regressive laws and practices on communications. In January 2014, as a result of opposition calls for protests against proposed amendments to the country’s 2005 constitution, the communications regulatory authority issued a notice warning the public against transmitting SMS and anonymous calls that could fuel tensions. The regulator stated that it would work with service providers “on cooperation mechanisms in the traceability” of communications.
These recent events have created an atmosphere of uncertainty about the extent to which online and offline freedoms can be fully exercised by the media and citizens.
Like many of the countries studied in the State of Internet Freedom in East Africa Report, self-censorship by both the media and citizens in Burundi is applied to content shared in the online arena.
Read more on the status of the legislative environment, and threats to online freedoms in Burundi in the 2014 Internet Freedom in Burundi Report prepared by CIPESA’s OpenNet Africa.

30May

Are East African States Using ‘Terrorism’ to Stifle Internet Freedoms?

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By Edris Kisambira
On May 23, 2014, the Collaboration on International ICT Policy in East and Southern Africa (CIPESA) launched a report on the State of Internet Freedom in East Africa. The report is an investigation into the policies and practices that define internet freedom in the region. The event, which took place in Kampala, Uganda, was attended by ICT thought leaders, media and human rights activists from Uganda, Rwanda, Kenya, Tanzania, Burundi and Nigeria, among others.
A number of East Africa countries such as Kenya, Tanzania, Uganda and Rwanda boast over 50% teledensity and a growing number of internet users.
But as internet user numbers grow, so does content questioning governments’ democratic credentials. In turn, governments are enacting laws to counter freedom of expression, including online. These curtails are often framed under the guise of fighting terrorism, cyber crime and hate speech.
The CIPESA report noted that, regrettably, despite increased usage of the internet and infringements on freedoms, East Africans are not engaging enough in discussions around the issues of internet freedoms.
In his keynote address at the launch, the Chairperson of the ICT Committee in Uganda’s parliament, Vincent Waiswa Bagiire, noted that internet use by East African citizens has grown exponentially over the last five years. Considering the importance of the internet to improving livelihoods, the economy, and to security and stability, it had become necessary to make regulations to govern the online space.
“The issue becomes whether the rules are fair, inclusive, allow the growth of the internet and associated digital technologies, or whether they suppress citizens’ rights and creativity, lock out some sections of society and stifle creativity and innovation,” said Bagiire.
Panel discussions centred on how to find a balance between users’ freedoms and national security, as well as on online safety, security and privacy.
Arnold Mangeni, the Data Centre Manager at the National Information Technology Authority of Uganda (NITA-U) noted that when one goes online, they need not to expect security and privacy granted at the same time. He added that governments are mandated to protect citizens and as such have to curtail some freedoms while protecting citizens.
This sentiment was in sharp contrast to that of Neil Blazevic from the Pan African Human Rights Defenders Network. He encouraged citizens to take more active measures to ensure their privacy and security both offline and online. “Privacy is something we rely on in basic existence without which we face an existential crisis,” he said.
Patrick Mutahi, a Safety & Security Programme Officer from Article 19 Kenya raised the concern that while pursuing national security, governments are collecting citizen’s personal information during SIM card and national Identity registration exercises with no regulations on how this information is used. He further said governments are moving to curtail some of the freedoms because of vices like hate speech.
Lydia Namubiru, a Programme Officer at the African Centre for Media Excellence (ACME), said privacy and security online, like transport infrastructure for example, was a public service and should be guaranteed by governments. She said government surveillance online is akin to “placing a police officer at someone’s bedroom window”.
Panelists pointed to a need for competent judicial authorities to provide oversight over surveillance and monitoring. They also called for governments to consult citizens in enacting laws related to internet freedoms.
It was also pointed out that individuals and the private sector should take responsibility for their own online privacy and security.
“The Police alone cannot protect everyone online. The private sector has got to play a major role too. For example the problem of unsolicited SMS messages and online fraud where people lose millions of shillings in bogus transactions,” said Jimmy Haguma, the Acting Commissioner for Electronic and Counter Measures, Uganda Police Force.
He was backed by legislator Bagiire who said online safety is complex and needs continuous stakeholder collaborative efforts and user sensitisation efforts.
“Whereas government will put in place laws to protect users like the Computer Misuse Act and the e-signatures Ac, we the individuals have to be careful online,” he said.
Conducted between January 2010 and April 2014, CIPESA’s research found that the state of internet freedom in East Africa is littered with legislation and state actions which contradict constitutional rights provisions.
The legacy of colonial laws still lingers in countries like Tanzania and Uganda where public information disclosure is severely restricted. Besides, some laws, without being explicit on the internet and related technologies, are used in contexts that they were not intended for. Meanwhile, in Kenya, Rwanda and Burundi, hate speech content regulations posed a threat to internet freedoms. In Ethiopia, the state monopoly over telecommunications was found to enable mass surveillance and content filtering, particularly that of the regime’s critics.
The full report can be found here.

23May

Launch of the Internet Freedoms in East Africa 2014 Report

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Today, the Collaboration on International ICT Policy in East and Southern Africa (CIPESA) launches The State of Internet  Freedoms in East Africa research report which is an Investigation into the policies and practices defining internet freedom in East Africa.
Thought leaders in the East African ICT industry  have gathered in Kampala, Uganda for the launch of this pivotal report.
The report  presents the findings of an exploratory study on the state of internet freedoms in Burundi, Ethiopia, Kenya, Rwanda, Tanzania and Uganda.  The research  reviewed  policy  developments  and  actions  related  to  internet freedoms over the period 2010 to April 2014.
As the day progresses, emerging themes will be explored by the attendees who will share their early thoughts on the findings as well as explore issues related to internet freedom in East Africa.
The report can be found here.
See the day’s programme here.

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