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22Feb

Déclaration conjointe pour le maintien d’un internet ouvert et sécurisé durant l’élection présidentielle du 24 Février 2019 au Sénégal

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#KeepItOn |

Nous, la coalition pour un Internet libre et ouvert:

Réaffirmons que l’internet ouvert, accessible et sécurisé, en particulier durant les élections, facilite la libre circulation et l’accès à l’information, en plus de favoriser la liberté d’expression en ligne et hors ligne.  

Nos organisations sont préoccupées par la récente tendance d’interférences illégitimes dans les communications en ligne, la déclaration menaçante d’agents publics et des services de sécurité, ainsi que la ratification d’un projet de loi imparfait sur les communications électroniques datant de 2018, peuvent être considérées comme une tentative majeure de faire taire les voix critiques en ligne et de limiter ainsi la liberté d’expression. Le contrôle excessif des médias publics, l’influence et la pression indirecte exercée par le gouvernement en place et ses alliés sur de nombreux médias traditionnels, ainsi que les récents actes de violence à l’encontre de journalistes sont problématiques et affaiblissent le processus démocratique au Sénégal

Nous  demandons d’urgence à toutes les parties prenantes d’assurer la stabilité et l’accessibilité d’internet avant, pendant et après la prochaine élection présidentielle du 24 Février 2019 au Sénégal. Au nom des plus de 170 organisations provenant de plus de 60 pays qui forment la coalition #KeepitOn, nous vous implorons de garder l’internet ouvert.

Les coupures d’internet heurtent les droits humains et l’économie

Les recherches montrent que les coupures de courant sur le web et la violence vont de pair. [1], [2] Les coupures perturbent la libre circulation de l’information et créent un masque obscur qui protège les violations des droits de l’homme de tout contrôle public. En particulier durant les élections, les journalistes et les professionnels des médias ne peuvent pas contacter des sources, rassembler des informations ou archiver des articles sans outils de communication numériques [3]. Les citoyens n’ont pas accès aux informations critiques, notamment concernant les bureaux de vote et les résultats des élections. Justifiées par diverses raisons, les interruptions du web coupent l’accès à des informations vitales, au commerce électronique et aux services d’urgence, plongeant des communautés entières dans la peur. Les perturbations déstabilisent également la capacité d’internet à soutenir les petites entreprises et à stimuler le développement économique. Une étude réalisée en 2016 par la Brookings Institution, un groupe de recherche de premier plan, a révélé que les coupures d’internet avaient drainé 2,4 milliards de dollars de l’économie mondiale entre 2015 et 2016 [4].

Un internet ouvert favorise la créativité, l’innovation, l’accès à l’information et à des opportunités sociales, économiques, culturelles et politiques à travers le monde, comme aucun outil ne l’a fait auparavant. Les moyens techniques utilisés pour bloquer l’accès à l’information en ligne compromettent souvent de manière dangereuse la stabilité et la résilience d’internet. Les coupures d’internet ne doivent jamais devenir une normalité.

Au Sénégal, l’extension de l’accès à l’internet global demeure un facteur clé pour la réduction des fractures numériques et pour la concrétisation des engagements du Gouvernement envers sa stratégie Sénégal numérique 2016-2025 et les Objectifs De Développement durable (SDG). Nous estimons que les coupures d’internet coûteront au Sénégal près de   3 400 000 $ US environ en CFA 1 870 000 000 par jour en coûts économiques directs, en plus de ralentir la réalisation des droits économiques, sociaux et culturels dans son ensemble. [5]

Les coupures d’internet violent la loi internationale

Un nombre croissant de constatations et de conclusions indiquent que des perturbations intentionnelles de l’internet constituent une violation du droit international. Le Conseil des droits de l’homme des Nations Unies et l’Assemblée générale des Nations Unies ont adopté par consensus de nombreuses résolutions condamnant sans ambiguïté les coupures d’internet et les restrictions similaires à la liberté d’expression en ligne. Par exemple, le Conseil des droits de l’homme des Nations Unies dans sa résolution A/HRC/RES/32/13:

Condamne sans équivoque les mesures visant à empêcher ou à perturber intentionnellement l’accès ou la diffusion d’information en ligne, en violation des Droits humains protégés internationalement, et appelle tous les États à s’abstenir et cesser d’utiliser de telles pratiques.

Des experts des Nations Unies, de l’Organisation pour la sécurité et la coopération en Europe (OSCE), de l’Organisation des États américains (OEA) et de la Commission Africaine des Droits de l’Homme et des Peuples (CADHP) ont déclaré qu’une coupure d’internet ne peut jamais être justifiée sous le droit international relatif aux droits de l’homme, même en période de conflit. [6]

En novembre 2016, la Commission Africaine Des droits de l’ Hommes et des Peuples (CADHP) a adopté une résolution sur le droit à la liberté d’information et d’expression pour l’internet en Afrique, exprimant sa préoccupation face à «une pratique émergente des États d’interrompre ou de limiter l’accès aux services de télécommunication tels qu’internet, les médias sociaux et les services de messagerie, pratique de plus en plus courante durant les élections.» CADHP/Rés.362 (LIX).

Le Comité des droits de l’homme des Nations Unies, interprète officiel du Pacte international relatif aux droits civils et politiques, souligne dans l’Observation générale no. 34 que les restrictions sur le discours en ligne doivent être strictement nécessaires et proportionnées pour atteindre un objectif légitime. [7] Les coupures, en revanche, ont un impact disproportionné sur tous les utilisateurs et limitent inutilement l’accès à l’information et aux communications des services d’urgence lors de moments cruciaux. Les arrêts d’internet ne sont ni nécessaires ni efficaces pour atteindre un objectif légitime, car ils bloquent la diffusion d’informations, contribuent à la confusion et au désordre, en plus d’entraver la sécurité publique.

Nous vous demandons respectueusement d’utiliser votre position d’influence afin de:

  • Veiller à ce que l’internet, y compris les médias sociaux, demeure actif et accessible ;
  • Déclarer publiquement votre engagement à conserver l’internet ouvert et à informer le public de toute perturbation ;
  • Encourager les fournisseurs de services de télécommunication et d’internet à respecter les droits humains par la divulgation publique de politiques et de pratiques affectant les utilisateurs ;
  • Veiller au respect des directives de la déclaration Africaine des Droits et Libertés de l’Internet ;

Veiller au respect des directives sur l’Accès à l’Information et les Élections en Afrique.

                                                                                                Fait à Dakar, 19 février 2019

Access Now

African Development Solution Lab-Experts ( ADSL-E)

African Freedom of Expression Exchange (AFEX)

AFRICTIVISTES

Alioune NDIAYE – Presidentrzd

Alliance for Affordable Internet – A4AI

APPEL

ARTICLE 19 Afrique de l’Est

ARTICLE 19 Sénégal Afrique de l’Ouest

Assane DIENG Etudiant – Chercheur

Association for Progressive Communications (APC)

ASUTIC

Bacary Domingo MANE – Journaliste

Balkissa Idé Siddo  

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

Collectif Sassoufit

Committee to Protect Journalists (CPJ)

CONGAD

Directeur de Pub www. Sene24.com

Emmanuelle M. FAYE – Journaliste Enquête

FORUM CIVIL

Forum for African Women Educationalists FORUM CIVIL

Human Rights Centre Somaliland

Ibra Seck CASSIS – Senegal Vote

Ibrahima NDOYE – Directeur de Pub www. Sene24.com

Internet Sans Frontières

Jeune Chambre Internationale

LSDH APPEL

Magueye SOW – Atlas Network

Media Foundation for West Africa

Modibo DIOP – Euratrade SA

Moussa Fara DIOP – Jeune Chambre Internationale

Moussa TALL – AIESEC

NetBlocks

OpenNet Africa

Oumy Régina SAMBOU – Journaliste

Paradigm Initiative

PEN America

RADDHO

Right 2 Know Campaign, South Africa

The PACT ( Projet pour une alternance crédible au Tchad )

Unwanted Witness, Uganda

World Wide Web Foundation

15Feb

#KeepItOn: Nigeria Urged to Ensure Online Communications Remain Accessible During Elections

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By Juliet Nanfuka |

The Collaboration on International ICT Policy in East and Southern Africa (CIPESA) has joined the #KeepItOn coalition in urging the Nigerian Authorities to ensure that access to digital communications remains open before, during and after the elections which take place on February 16, 2019.

The call implores the state to reaffirm its commitment to keep the internet during this critical political time. It also notes that a shutdown down could cost the country an estimated $134,251,654 per day in direct economic costs, and impact on the realization of economic, social, and cultural rights broadly.

Disruptions to online communications contribute to economic impacts which persist far beyond the days in which access is disrupted due to systemic effects which harm efficiency throughout the economy. Internet shutdowns, however short-lived, undermine economic growth, and erode business confidence as global and national perceptions on the offending country are also affected.

Framework for Calculating the Economic Impact of Internet Shutdowns in Sub-Sahara Africa

Meanwhile, concerns of a shutdown have remained among citizens, leading to information being shared on how to stay online in the event of a network disruption.

Increasingly, disruptions to communications have occurred around election times and during public protest often related to the political regime.  Among some of the cases  include  Equatorial Guinea which in November 2016 blocked access to the internet and to opposition websites ahead of a nationwide election; Uganda also in 2016, blocked access to social media sites and mobile money transactions on two occasions due to election related events; while that same year, Gabon blocked social media access and also imposed a curfew on internet access following widespread conflicts disputed presidential election results. Last year, Togo interrupted communication following public protests against President Gnassingbe, whose family has ruled the country for over half a century. At the start of this year, DR Congo blocked access to “preserve public order after ‘fictitious results’ started circulating on social media.”  

See the joint letter on keeping the internet open and secure here.

30Jan

Disruptions To Digital Communications Persist In The Democratic Republic Of Congo

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By Edrine Wanyama |
Internet access and Short Message Services (SMS) were interrupted in the Democratic Republic of Congo (DR Congo) on January 20, 2018 ahead of a peaceful protest march organised by the Catholic Church to compel President Joseph Kabila to step down following the expiry of his final term in office. The country remains caught in a cycle of instability since the postponement of the November 2016 elections to December 2017, and then to April 2018.
The first interruption of digital communications in the vast central African nation occurred in December 2011 in the aftermath of general elections, before the announcement of the election results. The shutdown affected SMS, and lasted 25 days.
In the seven years since then, DR Congo has experienced at least five communication disruptions amidst growing concerns about surveillance of the digital communications of opposition leaders, journalists, and activists.

See: The Evolution of Internet Shutdowns in DR Congo

Affronts to internet access hurt human rights, and undermine political stability and economic growth. According to the new framework for calculating the economic impact of internet shutdowns, DR Congo loses at least USD 1,936,911 per day of an internet disruption.
The regular communication disruptions bring into focus the role of intermediaries in advancing internet freedom in the country. Specifically, telecom companies and other Internet Service Providers (ISPs) are being challenged to dissociate themselves from censorship, by declining to effect the government’s orders to cut off communications. Such a move would arguably be in accordance with the UN Guiding Principles on Business and Human Rights which require businesses to proactively address all adverse human rights impacts directly linked to their operations, products or services. However, many telecommunications services providers fear reprimand and termination of their licences for failure to comply with directives from the state to interfere or block digital communications.
Government directives to shut down the internet or interrupt communications are usually issued under the guise of “national security” or “public order”. In a letter ordering network disruptions in August 2017, an official of the national communications regulatory body, the Autorité de Regulation des Postes et Télécommunications du Congo (ARPTC), instructed service providers to take preventative measures to reduce the capacity to transmit “abusive messages.”
Internet penetration in DR Congo remains low at 4.2%, supported by a 55.7% mobile penetration. To-date, there are two primary laws governing the telecommunications sector, both of which were passed in 2002: the Framework Law 013/2002 on Telecommunications, and the Law 14/2002 on the Regulations – the law that established the national regulator. However, rather than advance internet access and usage, these laws have often been used against the media and critics of the state. Meanwhile, there are limited meaningful avenues for citizens to provide inputs to proposed new laws related to the telecommunications industry.
President Kabila’s government should boldly work to stop the abuse of rights which the country’s 2005 constitution guarantees . Abuse of free expression and access to information has continued in Congo despite the recognition of access to the internet as a human right by African and International Human Rights instruments. The UN Secretary General has previously called and continues to call upon the Congolese government to uphold her citizens’ freedoms to speech and peaceful assembly.
It is thus imperative that Congo government authorities desist from interrupting digital communications and guarantee citizens’ access to the internet and to the full enjoyment of their digital rights. Further, the Congo government should recognise the relationship between access to the internet and citizens’ livelihoods and work to grow the number of its citizens that meaningfully access and use digital tools and services.

01Jul

Young Social Media Enthusiasts in Kenya Trained on Internet Law and Digital Security

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By Shitemi Khamadi |
In 2015, Allan Wadi, became the first Kenyan to be convicted of hate speech online. At a May 2017 training on internet and the law, he expressed gratitude for the opportunity to acquire skills and knowledge to avoid future arrest and prosecution. While he is currently facing an incitement to violence charge over a comment he made on Facebook in February 2016, he said he is now more aware of the extent of his rights and limitations with respect to the rights of others.
Wadi is however convinced that the various charges brought against him were unfair as many others who have made similar and according to him, graver comments online have gone unpunished. “I feel it was to set me as an example”, he remarked at the end of the training in Kisumu where 43 other youth including technology enthusiasts, communications students and bloggers were trained in the legal frameworks governing use of the internet in Kenya.

See: Allan Wadi Feels Arrests and Charges are Unfair

The objective of the training hosted by the Bloggers Association of Kenya (BAKE) in partnership with the Collaboration on International ICT Policy for East and Southern Africa (CIPESA) was to build participants’ understanding of rights and offenses related to the internet within the Kenyan legal context. The training was organized in light of shrinking rights of Kenya’s digital citizens in the face of new restrictive laws and increased arraignment of individuals for expressing online opinions which authorities deem in breach of the law, especially given the upcoming electioneering period.

Bake2

Prior to the Kisumu training, a similar training was held in Nairobi where a Senior Prosecutor in the office of the Director of Public Prosecutions (DPP), Duncan Ondimu, was unequivocal that his office would be more vigilant on hate speech cases online, arrest any perpetrator and charge them in court. “We will not spare anyone,” said Ondimu who also serves as the Senior Prosecution Counsel. He added that the DDP had set up a 24 hour toll free line to for citizens to report hate speech offenses from social media posts that the office would follow up with investigations. Kenyans can also report offences to the DPP on Facebook and Twitter.

Furthermore, Ondimu stated that while the country had made gains in removing clauses in various laws that limited freedom of expression, provisions relating to defamation still exist. In 2016, Section 29 of the Kenya Information and Communications Act, Section 194 of the Penal Code and Section 132 of the Penal code were declared unconstitutional.

Nonetheless, a key concern among participants in the two trainings was user safety online. In particular, combating harassment, stalking and cyber bullying especially against women. Digital security trainer Ephraim Muchemi took participants through communications and device protection practices including strong passwords, anti viruses, encryption (email and hard disk) and privacy settings on social media accounts.

Mr. Wadi challenged the bloggers and social media users to become the main source of information even for the mainstream media in documenting events during the election. “You should also act like observers and update electorates of the voting and tallying processes from various tallying centres”, he asserted.

He also urged BAKE and similar actors to continue with capacity building efforts aimed at empowering bloggers and social media activists, as well as supporting them during litigation over offences.

The trainings were organized in the context of the ICT4Democracy in East Africa initiative as part of efforts to promote ICT enabled participation in governance pre and post elections in Kenya.

07Jun

Rwanda’s Communications Regulator Dismisses Electoral Commission’s Directives on Suppressing Free Speech Online

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By Ashnah Kalemera |
The Rwanda Utilities Regulatory Authority (RURA), the body that regulates telecommunication services, has dismissed a statement by the country’s electoral body regarding vetting of social media posts by candidates in the upcoming elections. This principled move by RURA needs to be commended, and just like the authority has steadfastly held service providers to their licensing obligations and protected digital technology users’ interests, RURA stands well positioned to be the champion of the free flow of information and ideas online in Rwanda.
“The National Electoral Commission (NEC) has no mandate to regulate or interrupt the use of social media by citizens,” reads RURA’s May 31 statement. The authority goes on to state that as the body in charge of communications, it has not had any discussions with NEC on the matter and to “reaffirm the right of citizens express themselves on social media and other ICT [Information and Communication Technologies] platforms, while respecting existing laws.”
The statement by RURA follows a directive by the electoral body requiring that campaign posts by candidates, including text, photographs and videos must be sent to a team of analysts prior to publishing on Facebook, Twitter, YouTube, WhatsApp, Instagram or on candidates’  websites.
“The candidates will have to send their messages to our team 24 hours before the time they expect to post them – and then they give us another 24 hours to give them feedback,” a NEC official is quoted as having told journalists. The commission head stated that candidates risked having their social media accounts blocked if they failed to comply with the instructions. According to officials, NEC’s directive was “not censorship”, but rather, aimed at ensuring that “messages posted on social media are not poisoning people.”
The electoral body’s move deserves condemnation for infringing on free speech and aiming to curtail the free flow of information and opinion in the lead up to presidential elections scheduled for August 2017. Article 38 of the Rwanda constitution guarantees freedom of the press, of expression and of access to information. The Media Law of 2013 further extends these rights to the media, including online platforms, as provided for under Article 19.
Whereas these rights need to be respected at all times, it is especially critical to uphold them at election times to enable politicians easily reach out to voters and for citizens to have ample access to competing ideas so as to make informed choices of who to vote for as their leaders. This is why RURA’s dismissal of the electoral body’s overtures to curtail free expression online is particularly welcome, and yet there is need to work on other fronts to ensure that the country’s laws, and the practices of its institutions and leaders, promote free expression online.
Presently, there are gaps in laws such as the 2013 Media Law, the Penal Code, and the law on interception of communications which pose a threat to the online operations of media and civil society. Over the years numerous blogs and websites with content deemed critical of the state have been blocked Recent years have also seen some online publishers being arrested and charged, with some fleeing into exile. See 2017 report on Safeguarding Civil Society: Assessing Internet Freedom and Digital Resilience of Civil Society in East Africa.
Nonetheless, RURA’s statement is a positive development in the country that has put ICT at the forefront of its socio-economic development. As of December 2016, Rwanda had a mobile phone penetration rate of 79%, while internet penetration stood at 37%, according to RURA’s 4th quarter 2016 report.
In October 2015, Rwanda launched its ICT Master Plan – Vision 2020. Among the priority areas is improved ICT access especially via mobile. Meanwhile, Rwanda’s Universal Service Fund, which is aimed at extending connectivity to rural and underserved communities, is funded by up to 2% levy of operator turnover.
Meanwhile, the RURA actively enforces operator licensing requirements and regulations, and issues notices and penalties for non compliance with quality of service obligations. In June 2016 notices to MTN Rwanda and Airtel Rwanda, the operators were ordered to comply with obligations within 15 calendar days and submit to the authority short term implementation reports and in the longer term, implementation plans. The notice to MTN also stipulated a penalty of approx. USD 6,300 per day for “major network outage and service degradation.”
To fully realise the benefits of these initiatives, citizens need to be free to express themselves online and to have trust in using online tools and platforms without fear for their privacy and safety.
Established under the 2001 law governing telecommunications, RURA’s mandate was extended under a 2013 amendment to include “telecommunications, information technology, broadcasting and converging electronic technologies including the Internet and any other information and communication technology.”
 
 
 

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