Metro

Navigating Zambia’s online censorship, balancing freedom, responsibility in the digital age

Published

4 months ago

September 3, 2024

Online censorship refers to the legal control or suppression of what can be accessed, published, or viewed on the internet.

In Zambia, this role can be undertaken by the Zambia Information Communication Technology Authority (ZICTA).

While Zambia’s online space is generally considered free, the most notable instance of censorship occurred in August 2021 during the general elections, when internet access was severely restricted.

As Zambians struggled to connect, tech-savvy citizens turned to Virtual Private Networks (VPNs) to access the internet and social media, allowing them to view unverified election results from various polling stations across the country.

VPNs enable users to connect through servers in other parts of the world, bypassing local restrictions.

Censorship can also occur at the individual or organizational level, often referred to as self-censorship.

This type aims to avoid offending others morally, religiously, or in other ways, conforming to societal norms.

While freedom of expression is essential in a democracy like Zambia, it comes with the responsibility to respect others, including those with different political, religious, or ethnic backgrounds.

However, there is a fine line between exercising freedom of expression and violating cyber laws through defamatory speech.

Misuse of this freedom on Zambian social media often leads to harmful personal attacks that go beyond issue-based discourse, causing emotional harm.

The proliferation of fake accounts and misleading information has exacerbated this problem.

Comment sections on popular Zambian online news platforms frequently contain offensive remarks, and impersonation and slander have become common.

Despite the introduction of the Cyber Security and Cyber Crimes Act in 2021, these offenses persist.

In February 2024, the Zambia Police Service arrested and charged four individuals for cybercrimes, including hate speech, use of insulting language, and identity theft.

More recently, 20 Chinese nationals and one Cameroonian were convicted of computer-related misrepresentation, identity-related crimes, and operating an unlicensed network, highlighting the broad application of the law.

The Association for Progressive Communications (APC) Internet Rights Charter emphasizes that the ability to share information freely on the internet is crucial for human rights, as outlined in key international agreements.

However, unchecked freedom on digital platforms has led to the rise of “keyboard warriors” engaging in harmful behavior.

While digital rights are essential, they must not come at the expense of national peace, coexistence, and unity.

Striking a balance between protecting these rights and maintaining social harmony remains a complex challenge for Zambia.

This story is sponsored by Project Aliyense.

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Metro

Nigeria: 614,937 killed, 2.2m abducted in 1 year— Report

Published

8 hours ago

December 18, 2024

Isaac Dachen

A new report released on Tuesday by the National Bureau of Statistics (NBS) has revealed that over 614,937 Nigerians were killed and 2,235,954 others kidnapped across the country in one year between May 2023 and April 2024.

The NBS report, titled, “The Crime Experienced and Security Perception Survey (CESPS) 2024”, says based on the surveys conducted between May 2023 and April 2024, the 2.2 million Nigerians who were kidnapped across the country paid a whopping N2.2 trillion as ransom, with an average amount of N2.7 million per incident.

The report also disclosed that murder rate was highest in rural areas with 335,827 incidents and 279,110 in urban areas.

A zone-by-zone analysis of the report showed that the North-West had the highest murder cases of 206,030, followed by the North-East which stood at 188,992, while the least was recorded in the South-West at 15,693.

The report also revealed about seven in 10 households reported murder cases to the police nationwide with 33 per cent of households responding that the killer was an unknown person, and 23.4 per cent confirmed that the murderer was a member of the household; while 1.0 per cent reported that the murderer was either a spouse or a lover.

The report said 1,668,104 persons were kidnapped in rural areas and 567,850 in urban areas with the North-West having the highest cases of kidnapping with 1,420,307 abducted, followed by the North-Central with 317,837 and the South-East at 110,432.

“Of the estimated amount of N2.2 trillion payments to free victims, the North-West reported the highest ransom paid with N1.2 trillion; while the South-East was the least with N85.4 billion.

“Disaggregated by zones, the North-Central reported the highest proportion of payment of ransom at 83.4 per cent, followed by North-East at 78.6 per cent.

“Households in urban areas paid an average of N3.7 million compared to N2.3 million in rural areas,” the report stated.

It added that about 91 per cent of kidnapping incidents were done for ransom in the form of money, goods or other benefits.

“While 2.4 per cent of cases were attributed to political, criminal, or terrorist objectives; 2.1 per cent were linked to personal or family disputes. Custody disputes accounted for 0.5 per cent of cases,” the report said.

Metro

Nigeria: Army denies reports of plans to establish French military base in the country

Published

2 days ago

December 16, 2024

Isaac Dachen

The Nigerian Army has debunked reports claiming that the French military was planning to establish a base in Nigeria.

The rumours gained momentum on social media and some traditional media platforms following President Bola Tinubu’s recent visit to France where he met with his French counterpart, Emmanuel Macron.

But a statement on Monday by the Director, Defence Media Operations, Major General Edward Buba, said the clarification was necessitated by reports doing the rounds that French soldiers had arrived in the country in preparation to set up a base in Maiduguri, Borno State.

“The attention of Defence Headquarters has been drawn to online reports alleging the arrival of the first contingent of French soldiers in Maiduguri towards establishing a French Military base in North East Nigeria,” Buba said.

“The Armed Forces of Nigeria hereby state unequivocally that this information is fake, totally false and mischievous.

“It would be recalled that Chief of Defence Staff, General Christopher Musa CFR, recently addressed this matter in different media forums. In which he debunked the news and such speculations.

“It is clear that these are the antics of mischief makers,” the defence spokesman saif.

Buba also urged the general public to disregard the news and speculations still making rounds in some quarters, adding that the military will continue to carry out its constitutional responsibilities, most professionally and ensure the territorial integrity of Nigeria.