Kenya’s Cabinet Secretary for Interior, Fred Matiang’i, has assured Kenyans that the government will not shut down the internet or social media in an effort to curb hate speech ahead of the general elections.
“We will not do things like switching off the internet, it will not happen here. We will not harass people but because we are confident, we will act according to the law and call people to account,” he said.
Africa has in the recent past been dogged by social media and internet shutdowns in the run-up to elections. Last year internet and social media blackouts were imposed in Tanzania, Uganda, Chad, and Ethiopia between January 2020 and February 2021.
Internet blackouts in Africa prevent users’ access to social media sites such as Facebook, Instagram, and Whatsapp, curtailing freedom of speech and expression which is a democratic right.
Read: East Africa Law Society Sues Uganda for Imposing Internet Shutdown during January Polls
Matiang’i said the Kenyan government would instead enforce strict measures to ensure the country is protected.
“However, we will be very ruthless when it comes to those who interfere with others’ freedoms.We will not hesitate or be intimidated by pressures or complaints from anybody. We will protect Kenya,” he said.
The Interior CS was speaking during the launch of NCIC strategic plan at the Bomas of Kenya Wednesday. He said the security sector would play its role in ensuring the country’s security.
“To those who break the law, we will arrange a good meeting between you and the law. Any threats to the vision of Kenya should be met with the full force of law. ”
“I want to assure the country that we will do our part and role. We are a democracy by choice and it was not imposed on us,” he said.
“We will uphold individual and collective freedoms.. and freedom of speech..”
Read also: Kenya Leads with 10 Million Active Users on Facebook Groups Monthly- Report
According to a 2020 report from British tech research firm Comparitech on internet disruption, shutdowns in Africa happen during the election period or in cases of civil unrest.
The report said that the shutdowns in Tanzania and Uganda were ordered by the incumbent governments in a bid to silence the opposition, giving them the upper hand in the election process against the people’s will.
Most recently, Nigeria took a stance to switch off popular social media app, Twitter, after a tweet from President Mohammed Buhari was deleted. The Eswatini government is also rumored to have shut down the internet following the public anti-monarchy unrest which started this week.
The United Nations believes that access to the internet in this digital age contributes to the broader range of human rights including freedom of expression, freedom of information, the right to assemble and association, the right to health care, and standard quality of life through economic activity.
Article 19 of the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights states that governments are required to adhere to their international human rights commitments. Nations are only required to carry out legal, necessary, and proportional restrictive measures on freedom of expression in exceptional legal cases.
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