Cybercrime laws blow to freedom of expression

Two weeks ago, the High Court declared the Computer Misuse and Cybercrimes Act of 2018 constitutional. It had been challenged by Bloggers Association of Kenya and Article 19 Eastern Africa, an NGO, for what they termed as violating fundamental rights and freedoms, including freedom of expression, right to information and the right to privacy.

It is noteworthy that Justices Chacha Mwita and Wilfrida Okwany on two separate occasions suspended 26 sections of the law because, in their view, they threatened fundamental rights. In this digital era where communication, commercial transactions, and basic services are done online, it is important that the international community and countries identify standards of acceptable conduct for information and communication technology users.