Zimbabwe recommendations for Cyber Crimes Bill

THE Zimbabwe chapter of the Media Institute of Southern Africa (Misa-Zimbabwe) together with the Digital Society of Zimbabwe, has come up with a position paper on the Computer Crime and Cybercrime Bill which was introduced by Supa Mandiwanzira.  The paper articulates that that the bill in its current form needs to be amended so that it does violate the constitution and to remove an ambiguity.  The position paper notes flaws in the bill and provides a recommendation of how the flaw can be fixed.

You can download the bill on the link below.

MISA_DSZ-Position-Computer-Crimes_2016

Here is an excerpt from the position paper:

The Bill should consider revising many of the definitions to increase specificity and remove vagueness and ambiguity. Further, new or additional definitions should be considered especially for terms that are likely to cause confusion such as sexually explicit conduct, computer crimes, cybercrimes, a thing, device, among others. As currently structured, some provisions of the Bill run counter to the constitution, especially the Bill of Rights as indicated above. In the event that this
Bill is enacted as it stands, several possible actions remain for individuals, citizens,Internet society, and civil society to consider approaching the Constitutional Court for interpretation and judicial restraint. Further, individuals who are subject of the intrusions envisaged under this Bill have the right to be informed of any investigations against them, coupled with judicial oversight, and statutory commission. The ministry responsible for this Bill should also be compelled in terms of the Bill to provide regular reports on the law’s use to an all-party parliamentary committee on the application of the Bill and the cases under investigation.