MISA Zambia Chairperson Hellen Mwale has appealed to government through the Ministry of Transport and Communications to provide more platforms of engagement for Civil Society Organisations (CSO) and other citizens to provide input towards the development of cyber laws in the country.
Ms Mwale says in as much as the cyber laws such the proposed Cybercrimes and Cybersecurity Bill of 2017 are meant to curtail bad practices on the internet, the same laws may end up infringing on citizen’s rights online if there is no digital rights literacy to the public. She has since called upon the government and other stakeholders to strengthen digital rights literacy programs to the public in order to educate citizens on their digital rights and how to effectively use online spaces.
This is contained in a speech read on her behalf by MISA Zambia Board Member Martin Akende during a multi-stakeholder engagement meeting on Digital Rights Literacy which is being spearheaded by MISA Zimbabwe under the DW Akademie hosted at Cresta Golf View hotel in Lusaka today.
Speaking at the same event, MISA Zambia National Director Austin Kayanda says citizens need to know that they have the right to hold leaders to account on the manner they are managing the affairs of the country through means or channels of their choice, including online spaces.
He called upon stakeholders to recommend ways on how to enhance digital rights literacy in Zambia and across the African continent at large.
