By Amin Kef Sesay
The Media Reform Coordinating Group (MRCG) in collaboration with the Sierra Leone Association of Journalists (SLAJ) and with funding from the National Endowment for Democracy, on the 29th March, 2021, convened a consultative meeting on the Cybercrime Act 2020 at the Harry Yansaneh Hall on Campbell Street in Freetown. In attendance were the Minister of Information and Communications, Mohamed Rahman Swaray, Executive members of both MRCG and SLAJ, media practitioners drawn from different parts of the country and other relevant stakeholders.
Declaring the meeting open and welcoming all those in attendance. the Chairman of the MRCG, Dr. Francis Sowa, stated that the main objective of convening the meeting is to deliberate on what exactly the Cybercrime Bill entails in order to understand the issues embedded in it, the concerns that have been raised relating to it and at the end of the day for all present to make meaningful inputs prior to the debate of the Bill in Parliament.
In his contribution, the Chairman of the Right to Access Information Commission, Dr. Seaga Shaw, maintained that it is important to convene such a meeting in order to get feedbacks as to how to regulate the cyberspace in order to ensure that sanity is obtained. He noted that indeed Freedom of Expression is a fundamental human right but pointed out that it is very significant to regulate it.
“There is indeed a need for a Cybercrime Law to be enacted as currently there is a lot of cyber violations taking place,” he underscored furthering that he is proposing for a fact checking mechanism to be set up to assist the institution that will be charged with the responsibility of implementing the law.
Chairman of the Independent Media Commission, George Koryama, stated that he is very proud of the strides that the current Minister of Information and Communications, Mohamed Rahman Swarray, is taking in opening the media landscape in this country making reference to the major role he played in the repeal of the 1965 Criminal Libel Law and for what he is now doing to ensure the enactment of the Cybercrime Act which he described as necessary and very timely.
In his brief statement, the President of SLAJ, Ahmed Sahid Nasralla, said the meeting is not convened to deliberate on whether we should have a Cybercrime Act or not but rather to make meaningful inputs further disclosing that the Bill is now in Parliament. He intimated that it is important to have an Act that we should all own.
The Minister of Information and Communications, Mohamed Rahman Swaray, in his address stated that as a Government they are aspiring to be like other progressive nations in terms of deepening and embracing digitalization. He said the President Maada Bio led political administration does not want to miss out in the 4th industrial revolution further informing that they took over at a time when the country had gone far in demonstrating commitment to enact a Cybercrime Act as is evident in being a signatory of the Malabo Accord but was quick to state that past political administrations failed to domesticate it into our statutes.
He said the Cybercrime Act is a specialized legislation revealing how various validation sessions have been held which made it possible for a broader understanding of what a cybercrime entails and its ramifications on targeted individuals and society as a whole.
The Minister said they have held consultations in different parts of the country in order to get the views of the wider citizenry on the need to have such a law. He congratulated the MRCG and SLAJ for convening the consultative meeting adding that at the end of the day the inputs and positions adopted will influence the parliamentary debate and the ultimate Act that will emerge.
He noted that the powers attributed to him as the Minister of Information and Communications to determine the various punishments to be meted out on offenders that commit cyber related crimes was never in the draft law sent to the Law Officers Department.
“I do not want such an overarching power,” he categorically stated.
The second session of the consultative meeting was permeated by presentations made by various personalities.
Mohamed Jalloh, an engineer who is also an official of the Ministry of Information and Communications, in his presentation, said the essence of having a Cybercrime Act is to ensure that the fundamental human rights of others are respected. He talked extensively on how it is common practice nowadays for people to use computers and mobile phones to infringe on the rights of other people maintaining that when such is done intentionally and willfully then it is tantamount to having committed an offence but said in the absence of a law which could be used to prosecute perpetrators people will continue to suffer in silence as legal action could not be taken against perpetrators.
The Director General of the Sierra Leone Broadcasting Corporation (SLBC) Joseph E. Kapuwa Esq in his presentation also supported the passage of the Bill saying it is not only in place but very appropriate.
Lawyer Sorie Sengeh Marrah Esq said he is not opposed to the passage of the Bill but cautioned that there is no need for some of the provisions. “Section 35 has no place in the bill and SLAJ must put its foot down to ensure it is not part of the final Act,” he suggested.
He continued that as a nation we can still keep the provisions of the Act but we must not make the offences criminal.
“Let’s stick with civil wrongs,” he reiterated.
According to Emmanuel Saffa Abdulai Esq there is a need to find a middle ground on the issue and not push things to the extreme. He said we already have a data protection law that have been worked on but there is a dilemma on which institution should house the Secretariat.
He maintained that punishment needs to be in the law from the onset which he said is predictably in law and people must know the punishment for offences.
The meeting ended with the adoption of position statements.
