CyberLawsZW: Only nine Senators participated in the Second Reading of Cyber Bill
About nine Senators participated in the Second Reading of the Cybersecurity and Data Protection Bill which was transmitted from the National Assembly.
The Senate which is often referred to as Upper House has 80 legislators but only nine of them took part.
Second Reading is often the easiest part for legislators who have no legal background compared to the committee stage.
In the Second Reading, the legislators are usually guided by the Committee Report which highlights views from the public.
However, when the Bill went into Second Reading only Senator Tichinani Mavetera, Chief Fortune Charumbira, Morgen Komichi, Morgan Femai, Kulipani Phugeni, Chief Shepherd Makumbe, Senator Dorothy Mabika, Senator Angeline Tongogara and Senator Dorothy Ndlovu added their views.
The Cybersecurity and Data Protection Bill is coming to regulate how people will use social media and the internet.
Although there are some positives in the Bill, there are some sections that are likely to restrict freedom of speech and freedom of the media.
According to Mbizo legislator Honourable Settlement Chikwinya, the Cyber Bill can even affect artistic expressions thereby restricting creativity.
Chikwinya is also on record saying the Bill will allow the government to install surveillance devices in people’s gadgets remotely.
The Bill did not generate much debate in the National Assembly. Especially its Committee Stage as it is said to be too technical by experts.
It however remains to be seen if the Senators will participate in the Committee Stage. This is where they will tackle the Bill Clause by Clause.
There were not many issues raised in the Second Reading stage. It is anticipated that there will not be much debate in the Committee Stage.
CyberLawsZW: Only nine Senators participated in the Second Reading of Cyber Bill
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