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PPP/C will not spy on the population – President Ali assures
President Irfaan Ali addressing the audience at the opening of the two-day media conference to commemorate World Press Freedom Day (Photo Credit: NCN)
Kaieteur News – As World Press Freedom Day was celebrated in Guyana on Tuesday with the opening of a two-day conference for media workers, President Irfaan Ali has assured that the government has no intent to spy on its people and in fact, the thought has never even crossed his mind to tap into the work of the media in particular.
This year, World Press Freedom Day was observed under the theme ‘Journalism Under Digital Seige’ which is intended to highlight the ways in which surveillance and digitally mediated attacks endanger journalists and their profession.
It was the President of the Guyana Press Association (GPA), Nazima Raghubir who enquired of the President whether the administration is in possession of any spyware or plans to acquire and use it, especially on journalists.
To this end, the Head of State, in the presence of diplomats from the international community assured, “This government has no intention whatsoever, it is not even contemplated in my mind to move in any direction to have any spyware or ‘whyware’ or anything to spy on anyone. That is furthest from my thoughts. I have not even imagined something like that so take it out. Take it out of your imagination now. It will never happen, at least under this government. It will never happen!”
The President said we must be careful not to invent problems where they do not exist, adding that wherever such practices exists must be rooted out, as no government should be spying on their population.
Cybercrime Act
Another issue highlighted by the GPA President during remarks at the opening of the conference was the Cybercrime Legislation, which she said must be addressed.
The GPA President told the delegates, “We need assurances that we would be able to do our jobs without fear. Fear of intimidation and or threat and most of all, the rights and freedoms associated with the work of the media must be respected at all times. For this reason, we feel that the cybercrime legislation which criminalises how we access and receive information threatens the work that we do and this legislation must be addressed.”
Raghubir told Kaieteur News in a subsequent interview that the law criminalises how the media gathers information, using cell phones and even the internet. It also criminalises sharing and receiving information. In this regard, she explained that since 2018, the former government accepted some of the amendments to the legislation, while some were not.
The GPA President said, “We would like to see those clauses removed, the clauses that criminalise how we use and gather information using electronic devices.”
President Ali, however, did not say whether the GPA’s request for the Law to be amended would be considered anytime soon. Instead, he noted that the media must be responsible and understand that there are limitations to freedom.
“Men and women are free but there are limitations to which one must exist in that free society. You are not free to harm each other. You are not free to destroy property. You are not free to destroy character and that is why there are the laws. So freedom exists within the confines of laws and rules in a democratic society,” the Head of State explained.
Raghubir said that the President’s response to her request regarding the Law was that of a politician’s and the Press Association remains hopeful that the issue would be addressed sooner rather than later.
Cybercrime is the use of a computer to carry out illegal acts. Cybercrimes are usually done with the use of the internet and the different instruments that it has available, and most people are not aware of this Act and the penalties that are attached to offences that fall under this Act.
Guyana’s Cybercrime Bill 2016 was presented by the then Attorney General and Minister of Legal Affairs, Basil Williams. It was published on August 4, 2016. After the Bill was presented to the National Assembly, the proposed Section 18, ‘Sedition,’ had caused a public outcry.
However, on July 20, 2018, the Coalition Government used its majority to pass the Cybercrime Bill with an amendment expunging the controversial sedition clause.
Since the passage of the Bill, numerous persons were charged, put before the court and even convicted.
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