Uganda’s Computer Misuse Act, Cap. 96 criminalizes sending “unsolicited information” online, punishable by up to seven years in prison.
This provision is unconstitutional for being vague, overbroad and repressive. Most communications, including all social media posts, journalistic inquiries and publications, and advocacy messages, are often “unsolicited.”
In 2022, working in partnership with 13 other defenders of digital freedoms, we filed Constitutional Petition No. 37 in the Constitutional Court to challenge the offense and other provisions of that law for being inconsistent and in contravention with several Articles of the 1995 Constitution. The hearing was concluded. Judgment is set to be delivered on a date to be fixed by the Court.
Human rights standards under the 1995 Constitution and the ICCPR require speech restrictions to be clear, pursue a legitimate aim, and be necessary and proportionate, which this offense fails to meet. The severe penalties and unclear scope create a chilling effect on journalists, activists, and ordinary users, especially when speaking about public officials.
By making “unsolicited” communication the default offense and “public interest” a narrow and discretionary exception, the law undermines the rights to both impart and receive information and weakens democratic debate in Uganda.
We hope the Constitutional Court will deliver its judgment soon to end enforcement of such unconstitutional provisions.
NUP's Muvawala remanded to Luzira over recording police, UPDF brutality.
He is accused of recording videos of security personnel and sharing them with people who had not solicited them
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