Christof Maletsky
25 November 2008
Spying on innocent citizens is, at best, the trademark of a dictatorship, the Namibia Democratic Movement for Change (NMDC) said on Friday.
The political party was reacting to an article in The Namibian which stated that, if passed in its current form, the proposed Communications Bill will give Government free rein to monitor telephone calls and electronic mail in the name of crime prevention and national security.
NMDC secretary general Joseph Kauandenge said any peace-loving Namibian must vocally dismiss the bill in its current form since the right to private conversation will "become an endangered species" if the bill is adopted.
"It is regrettable that, in this age and day, those in Government are prepared to take us back to a past so painful with memories of subversion of democratic rights and denial of privacy which is a cornerstone of human existence," Kauandenge said in a statement.
He called the bill "draconian" and "ill advised".
The executive director of the National Society for Human Rights, Phil ya Nangoloh, said the bill was "not surprising" to them.
He said the proposals were but "one of the several closely related ominous signs" of where Namibia was heading.
According to the NSHR, the other signs were the so-called guided democracy advocated by the Swapo Party Youth League, a proposed Government-controlled media council and hostility towards the current NBC Director General and board Chairman.
He said the bill was "lock, stock and barrel contrary to the (Namibian) Constitution".
"The bill deserves the strongest condemnation by the people of Namibia," he said.
The bill has a clause on "interception of communications" which gives the Namibia Central Intelligence Service (NCIS) sweeping powers to spy on private citizens without judicial oversight.
On Friday the Media Institute of Southern Africa said the provision was retrogressive and repressive.
The interception centre would intercept or monitor electronic communications "where any law authorises any person or institution" to do this.
The provisions in the bill are similar to those in Zimbabwe's Interception of Communications Bill, which that country uses to threaten journalists and their sources, who are already subject to a battery of repressive laws.
The Namibia Central Intelligence Service Act of 1998 states that a court warrant is required for the NCIS to intercept or monitor communication and search premises of individuals.
Although the interception centre is supposed to process only legally sanctioned requests for phone tapping, it seems to be otherwise unaccountable to anyone other than the Director General of the Namibia Central Intelligence Service.
The proposed law also compels service providers in the communications industry to bear the costs of equipment for interception, something Misa regards as an unfair financial obligation, with chances that the costs will ultimately be passed on to the consumer and render services inaccessible to the poor.
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I support you on that im also seriousry tired of these politicians an evrywhere you go its just politics an you are not free to talk about any political party since there are some peolple of the opposition party an if you are from a diffrent party you will be in big trouble . People now are fighting since ther is a new party which was formed last year an most of them are of the ruling party against evryone of the new party . im also tired of this .
I left Namibia during the apartheid era. I can proudly say that I conrtibuted to the struggle for indepence like many others. However, I decided not to go back and settle in Namibia. I do not trust politicians. More so with African politicians. I can honestly say, I am a proud african living and working in the Western hemisphere. Why? Because here the individuals are not above the constitution . I can go to bed and wake-up knowing that no wing-nut have change the constitution. I can vote in an election, Go to work the next day and talk to my co-workers(irrespective of the different parties) without any threats. I know the west is called evil. But the reality and from practical pointv of view. I can almost do anything i want here. I support my parents, and nieces, nephews, cousins and even friends back in namibia. Do I contrubute to the Namibian economy? Yes, damn right!! I do!!!. More than some of the intellectual, well-connected fellow Namibians back home.It all my own money. My motto is no favours, no stealing, no cheating.