This story [1] was originally published on OpenDemocracy.net/en/.

This story [1] was originally published on OpenDemocracy.net/en/.
License: Creative Commons 4.0 - Attributions/No Derivities/
international.
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Repressive governments play whack-a-mole with Africans’ digital rights
By: []
Date: None

Like so many aspects of life, democratic debate is increasingly moving online. Yet it seems that every time citizens adopt a new digital tool or enter a new digital space to voice opposition, repressive governments respond with a whole arsenal of methods to dampen dissent and deny the right to opinion and expression.

For every new activist tactic, the state comes up with three or four countermeasures. Research by a new network of African digital rights researchers, activists and analysts has found that this digital game of whack-a-mole is playing out across the continent.

The right to be heard and to influence decision-making on issues that affect our lives is a cornerstone of open democracy and one of the UN’s sustainable development goals. In an increasingly digital world, being heard involves mobile phones and social media – especially during a pandemic when social distancing makes public protest both difficult and dangerous.

Marginalised groups have repeatedly adopted digital technologies to create online spaces where they can give voice to issues, influence debate and hold the powerful to account. #MeToo and #BlackLivesMatter are powerful examples of this in action.

The ability to use online space to voice dissent is particularly important in repressive contexts where public demonstrations or open criticism of government are met with violence or arrest. Such repression is growing around the world. Studies show that we have now experienced 15 consecutive years of global decline in political freedoms, and only two of Africa’s 54 countries – Cabo Verde and São Tomé and Principe – are currently categorised as open democracies.

Ten years ago, digital tools and social networking platforms such as Facebook and Twitter played a supporting role in the North African revolutions that removed presidents Mubarak and Ben Ali from office in Egypt and Tunisia respectively. Since then, social media has become a major element in the repertoire of activists across the continent. The citizen-led campaigns #RhodesMustFall in South Africa, #ENDSARS in Nigeria and #FreeBobiWine in Uganda have successfully challenged incumbent power and helped put neglected issues on to national and international agendas.

To counter the influence of online campaigns and reduce their potency, repressive governments have invested heavily in digital surveillance, disinformation and internet disruption technologies to deter dissent and dampen online democracy.

African Digital Rights Network

The African Digital Rights Network (ADRN) brings together 25 digital rights activists, researchers, journalists and policymakers from across Africa and the UK. The aim of the network is to produce evidence, raise awareness, and help build the necessary capacity to enable citizens to exercise their digital rights safely and freely. It was established in 2020 with a grant from UK Research and Innovation.

The network defines ‘digital rights’ as human rights in online spaces and agrees with the UN in wanting to see all human rights promoted and protected online – including the rights to privacy and freedom of opinion and expression.

[1] Url: https://www.opendemocracy.net/en/digitaliberties/repressive-governments-play-whack-a-mole-with-africans-digital-rights/