Championing human rights online: Recognizing progress, demanding accountability, PIN advise

Stanley Ihedigbo

As the world marks International Human Rights Day, Paradigm Initiative (PIN) is amplifying its call for the establishment of comprehensive legal frameworks that safeguard human rights in the digital sphere.

The appeal underscores the imperative for governments to prioritize the protection of citizens’ rights online, ensuring that the digital landscape is inclusive, equitable, and just.

The organisation also underscores the importance of respecting rights and supporting the development and enforcement of laws in a human-rights-respecting manner in the Global South.

These include strong data protection laws that safeguard the right to privacy and legislation governing automated decision-making systems to mitigate potential biases.

This, PIN adds, would ensure human rights are realised as the future remains secure.

“Governments should address systemic issues that hinder the enjoyment of human rights and take the necessary steps to support an independent judiciary to ensure the impartial administration of justice and upholding the rule of law,” said the organization’s Partnerships and Engagements Officer, Bridgette Ndlovu.

This year, International Human Rights Day is commemorated under the theme “Our rights, our future, right now.” The theme focuses on how human rights are a pathway to solutions, playing a critical role as a preventative, protective, and transformative force for good. Paradigm Initiative (PIN) also highlighted the crucial role of digital rights in safeguarding human dignity and promoting social justice.

In securing a rights-respecting digital future, the organisation applauded the positive developments throughout 2024 and supported efforts to safeguard human rights online.

Countries in the Global South, such as Malawi, Ethiopia, and Syria, made notable strides in advancing digital rights by enacting data protection legislation establishing guidelines for processing, storing, and sharing personal data. Botswana repealed its archaic data protection law and adopted a new Data Protection Act.

Equally, enforcement of data protection legislation gained momentum as countries such as Tanzania, in the case of Safari Automotive Limited vs. Godwin Danda, awarded compensation to the data subject after the automobile company published a video clip of the data subject on social media without consent.

In Kenya, taxi hailers Bolt Operations OU and Bolt Support Kenya were fined for failing to properly handle an incident and escalate it according to established protocols.

The incident happened when unauthorised parties accessed a data subject’s Bolt driver account, performed fraudulent trips and altered the data subject’s account details, violating the data subject’s right to access personal data and correct false or misleading data.

In Kenya, data subjects were awarded compensation after offenders were found liable for commercial use of data subjects’ data without consent. Angola fined offenders who failed to protect data subjects’ data from cyber-attacks.

Benin published decisions and resolutions that specify the certification of DPOs, and Brazil published two resolutions that define the activities of DPOs and regulate international data transfers. In Nigeria, in the case of Folashade Moleshin vs United Bank of Africa, a Paradigm Initiative-supported case, the judiciary handed a judgement in favour of the complainant after a data breach reported on PIN’s Ripoti platform, promoting privacy.

PIN acknowledged the judiciary’s role in adjudicating cases brought before the courts and parliamentary oversight in innovations within the justice system, in particular, in Zimbabwe, where parliament produced an adverse report on the Integrated Electronic Case Management system, citing negative consequences for public participation due to limited access to the internet.

The organisation asserted that human rights online are crucial and legislation should be people-centred and provide robust safeguards for personal data, including measures to prevent unauthorised access and surveillance. Countries such as South Africa, Mauritania, Nigeria, and Zambia published National AI Strategies to safeguard human rights from risks that may arise from automated decision-making.

The African Union Executive Council endorsed the Continental AI Strategy and African Digital Compact, at the regional level to set the pace and provide a framework for harmonising laws. At the international level, nations adopted the United Nations Global Digital Compact, and countries such as Cote d’Ivoire acceded to the Budapest Convention on Cybercrime. Kenya is also planning to accede to the Convention.

Despite the outlined positive developments, significant challenges remain in the Global South with PIN condemning the actions of countries such as Mozambique, Mauritius, Nigeria, Senegal, Tanzania, Comoros and Kenya, which shut down the internet this year.

These negative actions undermined human rights, suppressed dissent, and had a chilling effect on freedom of expression.

Going forward, governments ought to halt the practice of internet shutdowns and uphold the right to free expression so that individuals can freely impart information and engage in political discourse in line with the ideals set out in the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, adopted by the United Nations General Assembly in 1948.