Laws Must Act To Protect The Ordinary Citizens’ Rights As the Digital Security Act Is Being Misused To Harass and Intimidate Dissenting Voices
By
Daily Star Editorial
February 23, 2021
As
citizens of an independent, democratic country, we are deeply disturbed by the
number of cases under the Digital Security Act that seems to have been misused
to harass and intimidate dissenting voices rather than to protect the rights of
the people. According to Article 19, last year, 457 people have been held under
this Act, including 75 journalists who have been prosecuted.
What
is most disturbing is the draconian nature of this Act—as many as 14 of the 20
sections of the Act are non-bailable. Although a judge can still decide to give
bail if he or she wants to, we have seen how difficult it has been for many of
the accused to get bail.
That a
record number of people from various professions—journalists, teachers,
students, folk musicians, cultural activists etc—were prosecuted and arrested
gives a very ominous impression of the level of intolerance for divergent
views. Article 19 has found through its research that most of the complainants
were either ruling party members or ruling party parliamentarians, union
parishad chairpersons and mayors. Some were law enforcers.
Section
25 criminalises anyone using a website or digital device for deliberate
distribution of information that is "attacking or intimidating in
nature" or false information intended to "irritate, humiliate,
defame, embarrass or discredit a person". This section also considers it a
crime if someone publishes material that is deemed as defaming the state or for
publishing fully or partially distorted information or data, knowing that it is
false. Even the High Court has asked the government to explain why Section 25
and Section 31 of the DSA should not be considered unconstitutional, following
a writ petition filed by nine people.
Sections
of this Act give blanket prohibitions on publication of content on digital
platforms with vague and unspecified offences, giving scope to abuse the law in
order to harass individuals.
That
these cases have seen a sharp spike during the pandemic year of 2020 is
especially puzzling and disquieting.
It is
indeed tragic that we live at a time when political satire and criticising a
weak healthcare system on social media can land individuals in jail, as has
been the case recently. Are there not much worse crimes being committed in this
country that deserve more attention and redress? Does the punishment of months
in jail without granting of bail, being deprived of seeing family members, fit
the crime of posting a cartoon, writing a comment or sharing a post that
someone arbitrarily decides to be offended by and claims to be anti-state,
anti-religion or anti-peace?
Laws
must act to protect the ordinary citizens' rights. The DSA has, in most cases,
been applied to do just the opposite. The government must put a stop to its
abuse.
Original
headline: DSA being used to choke freedom of speech and expression
Source:
The Daily Star
URL: https://newageislam.com/islam-human-rights/laws-act-protect-ordinary-citizens’/d/124372