[Congressional Bills 116th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H. Res. 768 Introduced in House (IH)]

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116th CONGRESS
  1st Session
H. RES. 768

  Calling on African governments to protect and promote human rights 
   through internet freedom and digital integration for all citizens 
                    across the continent of Africa.


_______________________________________________________________________


                    IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

                           December 17, 2019

   Ms. Bass (for herself and Mr. Smith of New Jersey) submitted the 
 following resolution; which was referred to the Committee on Foreign 
                                Affairs

_______________________________________________________________________

                               RESOLUTION


 
  Calling on African governments to protect and promote human rights 
   through internet freedom and digital integration for all citizens 
                    across the continent of Africa.

Whereas access to information and freedom of expression are pillars of an open, 
        free, and democratic society;
Whereas open and secure access to the internet enables the exercise of human 
        rights and freedom of expression, allowing people to connect, access 
        information, and participate in a global society;
Whereas according to Access Now, there were 21 instances of partial or total 
        internet shutdowns in Africa in 2018, compared with only 4 in 2016;
Whereas governments, including those of Chad, Cameroon, Ethiopia, Uganda, Sudan, 
        and Zimbabwe, have restricted access to the internet and disrupted 
        networks, online applications, and services to censor and interfere with 
        the flow of information during politically sensitive moments, including 
        elections, political protests, and mass demonstrations, when unfettered 
        journalism, public oversight, and political participation are crucial to 
        bolster democratic processes and the rule of law;
Whereas governments often attempt to justify partial or total internet shutdowns 
        for purposes of security or to stop the spread of false information;
Whereas the frequency of internet shutdowns has increased across Africa, levying 
        broad economic costs and directly violating citizens rights to freedom 
        of expression and access to information;
Whereas African whistleblowers, journalists, bloggers, and other media workers 
        often lack legal protection and suffer harassment and detention at the 
        hands of government authorities, often facilitated by invasive and 
        unauthorized surveillance, with the encouragement, technical expertise, 
        and financial support of foreign entities and governments;
Whereas some African governments have introduced taxes to discourage citizens 
        from sharing and accessing information in the digital space, and have 
        imposed laws and regulations that often target journalists, bloggers, 
        activists, and others, banning speech and discouraging expression in the 
        digital space;
Whereas those operating independent news websites and blogs are obstructed 
        through blocking and censorship, burdensome licensing requirements, and 
        regulatory measures that effectively limit their audience and their 
        livelihoods;
Whereas many African governments lack robust data protection and privacy laws, 
        and the systems to implement such laws, leaving the privacy of citizens 
        exposed and susceptible to infringement;
Whereas the Communist government in China, through the desire to build a 
        ``digital Silk Road'', has increased cyber activity in Africa through 
        telecommunications contracts and fiber optic networks which can expose 
        individuals to greater monitoring and surveillance, and has exported 
        technology and training to authoritarian officials that have made it 
        easier to restrict internet access in many African countries;
Whereas Huawei Technologies has reportedly sold products and services to African 
        governments that have been used to support spying on political 
        opponents; and
Whereas Russia has been testing new disinformation techniques and tactics 
        through a series of online networks linked to Yevgeny Prigozhin, a 
        Russian oligarch indicted by the United States for meddling in the 
        United States Presidential election in 2016, in African countries that 
        include Sudan, Cameroon, Libya, and Mozambique: Now, therefore, be it
    Resolved, That the House of Representatives--
            (1) strongly condemns the restriction or disruption of the 
        internet through methods including network shutdowns, 
        disruptions, use of ``kill switches'', bandwidth throttling, 
        high taxes, and the blocking of applications and services 
        across Africa, and any efforts by foreign governments to 
        facilitate such activity;
            (2) urges African governments to--
                    (A) promote inclusive and meaningful participation 
                by all stakeholders in the development of policies on 
                telecommunications, internet governance, information 
                and communications technologies, and infrastructure;
                    (B) prevent the use of broad and invasive 
                surveillance technologies that violate privacy and 
                discourage the freedom of expression of all users, 
                particularly journalists, bloggers, and their sources, 
                and to ensure accountability for crimes against them;
                    (C) actively pursue laws and policies that protect 
                and promote human rights online and offline and review 
                laws that criminalize free speech that are used to 
                harass and prosecute those who offer dissenting views 
                and information;
                    (D) resist new contracts with authoritarian states, 
                like China, and avoid digital governance models that 
                enable technoauthoritarianism and invasive surveillance 
                capabilities that undermine human rights and restrict 
                fundamental freedoms; and
                    (E) work closely with technology companies and 
                social media services to prevent or take down 
                disinformation, including disinformation disseminated 
                by Russia and other actors;
            (3) urges telecommunications providers and internet 
        platforms to employ legal, operational, and technical measures 
        to promote and facilitate the exercise of human rights online, 
        and disclose requests from governments or other parties to hand 
        over user data and to disrupt networks, and their responses 
        thereto;
            (4) urges businesses operating in Africa to facilitate open 
        and secure access to the internet, and work with stakeholders 
        to prevent, mitigate, and remedy harms from internet shutdowns 
        and other disruptions to the free flow of information online; 
        and
            (5) urges businesses operating in Africa to affirm the 
        United Nations Guiding Principles on Business and Human Rights, 
        and adhere to best practices, scrutinizing government or other 
        third-party requests to interfere with networks, applications, 
        services, and personal data for any potential human rights 
        impacts.
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