AMMAN — On the first day of the Lower House’s
extraordinary session on Sunday, deputies voted to refer the draft
cybercrime law for the year 2023 to its legal committee, despite calls by several
lawmakers to reject the draft and return it to the government. They criticized
the “draconian” draft for putting restrictions on freedom of speech and freedom
of expression.
اضافة اعلان
The draft law has come under attack by journalists
and legal experts for imposing unusually heavy fines and for using ambiguous
language with some describing it as a penal code.
Unconstitutional ambiguityYahya Shuqair, an expert on media laws
and freedoms, told
Jordan News that some articles in the draft
law contain phrases that have ambiguous meanings, such as the term “false or
fake news” and “character assassination”, among others, making it impossible
know what these terms entail, and where to draw the line between what is an
opinion and what is slander. He said that what is at stake is freedom of
expression, and that is why criminal intent must be clarified so that a person
is able to predict the consequences of his or her action.
Shuqair said that all laws contain a
commitment to the principle of single not collective punishments and penalties
but the draft law is imposing at least two punishments simultaneously (fine and
jail). In his opinion, by doing so the government is seeking to
muzzle Jordanians, under the guise of regulating cyberspace.
He said the draft law contradicts the
message of reform “and if this law is adopted, Jordan will be among the
countries that are classified as enemies of freedom of the press and free
speech.”
Shuqair pointed out that even UNESCO
does not use the term “false news” which was popularized by former US President
Donald Trump, and it is especially ambiguous in its meaning. He said that the
term was added to Article 11 of the draft law, which deals with defamation,
libel and contempt – and it is unclear where false news fits in relation to
these terms.
The draft law also criminalizes
“character assassination” and imposes a penalty of imprisonment from three
months to three years and a fine of JD25,000 to JD50,000. The article also
allows for the detention of the defendant, following a complaint, regardless of
whether the court finds the defendant not responsible or innocent. Fines
imposed would be directed to the state Treasury rather than benefiting the
victim.
Shuqair added that all punitive laws in
Jordan follow the principle of the progression of punishment from imprisonment
or a fine, to both penalties, allowing the judge to choose the punishment
according to his discretion, but in the draft law, the penalty is mandatory
imprisonment and a fine, which is unheard of.
Shuqair hoped that the House of
Representatives would not pass the draft law because it would hurt Jordan’s
international reputation and its ranking.
He said that there is precedence when in
1997 the temporary Press and Publications law No 27 was approved, leading to
the closure of 13 newspapers. But the High Court of Justice at that time
ruled that the law was unconstitutional and the law was revoked.
Effects on social media
Founder and director of the Center for
Defending the Freedom of Journalists, Nidal Mansour, told
Jordan News that
the initial reading of the draft law shows its expansion in custodial
penalties, in addition to hefty financial penalties in a way that threatens
freedom of expression and the press.
Mansour opposed placing restrictions on
freedom of expression and the media, noting that many of the legal articles
contained in the draft law allow for arrest and imprisonment, while imposing
financial penalties of up to JD50,000.
He said that the media body and users of
social media platforms have struggled over the past years to abolish Article 11
of the
Cybercrime Law in force so far, which has led to the arrest and
imprisonment of hundreds accused of libel and defamation. He noted that the
draft law did not cancel that article.
He said that the draft law gave the
public prosecutor the right to initiate legal prosecution for libel and slander
crimes without the need to receive a complaint or a claim for personal damage
in cases where state authorities, official bodies, public administrations or
even a public employee are involved.
Mansour stressed that social media
platforms have become an integral part of people's lives, and essential tools
for expressing opinions, exploring people's views and their participation in
decision-making, and that imposing restrictions on them limits dialogue in the
public space, and contradicts the Jordanian state's orientations towards
political reform.
Martial lawMP Saleh Al-Armouti said that the draft
law is controversial with articles that contradict provisions in the
Constitution which guarantees freedom of opinion and expression. He said that
draft law should not have been submitted to an extraordinary session in the
first place.
He said such laws restrict freedom of
expression and aim at “terrifying the citizen” by threatening hefty fines and
imprisonment. He added that the government submitted this draft law as we are
on the verge of a new phase in our political parties’ life. “This reflects a
great contradiction, and this law is worse than a martial law,” Armouti said.
Chief Editor of jo24.net news website Basil Al-Akour,
told
Jordan News that the draft law, if it passes, will
restrict the entire Jordanian society, but the press will be the most affected.
“The application of this law will lead to a state of regression in press
freedom,” he said.
Former MP Rula Al-Hroub told
Jordan
News that if the law proceeds in this way, it will affect the work of
political parties and activists, and “will usher us into a phase worse than
martial law.”
She emphasized that whoever drafted the
law wants to thwart the king's plan for political modernization and thwart
political parties.
She said that the draft law constituted
a setback for freedom of opinion and expression and freedom of electronic and
digital media, and it is a stab at the system of political modernization and
promises of partisan and democratic life and elected governments.
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