Category Freedom of Expression

News, opinion and analysis from The Zimbabwean Progressive

Zimbabwe police charge Twitter user for retweeting tweet parodying ZEC chairperson Priscilla Chigumba

In yet another example of the burgeoning digital authoritarianism of President Emmerson Mnangaga's post-Mugabe Zimbabwe, police recently charged a Twitter user for retweeting a tweet parodying Priscilla Chigumba, the chairperson of the Zimbabwe Electoral Commission.

Obert Madondo
September 17, 2018

Zimbabwe’s Mugabe-era omnibus cyber security bill threatens fundamental rights

Zimbabwe's draconian Mugabe-era Cybercrime and Cyber Security Bill could undermine constitutionally-protected rights and freedoms, says MISA Zimbabwe, an organization dedicated promoting freedom of expression and access to information in Zimbabwe.

The Zimbabwean Progressive
April 23, 2018

In Zimbabwe, A New Cyber Security Ministry To Strengthen Mugabe’s Digital Authoritarianism

In a recent cabinet reshuffle, Zimbabwe President Robert Mugabe unveiled a brand new ministry of Cyber Security, Threat Detection and Mitigation. The ministry further extends the dictator's authoritarian agenda and ability to conduct repressive activities into cyberspace.

Obert Madondo
October 17, 2017

Zimbabwe’s digital activists “can easily be identified” by Mugabe’s all-seeing surveillance state

Members of Zimbabwe's growing army of Internet-savvy freedom fighters "can easily be identified" by Mugabe's all-seeing surveillance state, according to the Postal and Telecommunications Regulatory Authority of Zimbabwe (POTRAZ), Zimbabwe’s telecommunications regulator.

Obert Madondo
September 25, 2017

Mugabe’s proposed cybersecurity law targets Zimbabwean diaspora

Zimbabwe's Cybercrime and Cybersecurity Bill, Robert Mugabe's newest information control weapon, seeks to cripple Internet-savvy Zimbabweans in the diaspora, particularly rights defenders, opposition party activists, and investigative journalists, ahead of the much-anticipated harmonized 2018.

Obert Madondo
August 29, 2017

Why net neutrality matters for Zimbabweans

On July 12, 2017, a coalition of websites, technology companies, digital rights organizations, and Internet users in the United States joined forces to defend a democratizing idea that matters for Zimbabwe, especially in the final months of Robert Mugabe's dictatorship: net neutrality.

Obert Madondo
August 7, 2017

Mugabe regime must respect Zimbabweans’ right to strong encryption

As law enforcement and counterterrorism agencies of leading democracies and authoritarian countries relentlessly push for back doors to secure encrypted messaging apps such as Signal and WhatsApp, strong encryption is needed in Robert Mugabe's Zimbabwe now more than ever before.

Obert Madondo
July 10, 2017

Facebook’s Secret Censorship Rules Protect White Men from Hate Speech But Not Black Children

Internal Facebook documents recently reviewed by ProPublica, a Pulitzer Prize-winning investigative newsroom, reveal that the social media behemoth's censors often condone hate speech by white men but punish racialized minorities and activist groups for legitimate political expression.

The Zimbabwean Progressive
July 3, 2017