Digital Rights Weekly/Year 1/Issue 18

Sep 30, 2022

Election Code of Conduct 2079 Breaching Right to Privacy of Candidates
Election Commission (EC) through section 19 of Election Code of Conduct 2079 has made it mandatory for election candidates of the House of Representatives and Province Assemblies in coming election to submit property details and is also seeking to release property details of those elected. However, there is no such provision in its parent act which shakes the legitimacy of such provisions.
Also as of now no law requires citizens to submit property details, only people who hold public office or when they are under investigation in a criminal offense are obliged to share their property details to state agencies. Section 50 of the Prevention of Corruption Act, 2059 stipulates that a person holding a public office must submit property details to a designated government body. Election candidates are not considered to have held public office and thus are not obliged to submit property details until the candidates take the oath. By current law even elected candidates are supposed to submit their property details only to federal/state parliament secretariat, not the election commission.
The election commission asking for property details of candidates is a clear violation of the right to privacy of citizens as granted by Article 28 of the Constitution. Also, no law gives election commission the authority to make these provisions as it is beyond the scope of its parent Act.
Election Commission should immediately amend such provision and uphold citizens’ right to privacy.
For more: Online Khabar

DIGITAL RIGHTS ISSUES OF THE WEEK

NTA Paved a way for Merger of ISPs and TSPs by Passing New Regulation
Nepal Telecommunication Authority (NTA), has passed a regulation that allows merger of telecommunication service providers. The NTA Board meeting held on Friday approved the Telecom Service Providers Merger and Acquisition Regulations, 2079 BS. With this, internet service providers and telecom service providers licensed by the authority will be able to merge with each other.
For more: Techpana

Election Code of Conduct has come into effect from 28 September
The election code of conduct 2079 for the coming House of Representatives and Province Assemblies election being held on 20 November 2022 has come into force from 28 September. Code of conduct has also incorporated provisions that give Election Commission the authority to indirectly regulate social media during elections, this has sparked a controversy as the press council has been regulating social media.
For more: Online Khabar

Unmanaged Wires Cut off Affected Internet Service in New Plaza Area
Unmanaged wires are being removed in various locations by the Kathmandu Metropolitan City (KMC). Following a fire that started last Wednesday due to poorly handled wires, KMC has disconnected all of the lines in the New Plaza neighborhood of Putalisadak. As a result, the internet has been interrupted in the New Plaza region. Service providers are now putting wires into place to restore interrupted internet connectivity.
For more: Techpana

Partial Internet Shout down in Iran
Iran has attempted to quell a budding protest movement that has depended on social media to document opposition by cutting off internet service in some areas of Tehran and Kurdistan as well as blocking access to platforms like Instagram and WhatsApp. The protests, which began on September 16 in response to the murder of a 22-year-old Kurdish woman while in police custody, don’t appear to be abating. In numerous places on Thursday, demonstrators set fire to police stations and vehicles.
For more: Wired, CNN Politics

UK to fine Tiktok for Violating Children’s Privacy
Britain may punish TikTok $28.91 million for failing to protect children’s privacy for neglecting to provide its users with clear information when processing data from children under 13 without their parent’s consent. The British regulators also criticized the company for failing to explain its data practices in an easy-to-understand language to the children.
For more: BOL News, Technology Khabar

Digital Rights Weekly is a week-based update on Digital Rights and ICT issues, that happened throughout the week, compiled and analyzed from the digital rights perspective by Digital Rights Nepal (DRN). DRN is a not-for-profit initiative dedicated to the protection and promotion of digital rights, including the right to online freedom of expression and association, online privacy, access to information, and related issues such as internet governance, cyber laws/policies, and cyber securities in Nepal.

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