Any person who unlawfully makes available, broadcasts or distributes, by means of a computer system, a data message to a specific person, group of persons or the general public with the intention to incite—(a) the causing of any damage to any property belonging to; or(b) violence against, a person or a group of persons, is guilty of an offence.
Sounds pretty innocuous, right? Well, imagine you created a meme – much like the one doing the rounds in which Donald Trump clotheslines ‘CNN’ – and you substituted the head of The Don with Julius Malema’s and ‘CCN’s’ with Jacob Zuma. It could be argued that you are inciting violence against the President. In which case, you’re guilty of an offence.
This bill impacts on everyone from corporate entities to private individuals, so it’s worth checking out and making your feelings known.
“Despite what people think, using the procedures in place actually works. The relevant committees that oversee this take the public comments seriously and will often implement or require those comments be addressed and will not allow the legislation to proceed until this is adequately done so,” says Nicholas Hall, an associate at the Michaelsons legal firm.
“Parliament has to deal with public submissions. It can ignore online petitions, so go for the avenue that works,” he adds.