Free speech, online safety a balancing act in new cybercrime bill, experts say

AMMAN — The Cybercrime bill has drawn mixed reactions among experts, with some expressing concerns about the draft law’s potential free speech implications, while others arguing that the bill will cover existing legislative gaps.  

The first half of this year saw 6,131 individuals file cybercrimes complaint, alleging acts such as extortion, fraud, invasions of privacy, slander, defamation, and even threats on their lives, the Jordan News Agency, Petra, reported.

Of the total, 1,100 cases included "life-threatening threats", with 1,700 cases of fraud, 1,490 violations of privacy, 900 cases of slander and defamation and 641 cases of extortion.

Human rights expert Nahla Momani told The Jordan Times the cybercrimes bill seeks to combat emerging forms of digital crime. However, Momani emphasised the need for legislators to define legal terms precisely and avoid broad language to protect individual rights.

Momani stressed the importance of defining vague terms such as "fake news" based on international human rights standards in order to address hate speech. 

She also called for the limited application of rules related to defamation and slander as stated in the Penal Code, which does not stipulate arrests for such crimes, while the cybercrimes draft law does.

"The cybercrimes bill requires a review of the fines, as they are currently set too high," Momani added.

She suggested granting judges the discretion to choose between imposing a fine or imprisonment in certain cases, depending on the severity and gravity of the act, as the current draft treats all crime without distinction.

According to Momani, the cybercrime bill also addresses existing gaps in the legislation, and specifically, includes new protections for violations of personal privacy, such as the unauthorised publication and manipulation of images of people.

The draft also criminalises unauthorised donation or contribution campaigns, said Momani.

MP Suleiman Abu Yahya noted that the crimes addressed by the cybercrime bill can be even more damaging due to their broader reach, Petra reported. 

On the other side of the debate, a petition calling for the withdrawal of the bill has been signed by several journalists and members of political parties in Jordan, citing concerns about its potential impact on freedom of speech.

"Passing this law will lead to a decline in Jordan's ranking on global freedom indexes," the petition added.

Jordan is ranked 146th place out of 180 countries on the Journalists Without Borders Press Freedom Index, according to the petition.