This archive report was first published on 18 September 2019.
On September 18, 2019, Google, Amnesty International, and Technology Service Providers of Kenya (Tespok) made their submissions to the National Assembly ICT committee regarding the Data Protection Bill 2019.
The bill, sponsored by Baringo Senator Gideon Moi, aims to safeguard personal data from misuse by state and private agencies. However, the proposed legislation has faced opposition from tech giants and a human rights group.
Amnesty International expressed concerns over a proposal that would allow state security agencies to extract individuals' data without restrictions for maintaining public order or national security. The organization argued that this provision is prone to abuse and lacks clarity in defining national security and public order.
"The proposal is prone to abuse by the state. Its wording is ambiguous and does not satisfy the principle of legality," said Irungu Houston, AI Executive Director. "We propose that state agencies responsible for national security and public order be bound by the general rules of data protection such as security of data, collection limitation, purpose limitation among others."
Google and Tespok also opposed the mandatory registration of data controllers and processors as proposed in the bill. They argued that this would create a barrier to the ease of doing business in Kenya and discourage enterprises from engaging in the digital economy.
"The scope of those who have to register will be so broad that it will not be practical to register all of them," said Michael Murungi, Google's Public Policy and Government Relations head. "It is not a business model and data processors will have a long queue of those seeking to register."
Tespok Chief Executive Officer Fiona Asonga echoed similar sentiments, stating that mandatory registration of data controllers will bring a barrier to the ease of doing business in Kenya.
"It will discourage enterprises from engaging in the digital economy in Kenya," said Ms. Asonga.
