Judges will today hear an application seeking to suspend the controversial Computer Misuse and Cybercrime Act, pending an appeal by the LSK.
According to Business Daily, the Law Society of Kenya (LSK) argued in the application that the appeal will be rendered useless if the orders being sort are not granted.
The High Court had dismissed this case in March and the LSK moved to the Court of Appeal where they argued that the Act creates several offences which threaten the right of freedom under Article 33, freedom of the media under Article 34 and right to access to information under Article 35. They want 15 sections of the Act declared unconstitutional and invalid.
The Law Society of Kenya and the Bloggers Association of Kenya (BAKE) have challenged this act where they argued that it contravenes their rights and freedoms as prescribed in the constitution and will be used against bloggers and the media.
This controversial law was signed into law in May 2018 and BAKE filed case challenging the constitutionality of 26 contentious sections. It has been fought in the courts for the past 2 years by BAKE and the LSK, but it ended up being declared constitutional by Justice Makau of the High Court on February 20th this year. BAKE filed a notice of appeal on 21st February after the Act was declared constitutional. Later on, the organization filed their case remotely (due to the COVID-19 pandemic and the new filing rules by the Judiciary) on May 7th 2020.
