Gone are the days when protest meant solely marching in the streets. Today, Kenyans are dialing up democracy, quite literally. Patriotic citizens have been reaching out directly to their members of parliament, urging them to vote against the unpopular Finance Bill 2024 – through a hashtag #RejectFinanceBill2024 across social media.
But how did they get their hands on the personal phone numbers of all 349 MPs? Enter the world of online activism.
The movement gained momentum when social media personality Amerix launched the hashtag #RespectMyHustle. Rather than just tweeting into the void (like most people do), Amerix encouraged his followers to take action by contacting their representatives directly. He kick-started the campaign by sharing a list of MPs’ phone numbers, and soon, the wildfire spread.
As more Kenyans joined the cause, phone numbers were shared far and wide, momentarily transforming Twitter into a virtual phonebook. This in turn resulted in a deluge of text messages and calls flooding the phones of lawmakers, leaving no doubt about the public’s stance on the Finance Bill 2024.
But wait, is this legal? Can you really blast an MP’s personal number across the internet? The answer lies in a gray area of Kenyan law. While sharing someone’s name and number isn’t inherently illegal (if it were, phone books wouldn’t exist), the intent behind the sharing could potentially cross into murky waters of harassment or threats.
Interestingly, the lawmakers have found themselves in a catch-22 situation. There’s no clear legislation to protect them from this new form of protest – a bit of legislative irony, if you will. However, when it comes to the laws of the internet, that is an entirely different story.
On X, sharing private information without consent – a practice known as doxxing – is strictly against the terms of service. As per X’s Private Information Policy, a user “cannot share contact information, such as non-public personal phone numbers, email addresses, or passwords, without the permission of the person it belongs to.”
So, while the internet has democratized protest, this great power comes with great responsibility. As we continue to read the very crucial Finance Bill 2024, let’s not forget to read the fine print of the social platforms we regularly use.
