ABSTRACT
This chapter considers both the positive and negative duties borne by African states to protect human rights in relation to the internet, and provides a preliminary assessment of the extent to which states are fulfilling their obligations. It contain three main sections: control, accountability and access. The control section covers the extent to which African states impose restrictions on cyberspace, including the level of executive discretion exercised over internet access and freedom. The accountability section considers the forms of control which the state should be exercising over the internet. The access section examines whether states have taken any practical measures to ensure that their people can, in fact, use the internet. The chapter looks at positive measures that the state should be taking to protect human rights in the digital domain, and the extent to which its obligations are established and enforced. In Africa, planned government-directed internet disruptions, or full-fledged shutdowns through technological means, are on the increase.
