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{
    "id": 24659,
    "url": "https://info.mzalendo.com/api/v0.1/hansard/entries/24659/?format=api",
    "text_counter": 688,
    "type": "speech",
    "speaker_name": "Mr. Abdikadir",
    "speaker_title": "",
    "speaker": {
        "id": 1,
        "legal_name": "Abdikadir Hussein Mohamed",
        "slug": "abdikadir-mohammed"
    },
    "content": "Madam Temporary Deputy Chairlady, I beg to move:- THAT, Clause 68 of the Bill be amended- (a) in Subclause (1) by- (i) deleting paragraph (c); (ii) deleting paragraph (n); and (iii) in paragraph (o) by deleting the word “false” appearing after the words in “any manner whatsoever”. (iv) in item (iii) of paragraph (o) by inserting the word “unlawfully” after the word “otherwise”; and (b) by deleting Subclause (2). Clause 68 is a very long clause and most of it is offences. We have to be very careful with offences. It has to be very specific. These are wide ranging offences. Part (c) states:- “Makes or publishes before or during any election for the purpose affecting the return of any candidate, any false statement or fact in relation to the person, character or conduct of such a candidate”. We all understand that there are problems about people lying about you a, b, c.d. It is a problem, but criminalizing it in such wide ranging manner, this will be a very heated time and a lot of things will be said. Quite a number of them might not be true, but there is a difference between hate speech and what is being handled here. Hate speech is very serious, but there could be a lot of speech covered under this clause which will not be hate speech, but which infringes on the constitutional provision of freedom of speech and the freedom of the media because we are talking about any person. This particular offence is too wide especially in the elections period. Clause 68(1) (c) says:- “Any person who makes or publishes before or during any election, for the purpose of affecting the return of any candidate, any false statement or fact in relation to the person, character or conduct of such a candidate”. Anything false about a candidate, even if I said you are brown and not black, is a criminal offence. There is freedom of speech which allows you to say some of these things without being criminalized. So, we are saying that the game of politics involves a lot of qualities. There is a difference between saying the truth and saying something that is illegal. There is a big difference. The truth is good and we should encourage it, but we should not criminalize speech to the extent where we are agreeing in this clause."
}