Align interception rules to global norms: MTC

THE way in which interception centres would be operated and funded in Namibia once the new Communications Bill is promulgated should be aligned to international practices, a mobile telecommunications operator told a public hearing in Windhoek yesterday.

‘We do not have reservations about the obligation of operators to fund the establishment of interception centres and the required equipment, however, it is important that these obligations and the assistance required from the licensee and other operators should not cause undue burden or material impairment to the equipment or network or quality of services rendered by the licensee to its customers,’ a manager of Mobile Telecommunication Company (MTC) told a Parliamentary Standing Committee of the National Council. ‘Fair compensation should be paid to the licensee in this regard,’ said MTC legal advisor Festus Mbandeka.The bill was bulldozed trough the National Assembly in July and opposition MPs walked out when the bill came to the voting stage.The National Council, the House of Review, debated the bill and referred it to its standing committee on Defence and Security. This month the bill will return to the National Council and the Committee will table a report on the public hearings with recommendations for amendments.’Taking into account the European experience in building a successful, highly profitable and competitive electronic communications market, we deem that some of the key features of the European regulatory model, or of the US and Australia, should be considered when reassessing the regulatory policy for this important sector in Namibia,’ the MTC official said. ‘MTC is strongly opposed to the granting of special rights to Telecom Namibia as it will have a competitive advantage that is unjustified. ‘Special rights do not encourage private investment and do not reinforce the confidence in the credibility of the regulatory system. We strongly support the deletion of this legal provision in Section 45(1), which guarantees Telecom Namibia an automatic licence, while the other operators are treated less favourably.’All operators should be granted the same rights and privileges and carry out their activities under the same rules,’ Mbandeka added.The Media Institute of Southern Africa (Misa) also made a submission yesterday.’Misa Namibia is of the opinion that this proposed law, like any other statute in Namibia, must be primarily consistent with the provisions of the Constitution. Namibia is also a member of the international community and must ensure that its domestic laws are consistent with international standards and guidelines, as Namibia is a signatory to most of them,’ said Misa chairperson Sandra Williams. These include the African Charter on Broadcasting, the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, the African Charter on Human and People’s Rights and the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights, Williams said.Misa shared the opinion of the MTC and the Legal Assistance Centre that the bill gives too many powers to the Information Minister to determine levies and tariffs and to appoint people serving on the future regulatory authority and its board. Williams said ‘all the media’ had a problem with part six of the bill, which deals with the interception of communication Ngamane Karuaihe-Upi, also of Misa, said civil society should have a say in the nomination of third or independent parties to serve on the regulatory board. ‘We also find that interception of information should be defined more clearly so that an investigative journalist investigating a story is not compromised by the bill,’ Karuaihe-Upi said. Anna Beukes of the Forum for Non-governmental Organisations (Nangof) told the hearing that the Bill should at all times be consistent with the Namibian Constitution.