Issued by the African Commission on Human and Peoples’ Rights (ACHPR), March 2026 — Principles Engaged: 13, 30, 36, 37(14-15), 42(6), 44, 45, 46
Submission Date: May 2026
Response(s) to the call for inputs:
Pierre J. D. (2026). The Criminalisation of Expression in the Digital Age: Cybercrime Legislation, Surveillance Infrastructure, and the Enforcement Deficit of Principles 13, 30, and 36 in West Africa.
This submission was presented to the African Commission on Human and Peoples’ Rights in response to a formal call for inputs on the Draft Declaration on the Promotion of the Role of Human and Peoples’ Rights Defenders and Their Protection in Africa. Focused on West Africa, it analyses the systematic weaponisation of cybercrime and surveillance legislation against human rights defenders, documenting Nigeria’s Cybercrimes Act prosecutions, Ghana’s use of Pegasus-class spyware, and Burkina Faso’s suspension of 27 international media outlets. It proposes converting hortatory language to binding obligations and creating a new Principle 36bis on surveillance due diligence. Relevant to digital rights practitioners, press freedom advocates, and African human rights lawyers.
View Paper at: Link