PARLIAMENTARY COMMITTEE DELIBERATES OVER FACEBOOK SHUTDOWN

The Chairman of the Permanent Parliamentary Committee on Communications, Marsh Narewec, has assured the country that democracy remains strong despite concerns surrounding the recent Facebook shutdown.

He said this after the Committee issued a 24-hour summons to the Commissioner of Police, the CEO of NICTA, and the Secretary for DICT to clarify their roles in the shutdown and ensure proper coordination among agencies.

1. The shutdown was triggered by threats and online violence. Anonymous users on Facebook were inciting violence, leading the Police Commissioner to invoke Section 16 of the Counter-Terrorism Act 2024 to restrict access. This was a temporary restriction ordered through mobile service providers, not a complete ban. The Committee noted that NICTA and the ICT Minister were not informed beforehand, as there was no legal obligation to do so under the Counter-Terrorism Act 2024.

2. There is no regulation or standard operating procedure (SOP) for executing the Counter-Terrorism Act in the ICT sector. The Committee expressed concern over the lack of coordination among key agencies. It has directed the DICT Secretary to lead policy development in collaboration with NICTA and RPNGC to establish proper guidelines and procedures.

3. Social media needs regulation, but not through total bans. The Committee firmly opposes a complete ban on social media and instead calls for better regulation through policy and legislation. The Digital ID Project and social media Policy are seen as critical solutions for regulating online content without violating free speech. The Committee has directed DICT to fast-track these initiatives and called on the Treasury Department to release funding for their implementation.

4. PNG should align with global standards in cybercrime prevention. The Committee has urged the Minister of Foreign Affairs to expedite PNG’s accession to the Budapest Convention on Cybercrime. It also called for stronger collaboration between Police Cyber-Crime Unit, NICTA, and DICT to combat fake news, misinformation, cyberbullying, and harassment.

1.The Committee has directed the DICT Secretary to take charge of policy matters in the ICT sector by working with NICTA and RPNGC to come up with a regulation for the Counter-Terrorist Act 2024 as way for executing the Act and Collaboration among different line agencies

2.The Committee has directed DICT to fast tract Digital ID Project and the Social Media Policy.

3.The Committee has called upon the Treasury Department to release funding for Digital Funding Project and Social Media Policy as way to counter fake news, misinformation, cyber bullying, cyber harassments and cybercrime on the social media space.

4.The Committee has called for the Minister of Affairs and the Minister for Information Communication and Technology to fast tract the PNG accession to the Budapest Convention on Cyber Crime by getting Cabinet Approval and bringing the submission to the Parliament for endorsement in the Next Parliament sitting in May.

Now the Committee has explicitly stated that it will not support any ban on social media including total ban or partial ban. Instead, other means must be applied to regulate social media properly without impending free speech.

Also, the committee has called for the different agencies in the ICT sector to work in collaboration and have regular consultation. So, the committee will continue to provide oversight in the work of the line agencies including, Police Cyber – Crime Unit, NICTA and DICT and to make sure that the relevant laws are working for the people and not against them.