Curbing Spyware Abuse through Legislative Processes: The Case of South Africa’s RICA Reforms
We are pleased to invite you to a panel discussion at Digital Rights and Inclusion Forum (DRIF) 2025, to be held in Lusaka, Zambia, and entitled, Curbing Spyware Abuse through Legislative Processes: The Case of South Africa’s RICA Reforms. This event is co-hosted by Professor Jane Duncan at University of Glasgow and the International Justice Clinic (IJC) at the University of California Irvine (UCI).
School of Social and Political Sciences
Date: Tuesday 29 April 2025
Time: 13:00 - 14:00
Venue: Online on Zoom: https://uci.zoom.us/j/99570885513.
Category: Staff workshops and seminars
Speaker: Jane Duncan, University of Glasgow; Tachilisa Balule, University of Botswana; Sam Sole, amaBhungane; Hinako Sugiyama, University of California Irvine
We are pleased to invite you to a panel discussion at Digital Rights and Inclusion Forum (DRIF) 2025, to be held in Lusaka, Zambia, and entitled,
Curbing Spyware Abuse through Legislative Processes: The Case of South Africa’s RICA Reforms
2pm to 3pm SAST/ 1pm tp 2m BST (Hybrid)
This event is co-hosted by Professor Jane Duncan at University of Glasgow and the International Justice Clinic (IJC) at the University of California Irvine (UCI).
Speakers:
● Professor Jane Duncan, Professor of Digital Society (Sociological & Cultural Studies), University of Glasgow;
● Professor Tachilisa Balule, Associate Professor of Law, University of Botswana;
● Sam Sole, the co-founder and managing director of the amaBhungane Centre for Investigative Journalism; and
● Hinako Sugiyama, a senior counsel and digital rights fellow at the University of California, Irvine School of Law.
Globally, civil society is pushing for stronger regulations to address the proliferation of surveillance technologies that threaten journalists and human rights defenders – with South Africa standing out. This event aims to highlight vulnerabilities caused by inadequate legal protections in surveillance; share strategies pursued by civil society in South Africa for robust reforms of the Regulation of Interception of Communications Act (“RICA”); and potential regional and international implications of RICA reform; and build international support. Speakers will discuss the importance of specific safeguards, such as post-surveillance notification and a public advocate system, to address the ex-parte nature of surveillance authorization.
If you’re interested in joining remotely, please use the Zoom link: https://uci.zoom.us/j/99570885513. For those attending DRIF 2025 in person, the session will be held in Room 3 at the Mulungushi International Conference Centre (MICC) in Lusaka, Zambia.