04 Dzimbabwe Chimbga Dzimbabwe Chimbga then wrapped up this discussion by brief presentation on the court cases related to the use of technologies in Zimbabwe. In the case Dzimbabwe discussed, messages that circulated on social media were used as the basis for the criminal charges levelled against the accused in each respective case, the accused were mainly charged under the Criminal Codification and Reform Act. None of these cases have led to any convictions. The cases Dzimbabwe touched on included that of Edmund Kudzai in which he was charged with subverting a constitutionally elected government after it was alleged that he ran the Baba Jukwa Facebook page. Evan Mawarire was also charged with subversion plots to remove a constitutionally elected government. These charges stemmed from his #ThisFlag online social movement. Energy Mutodi and Edson Chirwa were separately charged with undermining the authority of the president as a result of Facebook posts they made. In all these instances, arrests were made but there was no conviction and the accused were released. Dzimbabwe warned that what a particular Act purports to be and how it is actually applied can sometimes be different. In the current instance, the Cyber Crime and Cyber Security draft Bill may be drafted to control online crimes but it is possible that it may inevitably be used to stifle free speech and the freedom of the media. This would not be a situation unique to Zimbabwe. In Tanzania, the government makes use of the country’s Cyber Crime Laws to persecute and prosecute any government critics and dissenters. It is feared this might become the norm in light of the provision in the draft Bill which criminalises the transmission of data inciting violence or damage to property which might be used to arrest human rights activists and government dissenters. The gazetting of the Cyber Crime and Cyber Security Bill into an Act will however, 24 Misa Zimbabwe Second Internet Governance Multi Stakeholder Conference 21 September 2017