SECTOR 1 There can be justifications for such action, especially regarding pornography, but there is no official action in most cases. “Things are rather done quietly.” No reasons are given for Facebook sites being blocked, and people often only have suspicions as to why this has happened. It is not clear where the filtering is coming from. It could be the government, but it could also be a person’s complaint to Facebook that results in blocking a page or group. It is also alleged that there is a major Chinese influence in the country, particularly concerning telecoms. Stakeholders have alleged that Chinese companies are conducting the development of infrastructure and surveillance. The Cyber Crimes Acts have now dealt with issues of blocking and filtering internet content. Because of this, and even before introducing the new legislation, many Zambians host their websites outside the country (e.g. Transparency International) and often use VPNs (Virtual Private Networks) to access blocked sites. Scores: Individual scores: 1 Country does not meet indicator 2 Country meets only a few aspects of indicator 3 Country meets some aspects of indicator 4 Country meets most aspects of indicator 5 Country meets all aspects of the indicator Average score: Score of previous years: ✓ ✓✓ ✓✓ ✓✓ ✓ ✓✓✓✓ 1.7 2017 = 3.5 1.10 Civil society in general and media lobby groups actively advance the cause of media freedom MISA Zambia plays a major role in advocating to ensure freedom of expression is guaranteed and practised. But “it is regarded as a lone voice.” The Media Liaison Committee (MLC) is a coalition of media organisations and associations as well as media interest groups. In addition, organisations such as Transparency International and the Zambian National Women’s Lobby are active in the media field. But the concern is the sustainability of the advocacy and a lack of coordination of activities. Another active organisation is Bloggers of Zambia (under Richard Mulonga), which has participated in campaigns to fight the Cyber Security and Cyber Crimes Act. They managed to mobilise organisations to provide them with training on developing capacity and becoming involved in the lobbying process. Most of the training was done online. This is a new development, with nontraditional media also being involved in this. GIZ also supports debate and lobbying around Access to Information. AFRICAN MEDIA BAROMETER ZAMBIA 2021 17