– GT&T, union voice concern
New wire tapping laws proposed by the government have sparked fears about their application, prompting calls for wider consultation and a serious review.
The major stakeholder, the Guyana Telephone and Telegraph Company (GT&T) has already registered its concerns about the tabled legislation, while the union representing workers in the telecommunications industry has said it has dire consequences for its members.
The bills, the Interception of Communications Bill 2008 and the Telecommunications Amendment Bill 2008, were formulated in response to the widespread use of mobile phones in the planning and commission of recent major crimes. The bills are intended to aid the tracking and identifying of persons in possession of the cellular devices during police investigations. But they include major provisions that will likely raise civil liberties concerns.
GT&T Chief Financial Officer Yog Mahadeo told Stabroek News yesterday that the company has registered all its concerns with Head of the Presidential Secretariat Dr Roger Luncheon. “So our concerns are known because we would have known of the proposals in the beginning, but we are just an entity and we will have to follow regulations or any rules that are put into effect,” Mahadeo said.
He was not, however, at liberty to discuss the company’s concerns.
At a press conference yesterday at its East Street headquarters, the Postal and Telecommunications Workers Union (PTWU) listed serious reservations about some sections of the bill. President of the union Gillian Barton told reporters that the proposed amendments tell the union that some of their members who go out to work to carry out directives will be put in a precarious position, making them obliged to comply with a judge’s ruling or face imprisonment or large fines. She said the union sees it as an infringement on the rights of workers as it would see some workers going on the breadline for fear of their lives. “We are not against interception, but we feel that it should be done by some separate agency and not the telecommunications industry, because we know what can happen if persons become suspicions that an employee or particular department of employees has that responsibility. It puts them in a precarious position and could even be detrimental,” she explained.
She said the union’s executive is also concerned that if for any reason some workers refuse to comply they could be taken before the court and be made to pay a large fine or be subject to imprisonment.
Further Barton said she was surprised that the union was not consulted. It only became aware of the details and implications of the pieces of legislation when a member of the parliamentary opposition gave it copies. She said an executive meeting was called and a review done, exposing the implications for the union’s membership. “We are saying put it on hold until proper public consultation. Our footwork has shown that many people are not aware of what these legislations will do. So consult instead of letting it creep up on us,” she added.
She also insisted that there needed to be the setting up of an agency to specially deal with what the legislations propose.
The union intends to continue sensitizing its members about the implications of the laws and to push for its proposal for a review to be upheld.
The bills were first tabled in the National Assembly on August 7, 2008 and will be debated following the annual parliamentary recess which comes to an end on October 10.
The Interception of Communications Bill 2008 proposes to intercept telecommunications and covers monitoring of transmissions made by fibre optic cable or any other form of wire line, by wireless telegraphy, voice over internet protocol, internet and all other forms of electromagnetic communication to or from the apparatus comprising the systems. An interception will only be allowed after permission is granted to an authorized officer by a judge. (The officer will have to submit his/her application with an affidavit deposing the facts or allegations necessitating the application.) Upon a directive by the national security minister, the bill would also permit the disclosure of the intercept to a foreign government or agency of such government where there exists an agreement for the mutual exchange of information. The unauthorized disclosure of intercepted information can lead to a fine not exceeding $5 million and imprisonment for a term not exceeding three years.
The Telecommunications Amendment Bill 2008 would require providers of SIM-cards and cellular phones to establish at their own cost a system of recording and storing particulars of SIM-cards and mobile cellular phones and the customers utilizing them. A customer who sells or otherwise transfers a mobile cellular phone or SIM-card to any person other than a family member residing with him/her must convey this information to the service provider. In the case of theft or loss of a SIM-Card or cell phone the matter should be reported to the police and the service provider.
From the date of the commencement of the law, there will be a 12-month period for the service provider to log and store the required information. Clause 2 (d) of the bill says the information that would have to be recorded by the service provider includes details of transactions of persons calling and persons receiving calls and the time and duration of calls.