MPs hear calls for stronger legal framework to address online hate speech

Nicosia, Cyprus. A comprehensive legal framework is needed to monitor and combat online hate speech without unduly restricting freedom of expression, MPs were told on Monday. The House human rights committee discussed shortcomings in existing legislation alongside new arrangements for reporting suspected hate speech.

Tepak’s reporting role

Committee members welcomed the recent certification of the University of Technology (Tepak) as Cyprus’s first trusted flagger for online hate speech, a role it has undertaken alongside the Mediterranean Digital Media Observatory.

Akel MP Christos Christofides explained that people would be able to submit reports of suspected hate speech to Tepak. Complaints the university receives and processes would receive priority because of its trusted flagger status, but Tepak would have no influence over the outcome of investigations.

Monitoring and complaint tracking

Christofides said the stakeholders involved agreed that an observatory should be established to monitor hate speech.

A further proposal presented during the discussion called for police to create a digital platform allowing people to follow the progress of complaints they had submitted.

The MP said a clear plan for addressing hate speech was beginning to emerge.

Gaps in existing legislation

Christofides and other participants acknowledged numerous gaps in Cyprus’s current legislation. They cited the Press Law, a foundational law regulating print media and journalistic practice, which dates to 1989, a time they described as preceding the Internet’s existence.

Experts who addressed the committee included Aris Constantinides, associate professor of International Law and Human Rights at the University of Cyprus.