IPNEWS: Liberia’s House of Representatives has begun reviewing legislation that would criminalize gender-based online abuse, after Nimba County District 2 Rep. Nyahn G. Flomo introduced a bill seeking to amend the Kamara Abdullah Kamara Act of Press Freedom to address harassment and insults targeting women and girls on social media.
The proposed legislation, titled the Protection from Gender-Based Online Abuse Amendment Act of 2026, was formally submitted to Plenary and subsequently referred to the House Committees on Information, Broadcasting, and Judiciary, which have been given one week to review the measure and report back with recommendations.
If enacted, the amendment would create a new offense within the 2019 press freedom law, which decriminalized libel and removed several punitive restrictions on journalists. Flomo argues that while the law strengthened press freedom protections, it left a gap in addressing abusive and degrading language increasingly directed at individuals, particularly women, on digital platforms.
In his transmittal communication to the House, Flomo warned that social media has become a conduit for “profane, vulgar and insulting language” used to target individuals based on gender.
“While Liberia has made commendable strides in protecting press freedom, a gap remains in protecting the dignity of our citizens, particularly women and girls, from the unique harms of online gender-based attacks,” Flomo wrote.
The proposed amendment is anchored in Article 15 of Liberia’s 1986 Constitution, which guarantees freedom of expression but also holds individuals responsible for any abuse of that right. Flomo said the bill seeks to define that boundary more clearly in the digital era without undermining the press freedom protections established by the original Act.
“This amendment does not seek to stifle legitimate press freedom, political speech or fair comment,” he wrote. “Instead, it establishes clear boundaries where that freedom is abused to inflict harm through profanity, vulgarity and gender-motivated insults.”
Under the draft legislation, the law would define terms including profanity, obscenity and verbal abuse in order to distinguish between protected speech and targeted harassment. Profanity is described as obscene or vulgar language intended to insult; obscenity as material considered extremely offensive under prevailing community standards; and verbal abuse as emotional harm inflicted through words that cause distress or fear.
Flomo also links the proposed amendment to Article 5(b) of the Constitution, which obligates the state to promote equal rights and opportunities for all citizens regardless of gender. He argues that the measure would strengthen legal protections for women and girls while complementing provisions in the Cybercrime Act of 2025, which addresses broader digital offenses.
The lawmaker also cited remarks previously made by former President Ellen Johnson Sirleaf, who has warned about the social harm caused by irresponsible speech on media platforms.
If adopted, the amendment would introduce penalties for gender-based online abuse, including fines or imprisonment, while maintaining protections for legitimate journalism, political commentary and public debate.
House committees are expected to conduct public hearings on the proposal before submitting their findings to Plenary within the week, setting up what could become a broader national debate over how Liberia balances press freedom and digital accountability in the era of social media.
