APRM • SECOND COUNTRY REVIEW REPORT OF THE REPUBLIC OF KENYA 137. Increasingly there have been fractious relations between the media and the executive and legislature over laws that were passed. The National Assembly (Powers and Privileges) Bill 2014 was widely criticized by the media and civil society as having the effect of gagging media reporting on the activities of the legislature. The draft law imposed criminal sanctions and fines for false or libellous publications or defamation of Parliamentary proceedings or committees. Following a public outcry from the media the penalising provisions were withdrawn. 138. Equally controversial was the Kenya Information and Communications (Amendment) Act, 2013 that was seen as curtailing press freedoms and constitutional guarantees of the media to disseminate information to the public. In particular, media practitioners condemned the imposition of a fine of KShs 20,000,000 on a media enterprise and of KShs 500,000. Stakeholders also contended that establishing the establishment of the Communication and Multi-Media Appeals Tribunal undermined the constitutional guarantees of free and independent media under the principle of self-regulation and co-regulation and sidelined the role of the Media Council. A constitutional case (Judicial Review Miscellaneous Application 30 & 31 of 2014) lodged by media stakeholders challenging the constitutionality of this law and the Media Council Act was however unsuccessful. However the court found two provisions the Media Council Act that amounted to an unjustifiable limitation of the right to freedom of expression and declared them unconstitutional. 139. Part of the triggers of ethnic conflict, societal unrest and the post-election violence were rooted in hate speech and violent, discriminatory utterances which were disseminated using print, digital and electronic media and text messages. Complicit in this were individuals and some media houses as noted in the Post-Election Violence Report. In response the National Cohesion and Integration Commission was established in 2008 to encourage cohesion and integration by outlawing discrimination on ethnic grounds, and hate speech in particular. 140. However incidences of hate speech continue to flare up and acted on by the National Cohesion and Integration Commission while monitoring rallies, campaigns and individual speech for compliance. The Commission moved the office of the Director of Public Office to commence criminal proceedings against a number of politicians in 2015 but reports continue to reflect the resort to hate speech, particularly in the race to elections in 2017. The Kenya Media council in 2016 indicated its concern over the reporting and propagation of hate speech through mainstream and social media.4 141. Access to Justice: It is noteworthy that rule of law in Kenya has improved with the institutionalisation of judicial reforms such competitive appointment processes and vetting in which 42 judges were removed. There has been remarkable resort to strategic litigation in Kenya by individuals, human rights organisations and government institutions. Public institutions such as National Gender and Equality Commission, the Independent Policing Oversight Authority and the Kenya National Human Rights Commission as well as the Attorney General of Government have sought advisory opinions or judgments from the judiciary. In the majority of cases, government has striven to comply with court judgments. This signals respect for constitutional governance and the autonomy of the Judiciary in consolidating the rule of law. Media Council of Kenya: Press releases http://www.mediacouncil.or.ke/en/mck/index.php/pressrelease<accessed 11 November 2016) 4 | 95 |