Information Ethics in Africa: - Africa Information Ethics Portal

Information Ethics in the African Contextno less than Sigmund Freud, was well aware of the limits of human will and our tendency to repressor forget what we consider painful. The Egyptian god Thot is a symbol of cultural memory as a socialtask. He is the god of wisdom and writing, as well as messenger of the gods, particularly of the sungod Re, and is associated with the goddess Ma’at, the personification of justice. Thot, the GreekHermes, was represented as an ibis- (or a baboon-) headed man with a reed pen and a palette,known in the Western tradition through Plato’s criticism of writing in his Phaedrus.To retrieve the African cultural memory with regard to information and communication normsand traditions is the main information challenge for African Information Ethics. It should recognise thedifferent strategies of social inclusion and exclusion in the history of African societies, includingtraumatic experiences such as slavery and apartheid. Since the emergence of the Internet, thischallenge is discussed under the heading of the digital divide. However, African Information Ethicsimplies much more than just the access and use of this medium. The problem is not a technical one,but one of social exclusion, manipulation, exploitation, and annihilation of human beings. It is vital thatAfrican Information Ethics be developed from this broader perspective.There is a short and a long history of Information Ethics in Africa. The long history concernsAfrica’s rich oral and written traditions, throughout many centuries, about different kinds of informationand communication practices, using different moral codes and media, and based on dynamic andcomplex processes of cultural hybridisation. Critical reflection on this history promotes greaterawareness of Africa’s cultural legacy, which provides the foundations of the digital Information andCommunication Technologies that will create unique and genuinely African Information Societies forthe future. Information Ethics opens a space for the critical reflection on established customs andvalues. It works as a catalyst for social change. It is a space for retrieving the rich African culturalmemory that allows the reshaping of African identities and contributes to the world’s information andcommunication cultures.ReferencesANIE (African Network for Information Ethics). Retrieved January 3, 2013, fromhttp://www.africainfoethics.org.African Information Ethics Conference (2007). Tshwane Declaration on Information Ethics in Africa adoptedon 7 February, Pretoria, South Africa. Retrieved December 14, 2012, fromhttp://www.africainfoethics.org/ tshwanedeclaration.html.Anyiam-Osigwe, M.C. (2004). Africa’s New Awakening and ICT: Toward Attaining Sustainable Democracyin Africa. In: T. Mendina and J. J. Britz (Eds.): Information Ethics in the Electronic Age. Current Issues inAfrica and the World. North-Carolina: McFarland, 36-46.Appiah, K.A. (1998). African Philosophy. In E. Craig (Ed.): Routledge Encyclopedia of Philosophy. London:Routledge. Retrieved December 20, 2012, from http://www.rep.routledge.com/article/Z018.Assmann, J. (2000). Religion und kulturelles Gedächtnis. Munich: Beck.Bester, C. (2004).The New Morality and Democracy in Africa: The Role and Responsibilities of Leadershipand Governments for ICT Development in the African Union. In T. Mendina and J.J. Britz (Eds.):Information Ethics in the Electronic Age. Current Issues in Africa and the World. North-Carolina:McFarland, 7-14.Bidima, J.G. (2004). Ethik. In J.E. Mabe (Ed.): Das Afrika-Lexikon. Stuttgart: Metzler, 157-159.Brannigan, M.C. (2005). Ethics Across Cultures with Power Web Ethics. McGraw-Hill.Britz, J.J. (2004). Africa and Its Place in the Twenty-First Century: A Moral Reflection. In T. Mendina andJ.J. Britz (Eds.): Information Ethics in the Electronic Age. Current Issues in Africa and the World. North-Carolina: McFarland, 5-6.Britz, J.J, Lor, P.J. & Bester, C. (2006). Africa as a knowledge society: A reality check. In The InternationalInformation & Library Review, Vol. 38, No. 1, 25-40.Broodryk, J. (2002). Ubunto: Life lessons from Africa. Ubunto School of Philosophy. Pretoria, 2nd. Print.National Library of South Africa.Brunet, P., Tiemtoré, O. & Vettraino-Soulard, M.C. (2004). Ethics and the Internet in West Africa. IDRC(International Development Research Centre). Ontario.Page 17