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Uganda imposes WhatsApp and Facebook tax 'to stop gossip'

Uganda imposes WhatsApp and Facebook tax 'to stop gossip'

Uganda's parliament has passed a law to impose a controversial tax on people using social media platforms.

It imposes a $4 daily levy on people using internet messaging platforms like Facebook, WhatsApp, Viber and Twitter.

President Yoweri Museveni had pushed for the changes, arguing that social media encouraged gossip.

The law should come into effect on 1 July but there remain doubts about how it will be implemented.

The new Excise Duty (Amendment) Bill will also impose various other taxes, including a 1% levy on the total value of mobile money transactions ‑ which civil society groups complain will affect poorer Ugandans who rarely use banking services.

The BBC reports that of 23.6 million mobile phone subscribers in the country, only 17 million use the internet.

It is therefore not clear how authorities will be able to identify Ugandans accessing social media sites.

Source: BBC

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