ZAMBIA EXPLAINS
India's Cartoonists Built an Audience Online—Now Their Posts Are Being Restricted: What Kabwe and Zambia Can Learn
Article by Rodgers Mangwela | KASONDE24
Imagine spending years building an online audience, using your creativity to educate the public, question those in power and earn a living through your talent, only to wake up one morning and discover that your voice has suddenly disappeared from the very platform that helped you become known.
For independent creators, this is more than a social media problem. It is a warning about how easily the digital world can open doors for ordinary people—and how quickly those doors can close.
A recent BBC News report on Indian political cartoonists highlights a growing debate about freedom of expression, government authority and the power of technology companies to control what people see online. Their experiences offer important lessons for Africa, particularly Zambia, where social media has become an increasingly valuable tool for journalists, musicians, bloggers, comedians, activists and small-business owners.
For the people of Kabwe and Katondo, the question is worth considering: What happens when the internet gives ordinary people a powerful voice, but access to their audience depends on decisions they cannot control?
India's Cartoonists Face Restrictions on Their Online Voices
According to the BBC report by Nikita Yadav, Indian cartoonist Satish Acharya experienced restrictions on his Instagram account twice within three weeks. During the restrictions, users in India could not access his profile normally.
Another cartoonist, Manjul, also reported that Instagram had restricted a political cartoon criticising India's election commission over a controversial revision of voter registration lists.
The restrictions raised concerns about transparency and the ability of artists to express political opinions through satire.
India's information technology rules allow authorities and courts to order certain online content to be restricted. The government maintains that such measures can be necessary to address unlawful material. However, critics worry that restrictions imposed without clear explanations can discourage legitimate criticism and artistic expression.
Meta, the parent company of Instagram, told the BBC that it may temporarily restrict accounts to comply with India's information technology rules. However, the company did not explain the specific reasons behind the restrictions affecting Acharya's account and Manjul's post.
These cases illustrate a difficult question facing digital societies: how can governments enforce the law without unnecessarily silencing people who use humour, illustration and commentary to participate in public debate?
Social Media Has Changed Who Gets to Tell the Story
For decades, artists and journalists often depended on newspapers, radio stations and television broadcasters to reach large audiences. Those who could not secure publication opportunities frequently struggled to make their work visible.
Social media changed that arrangement.
Today, a cartoonist working from a small room in India can reach audiences across the world without owning a newspaper or securing a contract with a major media organisation. The same opportunity exists for a young musician in Kabwe, a blogger in Lusaka or a creative entrepreneur in Katondo.
A smartphone, an internet connection and an original idea can be enough to begin building an audience.
This transformation has helped independent creators establish their identities, promote their work and connect directly with people who appreciate their talent.
However, the Indian experience reveals the other side of this opportunity. When creators depend heavily on a single social media platform, their ability to reach an audience can be affected by account restrictions, content-removal decisions, recommendation algorithms and changes to platform policies.
An audience that took years to build can suddenly become difficult to reach.
The lesson for Zambia is clear: building an audience is important, but building an independent relationship with that audience is equally important.
What Can Zambia Learn About Freedom of Expression?
Freedom of expression is not simply about allowing people to agree with one another. It also involves protecting the space for peaceful disagreement, questioning public decisions and discussing issues affecting society.
Political cartoons provide a useful example because they communicate complicated ideas through humour, symbolism and exaggeration. A single drawing can challenge corruption, expose contradictions or encourage people to reconsider an issue.
The same principle applies to investigative journalism, opinion articles, music and online commentary.
In Zambia, public discussions about governance, education, employment, public services and the economy benefit when citizens can exchange ideas responsibly and access different perspectives.
However, freedom of expression does not mean that every online publication is automatically acceptable. Threats, harassment, defamation and unlawful content raise legitimate concerns that must be addressed within the law.
The challenge is to distinguish between harmful content and peaceful criticism.
For Zambia and other African countries, India's experience provides an opportunity to reflect on the importance of clear rules, transparent decisions and fair procedures when online content is restricted.
When a creator's work is removed, people should be able to understand why, identify the applicable rules and seek a meaningful review where appropriate.
Kabwe and Katondo: Protecting the Future of Independent Creators
In Kabwe, digital platforms offer opportunities for young people who want to turn their talents into careers.
A musician can release a song without waiting for a traditional record label. A teacher can publish educational materials for learners. A photographer can display a portfolio to potential clients, while a blogger can report community developments to readers beyond the town's boundaries.
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Katondo and other communities can benefit from these opportunities too.
Yet creators must understand that followers on Facebook, Instagram, TikTok or YouTube are not the same as an independently maintained audience.
A platform can change its rules, reduce the visibility of posts, suspend an account or restrict access to particular content. Sometimes these decisions are made to enforce legitimate policies; in other cases, creators may believe the decisions are mistaken or unfair.
Whatever the circumstances, depending entirely on one platform creates a business risk.
Creators in Zambia should therefore consider building websites, maintaining email newsletters, developing permission-based WhatsApp subscriber lists and keeping secure backups of their original work.
These measures cannot prevent every restriction, but they can help creators preserve their content and maintain communication with audiences through alternative channels.
For bloggers, including independent publishers such as KASONDE24, a website can serve as a central home for original reporting, commentary and educational content.
Social media can then become a distribution channel rather than the only place where the work exists.
The Danger of Self-Censorship
One of the most troubling lessons from the BBC report is that restrictions can affect people beyond those whose posts are directly blocked.
Indian cartoonists described concerns about the pressure to soften captions, avoid sensitive subjects or reconsider what they publish. Such experiences can contribute to self-censorship, where creators begin limiting their own expression because they fear the consequences of speaking openly.
This is a concern for journalists and independent publishers everywhere.
When people become afraid to ask legitimate questions, investigate public-interest issues or express peaceful criticism, the quality of public discussion can suffer.
However, responsible journalism also requires discipline. Journalists must verify information, distinguish facts from allegations, give relevant parties an opportunity to respond and avoid presenting rumours as established truth.
The goal should not be to publish without accountability. It should be to create an environment where responsible criticism is possible without unnecessary intimidation or arbitrary restrictions.
For Zambia, the challenge is to protect both freedom and responsibility in an increasingly connected society.
Technology Companies Must Also Be Accountable
The Indian cases highlight another important issue: social media platforms are not merely neutral spaces where people exchange messages. Their decisions can influence which voices remain visible and which audiences can access particular information.
When governments submit lawful requests to restrict content, technology companies may face difficult legal obligations. But users also have a legitimate interest in understanding how decisions affecting their accounts are made.
Greater transparency, clear explanations and accessible appeal procedures can help users distinguish between legitimate enforcement and decisions they believe are unfair.
African creators should also pay attention to the terms and policies of the platforms they use, particularly when their income depends on online visibility.
Understanding the rules will not eliminate every risk, but it can help creators make informed decisions about where and how they publish.
The Internet Must Remain a Place for Ideas
India's experience is a reminder that technological progress alone cannot guarantee freedom of expression. The internet can provide extraordinary opportunities for creativity, education and public participation, but those opportunities depend partly on the laws, institutions and commercial systems governing digital communication.
For Zambia, the message is not that India's experience will necessarily be repeated. Rather, it is that countries, communities and individual creators should learn from developments elsewhere before similar challenges arise.
The people of Kabwe and Katondo should see digital platforms as tools for opportunity while recognising the importance of protecting their creative work, diversifying their audiences and supporting responsible public discussion.
A cartoon can challenge a powerful institution. A song can communicate the frustrations of an entire generation. A blog article can bring attention to a community's problems. These contributions matter because societies need room for ideas to be examined, questioned and debated.
The most important lesson is this: building a digital voice is only the beginning. Protecting the space in which that voice can be heard is a responsibility shared by creators, technology companies, governments and society.
As Zambia continues embracing digital opportunities, the experiences of India's cartoonists should encourage us to think carefully about the future of online expression in Africa.
Published by KASONDE24
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