internet shutdowns - The African Mirror

Jun

2023

Senegal’s internet shutdowns are another sign of a democracy in peril

SENEGAL’S government began blocking several digital platforms – including Facebook, WhatsApp, Instagram, Telegram and YouTube – in certain areas on 1 June. Days later, it extended the disruptions to all mobile internet and several television stations. The social networks were shut down for two days. This was followed by a four-day mobile internet shutdown. Author JEFF CONROY-KRUTZ, Associate Professor of Political Science, Michigan State University Given that nearly all Senegalese internet users access it through their mobile phones, these moves constituted a near-total block on digital communications and information. Internet penetration in Senegal has exploded in recent years. A decade…

Jul

2021

By The African Mirror

Internet restored in eSwatini

NEWS

KIM HARRISBERG NO WhatsApp, Facebook or Twitter. Cases of internet shutdowns in Africa are on the rise. Uganda imposed a blackout in January, Nigeria banned Twitter in June and two weeks ago eSwatini – a tiny landlocked nation in Southern Africa where recent protests against the absolute monarch have turned violent – became the latest country to curtail internet access. Unable to check in on his family and communicate with his clients, consultant and human rights activist Melusi Simelane decided to sue the government for the shutdown. Simelane’s case, the first of its kind in eSwatini, was dropped on Thursday…

Mar

2021

By The African Mirror

Left in the dark: Millions hit by internet shutdowns in 2020

SCIENCE, TECH AND INNOVATION

UMBERTO BACCHI FROM Belarus to Myanmar, 29 countries suspended internet services in 2020, mainly during protests or elections, cutting off millions from vital information as the coronavirus pandemic raged, digital rights group Access Now said on Wednesday. Internet shutdowns prevented people in dozens of countries from working, studying, communicating and accessing life-saving news last year, Access Now said in a report, describing the practice as potentially deadly. "Shutting down the internet during a global health crisis is incredibly unsafe," Access Now campaigner Felicia Anthonio, said in a statement. "But, with no regard for human life, this is what governments did in 2020 —…

Mar

2021

By The African Mirror

‘Digital authoritarianism’ threatens basic rights in Africa

NEWS

NITA BHALLA FROM internet shutdowns and online surveillance to social media taxes and arrests for anti-government posts, "digital authoritarianism" is a threat to basic freedoms and rights in many African countries, researchers said yesterday. A study by the African Digital Rights Network (ADRN) focusing on 10 countries found governments used a plethora of measures over the last two decades to stifle people's ability to organise, voice opinions and participate in governance online. "Our research shows online civic spaces are being closed through various repressive actions, including unwarranted arrests, unwarranted surveillance and various forms of intimidation," said Juliet Nanfuka from the…