In 2020, no less than 109 episodes of Internet cuts or online browsing restrictions were recorded by the NGO Access Now in India, often accompanied by security justifications. In Russia, as in Iran, in recent months, attempts to build a sovereign Internet network have reappeared, giving pride of place to services hosted on national soil, while controlling foreign services more firmly. If the strategies differ, many countries continue to tighten their control over telecommunications, against a backdrop of crucial issues for freedom of expression and the human rights of populations.
Melody Patry is campaign manager for Access Now, a leading organization that campaigns for the protection of freedoms and the maintenance of Internet access in the face of states that see it as a space to be firmly controlled. She is worried to see governments going beyond simple restrictions, no longer hesitating to directly cut off access to the network in certain territories, for example during elections or during demonstrations. A trend described in a recent report from #KeepItOn, a campaign against Internet shutdowns launched by Access Now.
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How to explain the new inclinations of certain States, such as Russia or Iran, to create a more closed national Internet with services essentially hosted on national soil, more controlled?
Creating national infrastructures to have better control of the Internet is quite simply to have better control of information, and to censor more easily, while limiting the economic consequences of cuts on the Web. If, for example, we access the Internet through increasingly local infrastructures, we can afford to cut off access to social networks like Twitter and Facebook while retaining, for example, the use of government sites. and official state-controlled news sites.
We often hear about countries which monitor or severely restrict Internet use, much less about those which simply cut off the network over an entire territory, but you say that this has been a strong trend in recent years?
Yes, it is relatively recent. In the last two or three years, the phenomenon has really grown, because there has been great impunity for Internet shutdowns and countries have also learned the techniques from each other.
Are these cuts generally localized or national?
Some countries did not discriminate and simply disconnected their entire territory. This was the case in Tanzania during the last elections, and in several other countries. Other states have more targeted strategies and cut the Internet to certain areas only. Sometimes even in some cities. This was particularly the case with Burma in 2020, India also does it very frequently.
Why is a government cutting off Internet access in a territory rather than restricting or monitoring access to certain sites?
There are several types of “shutdown”: total Internet cuts, but also what are sometimes called partial cuts if, for example, the Internet is cut, but only on mobile networks. The highly targeted cuts, where we will restrict access to certain forms of communication – such as WhatsApp and social networks – require certain technical capacities that not all countries have. So it’s easier to unplug everything.
What are the direct consequences for the citizens of these countries?
The first, of course, is the fact of no longer being able to share information. This not only impacts a journalist who wants to share an article, it also has consequences if you are an average citizen and want to have access, especially during the pandemic, to information on the health crisis, or even if we need to go somewhere and want to check the road traffic.
There are many other consequences, which sometimes the authorities themselves do not think about. Increasingly, hospitals and people working in the health field, for example, are using the Internet in the delivery of health care, but also to deliver, for example, drugs. And, all of this is also disturbed. We have gathered tragic testimonies from people who could not have access to care or contact their doctor because of an Internet shutdown.
What can the international community do?
Almost every year, the United Nations Human Rights Council decides on the subject. The problem is, it’s not always followed by action. It is not said that all countries that shut down the Internet should face sanctions, but it should be a consistent condemnation with the facts ascribed, not just a UN statement. And this is where the international community has failed.
