ABSTRACT
Internet shutdowns are becoming increasingly common across Africa. In Ethiopia, the practice has proven to be one of the government’s favoured tools to control information reaching its subregions’ ethnic groups since at least 2015. After the start of the Tigrayan War in November 2020, Internet cuts have heavily contributed to the creation of the humanitarian crisis.
By Lorenzo Vertemati
INTRODUCTION
At 1.31 A.M. (GMT +3) on November 4th, 2020 the observatory NetBlocks released network data from Ethiopia confirming an Internet disruption in the Tigray region. Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed announced the launch of a military campaign against Tigrayan rebels on Facebook and Twitter just a few minutes later [1]. Within hours, both phone lines and the Internet were shut down, and a six-month state of emergency was declared in the region [2]. Despite the low levels of broadband access in Ethiopia, it is still estimated that hundreds of thousands of people were affected by the disruptions. [3]
In recent years, the United Nations has started to include open online communication as a necessary condition for freedom of expression. The Internet has thus been recognised as fundamental to the creation of a free and democratic society thanks to its positive effects on public participation, accountability, and human development [4]. A similar resolution was passed by the African Commission on Human and People’s Rights in 2016 which upholds the right to freedom of information online [5]. Unfortunately, infringements have become increasingly common across the continent.
WHY ARE SHUTDOWNS SO COMMON?
Egypt was the first African government to employ Internet shutdowns during the Arab Spring [6]. Since then, the practice has become increasingly common, with disruptions lasting more than a year in certain cases (Cameroon and Chad) and 10 African countries suffering from Internet disruptions in 2020 alone [7].
Shutdown techniques are complicated and usually differ from the general practice of hitting the “kill switch”. Governments employ different methods of media control that vary depending on the temporalities, scales, goals, and impacts. In Uganda, for example, social media taxes have disincentivized the use of certain platforms [8]. Other tactics have evolved into sophisticated attempts to drown competition with an ocean of low-quality and harmful information spread by bots and troll armies [9].
Ethiopia’s 16 million Internet users have been experiencing shutdowns since 2015, largely due to the state-owned operator controlling online communication [10]. The harshest shutdowns to date occurred in the regions of Amhara in 2019 and Oromia in 2020. Both went on for weeks, and NetBlocks has estimated a loss of $4.5 million for each day the country's Internet is cut [11].
In Tigray, Internet shutdowns have been coupled with the imprisonment of opposition leaders to oppress the members and supporters of the Tigray People’s Liberation Front (TPLF). The regional party, for example, was excluded from the coalition making up Abiy’s Prosperity Party (PP) in 2019 after three decades in power [12]. Despite the PP’s success nationally, the political rift has created discontent among native Tigrayans who do not feel represented in Addis Ababa. Many of them, and especially young people, have taken their frustrations online.
WHY THE SHUTDOWNS?
On the surface, the reasons behind Internet shutdowns in Ethiopia are not much different from the ones provided by other African governments. These are exam cheating, national security, protests, and strikes. Ethiopia, however, is much more adept at using narratives instead of actual laws. Catchphrases like the “war on terror” or “economic development” have been incredibly useful to garner public support and legitimise illegal action by the government [13]. Abiy himself declared in August 2019 that the Internet was not ‘water or air’ and shutdowns would remain effective tools to achieve national stability [14].
The securitisation of the online sphere has thus fuzzed the causes leading to the shutdowns as well as their effects. Internet filtering and manipulation, for example, make it difficult to assess whether restrictions in the run-up to elections are directly related to them [15].
What is known is that Ethiopia is one of only 2 African countries (along with Sudan) to employ targeted shutdowns. These entail the restriction of Internet access to only certain subregions, like the Tigray. Just a handful of countries in the world make use of them. Out of 25 shutdowns in Africa in 2019 for example, only 4 were targeted [16].
With the start of the war in the Tigray, it was in the government’s interest to maintain total control over the narrative. Communications blackouts affecting the Internet, mobile phones, and landlines accompanied physical lockdowns restricting access to journalists and humanitarian groups and punishing the civilian population [17].
WHAT ARE THE EFFECTS?
On November 9th, 2020, attackers from a group affiliated with the TPLF stabbed some 600 Amhara civilians to death with knives and machetes. Amongst the routine exchange of accusations and denials, the Internet shutdown made it impossible for observers to verify each sides’ claims. It raised a thick layer of fog around actions that might have amounted to international crimes [18]. The tension of war then added additional risks for journalists that went beyond the usual imprisonment and harassment, degenerating into outright thuggery and intimidation [19].
Adding to these problems, a number of economic and humanitarian concerns contribute to the gradual worsening of the situation on the ground. Banks cannot operate and phone line disruptions prevent the population from communicating about access to medical facilities and sources of food and shelter [20]. Within the context of the COVID-19 pandemic, the lack of such services has heavily contributed to the unfolding of humanitarian disaster [21].
Fortunately, the peculiar use of social media in the Tigray has allowed the population to somewhat circumvent censorship. What was published before the shutdowns is still visible on the platforms, and discussions about socio-economic and political issues are still carried out offline. This method, previously employed to build on a sense of regional identity [22], is now helping Tigrayans cope with the hardships of war. Still, the government's increased willingness to disrupt regional means of communication through shutdowns is a prescient warning of future struggles for the region.
BIBLIOGRAPHY
[1] NetBlocks (2020) ‘Internet Disrupted in Ethiopia as Conflict Breaks Out in Tigray Region’, [online] available from: https://netblocks.org/reports/internet-disrupted-in-ethiopia-as-conflict-breaks-out-in-tigray-region-eBOQYV8Z
[2] Walsh, D. and A.L. Dahir (2020) ‘Why Is Ethiopia At War With Itself?’, The New York Times, [online] available from: https://www.nytimes.com/2020/11/05/world/africa/ethiopia-tigray-conflict-explained.html; and Hayden, S. (2021) ‘Conflict in Tigray: What We Don’t Know Could Be Even More Disturbing’, The Irish Times, [online] available from: https://www.irishtimes.com/news/world/africa/conflict-in-tigray-what-we-don-t-know-could-be-even-more-disturbing-1.4471313
[3] Nyirenda-Jere, T. and Tesfaye B. (2015) ‘Internet Development and Internet Governance in Africa’, Internet Society, p. 10, 12, 20; and Ayalew, Y.E. (2019) ‘The Internet Shutdown Muzzle(s) Freedom of Expression in Ethiopia: Competing Narratives’, Information & Communication Technology Law, Vol. 28, No. 2, p. 224.
[4] UN General Assembly (2015) ‘Transforming Our World: The 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development’, p. 26. [online] available from: https://www.un.org/en/development/desa/population/migration/generalassembly/docs/globalcompact/A_RES_70_1_E.pdf; UN Human Rights Committee (HRC) (2011) ‘General Comment no. 34: Article 19, Freedoms of Opinion and Expression’, p. 8. [online] available from: https://www.refworld.org/docid/4ed34b562.html; and Ayelaw, ‘The Internet Shutdown Muzzle(s) Freedom of Expression in Ethiopia: Competing Narratives’, p. 224.
[5] African Commission on Human and People’s Rights (ACHPR) (2016) ‘362 Resolution on the Right to Freedom of Information and Expression on the Internet in Africa’, [online] available from: https://www.achpr.org/sessions/resolutions?id=374
[6] Merchant, E. and N. Stremlau (2020) ‘The Changing Landscape of Internet Shutdowns in Africa’, International Journal of Communication, Vol. 14, No. 1, p. 4216.
[7] Merchant and Stremlau, ‘The Changing Landscape of Internet Shutdowns in Africa’, p. 4216, 4217; and Duggal, H. (2021) ‘Mapping Internet Shutdowns Around the World’, Al Jazeera, [online] available from: https://www.aljazeera.com/news/2021/3/3/mapping-internet-shutdowns-around-the-world
[8] Merchant and Stremlau, p. 4217.
[9] Merchant and Stremlau, p. 4217.
[10] Giles, Christopher and Peter Mwai (2021) ‘Africa Internet: Where and How Are Governments Blocking It?’, BBC News, [online] available from: https://www.bbc.com/news/world-africa-47734843; and Mbah, Fidelis (2019) ‘Outrage Over Ethiopia’s Continuing Internet Blackout’, Al Jazeera, [online] available from: https://www.aljazeera.com/economy/2019/6/25/outrage-over-ethiopias-continuing-internet-blackout
[11] NetBlocks; and Mbah.
[12] Abai, Mulugeta (2021) ‘War in Tigray and Crimes of International Law’, Candian Centre for Victims of Torture, p. 3.
[13] Ayalew, p. 224.
[14] Tidy, Joe and Becky Dale (2020) ‘What Happens When the Internet Vanishes?’ BBC News, [online] available from: https://www.bbc.com/news/technology-51620158
[15] Freyburg, Tina and Lisa Garbe (2018) ‘Blocking the Bottleneck: Internet Shutdowns and Ownership at Elections Times in Sub-Saharan Africa’, International Journal of Communication, Vol. 12, No. 1, p. 3904.
[16] AccessNow (2016) ‘Joint Letter on Internet Shutdown in Uganda’, [online] available from: https://www.accessnow.org/joint-letter-on-internet-shutdown-in-uganda/; and Giles and Mwai.
[17] Jeffrey, James (2021) ‘Ethiopia’s Tigray Conflict and the Battle to Control Information’, Al Jazeera, [online] available from: https://www.aljazeera.com/news/2021/2/16/ethiopias-tigray-conflict-and-the-battle-to-control-information; and Abai, p. 10, 11.
[18] Abai, p. 7, 10, 11; and UN News (2020) ‘Tigray Crisis: Humanitarian Aid For Children Must be a Priority, UNICEF Says’, [online] available from: https://news.un.org/en/story/2020/12/1080092
[19] Jeffrey.
[20] Hayden; and UN News.
[21] Merchant and Stremlau, 4218.
[22] Zehnder, Mirjam (2020) ‘“Digital Woyane” - Fighting the Digital Revolution: Political Activists, the Use of Social Media and the Construction of Nationalist Sentiments in Tigray, Ethiopia’, M.A. Thesis, Lund University, p. 54.
