Congo Government Shuts Off Internet Service to Squash Protests

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Congo Government Shuts Off Internet Service to Squash Protests

October 20th, 2015

Awake Goy

The government of the Republic of the Congo has apparently cut access to the main internet service provider in the midst of widespread protests, according to an internet monitoring firm.

Congo Telecom, or Congotel, the incumbent fixed line provider, went completely dark on Tuesday, according to Dyn, a company that monitors global internet connectivity.

The outage comes as the government reportedly ordered a crackdown on protests in the capital of Brazzaville. People were protesting against a referendum that would allow the current president to be eligible for a new term. According to news reports, the government cut all communications ahead of the protests.

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“Since [Congo Telecom] are the country’s fixed-line operator, it is likely that parts of the country’s mobile network rely on those fixed lines,” he told Motherboard in an email. “So mobile customers can be affected without being a direct customer of Congotel.”

This is not the first government that resorted to cutting internet and telephone service during a popular protest. In 2011, during the Arab Spring in Egypt, the government cut internet and cellphone service in an attempt to stop the protests in one of the first country-wide government-mandated internet blackouts.

Since then, other countries, such as Syria, have repeatedly cut internet and cellphone communications during heavy protests or fighting.

Congo Government Shuts Off Internet Service to Squash Protests

October 20th, 2015

Awake Goy

The government of the Republic of the Congo has apparently cut access to the main internet service provider in the midst of widespread protests, according to an internet monitoring firm.

Congo Telecom, or Congotel, the incumbent fixed line provider, went completely dark on Tuesday, according to Dyn, a company that monitors global internet connectivity.

The outage comes as the government reportedly ordered a crackdown on protests in the capital of Brazzaville. People were protesting against a referendum that would allow the current president to be eligible for a new term. According to news reports, the government cut all communications ahead of the protests.

…

“Since [Congo Telecom] are the country’s fixed-line operator, it is likely that parts of the country’s mobile network rely on those fixed lines,” he told Motherboard in an email. “So mobile customers can be affected without being a direct customer of Congotel.”

This is not the first government that resorted to cutting internet and telephone service during a popular protest. In 2011, during the Arab Spring in Egypt, the government cut internet and cellphone service in an attempt to stop the protests in one of the first country-wide government-mandated internet blackouts.

Since then, other countries, such as Syria, have repeatedly cut internet and cellphone communications during heavy protests or fighting.