Internet freedom? Africa is under fire!

Miguel Verde

That democracy is far from being fully implemented in Africa is no news to anyone. Yet, with the several internet services that are currently available including the social media and apps, spreading the word - both truth and lies about injustices of one regime, may be just one click away.

Hence, many African governments have taken to censoring a variety of apps and sites, especially around election time. A recent example of this practice took place in Mali's elections where critical websites suddenly went offline, and communication apps sent error messages. According to some NGOs, WhatsApp and Twitter, among other apps and sites, were not available for several hours on election night.

This conduct is becoming one ever-recurring issue, even in periods with no elections at stake. There is no doubt, censorship is increasing in Africa. From social media blocks during elections in Uganda, Congo, Chad and more recently Mali, to Ethiopia's increasing control over the Internet (despite apparently a new path is being built by the new Prime Minister), it appears censorship is on the rise across the continent. In many cases, state-owned telecoms have full control over the Internet and can enact censorship accordingly. African internet users not only struggle with temporary shutdowns around election time, or during large demonstrations, but they also have to face Government agencies in countries which routinely censor certain online content.

Actually, on a global perspective, statistics from "freedom on the Net - 2016" showed that two-thirds of all internet users - 67% - live in countries where criticism of the government, military, or ruling family is subject to censorship. In fact, only a quarter (24%) of the internet's population had completely free access. Twenty-nine percent had partly free access, and 35% had no free access at all.

Therefore, internet freedom isn't only an African issue. However, it is a growing problem on the continent, that we all should be concerned about, specially because the pillars of democracy are far from being a reality.

Since internet became a popular tool and a rather efficient communication form of "spreading the word", some African governments shut down the internet or at least restrict internet access. When legal restrictions - and old-fashioned economic intimidation - have failed to muzzle dissent and popular mobilization, governments have turned to more extreme methods: internet shutdowns.

It is important to celebrate the positive impact of the internet in Africa, yet it is equally important to stay aware of its negative effects/applications. If one observes the history of internet shutdowns in Africa, it is obvious that autocratic regimes are far ahead, but that is not always the case.

Uganda, Tanzania, Ethiopia, Zimbabwe, Cameroon and Mali are just recent examples of an emerging internet censorship that is spreading across the continent.

One of the main supporters of this censorship is China. The collaboration between Beijing and repressive regimes on the continent is especially striking in East Africa, where local governments are escalating their efforts to censor the internet and social media, often with technical support from China. Large parts of Africa's internet infrastructure is provided by Chinese companies, whose technologies also make possible China's "Great Firewall." There is enormous concern that some African governments want to cooperate with Chinese companies to install similar technologies in their countries. In censoring the Internet and mainstream media, these countries are reading from the undemocratic playbook of their favourite business partner, China. In fact, Africans' freedoms, specially, in the East, are fading fast. It is a dangerous time to be someone with an opinion in the region.

On the other hand, the United States (US) is losing ground, relying more on cooperation with these governments in fields including refugee policy and counterterrorism, and neglecting or at least dropping to a secondary role democracy and institutions. If the US isn't willing of enhancing for the universal values to which it subscribes, authoritarian governments will continue to fill the void and prosper. Therefore, it is imperative that the US speak out clearly, unabashedly, and consistently against the ongoing efforts to censor and manipulate the internet for anti-democratic purposes. They must make internet freedom a key foreign-policy objective and demonstrate the country remains an ally for democracy activists everywhere who dare to challenge the world's authoritarian regimes.

Nevertheless, there are ways to take the curve on this issue. For example, via virtual private networks - a tool that creates a tunnel to the outside world for users to surf the internet as if they are in a country without internet restriction. The companies responsible for that are versatile, friendly user, and the number is growing fast, being increasingly creative to the internet censorship.

That does not detract from the fact African governments must provide more internet freedoms, not only to promote freedom of opinion, but also, to facilitate the curiosity of its young innovators and researchers as they pursue answers to their questions to spur more innovation towards building digital solutions that respond to the continent's current needs.

Internet freedom must flourish no matter the environment a country is living.