{"page":"\u003clink rel=\"stylesheet\" href=\"https://lessonplanet.com/assets/packs/css/resources-572d6a42.css\" /\u003e\n\u003clink rel=\"stylesheet\" href=\"https://lessonplanet.com/assets/packs/css/lp_boclips_stylesheets-f4d0de30.css\" media=\"all\" /\u003e\n\u003cdiv data-title='African governments use Internet shutdowns to silence opposition more and more —what can people do?' data-url='/boclips/videos/6878c0d1efa60ff713f235dc' data-video-url='/boclips/videos/6878c0d1efa60ff713f235dc' id='bo_player_modal'\u003e\n\u003cdiv class='boclips-resource-page modal-dialog panel-container'\u003e\n\u003cdiv class='react-notifications-root'\u003e\u003c/div\u003e\n\u003cdiv class='rp-header'\u003e\n\u003cdiv class='rp-type'\u003e\n\u003ci aria-hidden='true' class='fai fa-regular fa-circle-play'\u003e\u003c/i\u003e\nVideo\n\u003c/div\u003e\n\u003ch1 class='rp-title' id='video-title'\u003e\nAfrican governments use Internet shutdowns to silence opposition more and more —what can people do?\n\u003c/h1\u003e\n\u003cdiv class='rp-actions'\u003e\n\u003cdiv class='mr-1'\u003e\n\u003ca class=\"btn btn-success\" data-posthog-event=\"Signup: LP Signup Activity\" data-posthog-location=\"body_link_boclips\" data-remote=\"true\" href=\"/subscription/new\"\u003e\u003cspan\u003e\u003cspan\u003eGet Free Access\u003c/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"\"\u003e for 10 Days\u003c/span\u003e\u003cspan\u003e!\u003c/span\u003e\u003c/span\u003e\u003c/a\u003e\n\u003c/div\u003e\n\u003c/div\u003e\n\u003c/div\u003e\n\u003cdiv class='rp-body'\u003e\n\u003cdiv class='rp-info'\u003e\n\u003cdiv aria-label='Hide resource details' class='rp-hide-info' role='button' tabindex='0'\u003e\u0026times;\u003c/div\u003e\n\u003ci aria-label='Expand resource details' class='rp-expand-info fai fa-solid fa-up-right-and-down-left-from-center' role='button' tabindex='0'\u003e\u003c/i\u003e\n\u003ci aria-label='Compress resource details' class='rp-compress-info fai fa-solid fa-down-left-and-up-right-to-center' role='button' tabindex='0'\u003e\u003c/i\u003e\n\u003cdiv class='rp-rating'\u003e\n\u003cspan class='resource-pool'\u003e\n\u003cspan class='pool-label'\u003ePublisher:\u003c/span\u003e\n\u003cspan class='pool-name'\u003e\n\u003cspan class='text'\u003e\u003ca data-publisher-id=\"30356011\" href=\"/search?publisher_ids%5B%5D=30356011\"\u003eCurated Video\u003c/a\u003e\u003c/span\u003e\n\u003c/span\u003e\n\u003c/span\u003e\n\u003c/div\u003e\n\u003cdiv class='rp-description'\u003e\n\u003cspan class='short-description'\u003eWhat would you do if your government decided to intentionally shut down your access to the Internet? Millions of people around the world have had to answer this question time and time again over the past few years, as government-mandated...\u003c/span\u003e\n\u003cspan class='full-description hide'\u003eWhat would you do if your government decided to intentionally shut down your access to the Internet? Millions of people around the world have had to answer this question time and time again over the past few years, as government-mandated Internet blackouts are on the rise. \u003cbr/\u003e\u003cbr/\u003eLess than a month into 2019, Sudan, the Democratic Republic of Congo, Gabon and Zimbabwe have experienced government crackdowns on Internet connections. \u003cbr/\u003e\u003cbr/\u003eFrom 2016 to 2018, 371 separate cases of Internet shutdowns were documented around the world. More than half of them occurred last year alone,  according to international non-profit organisation Access Now . \u003cbr/\u003e\u003cbr/\u003eAuthorities have used a number of reasons to justify the blackouts, including public safety, national security and stopping the dissemination of rumors and illegal content. \u003cbr/\u003e\u003cbr/\u003eHowever, advocacy groups investigating governmental tendencies to exert control over the flow of information don't buy it. They claim it has more to do with silencing opposition movements and protests and trying to limit political instability. \u003cbr/\u003e\u003cbr/\u003e\"They harm everyone: businesses, emergency services, journalism, human rights defenders, and demonstrators. They don’t help victims or restore order,\" Access Now's website reads. \u003cbr/\u003e\u003cbr/\u003eWhat countries have resorted to Internet shutdowns in the past? \u003cbr/\u003e\u003cbr/\u003eIn the past few weeks, several African governments have turned to partial or complete shutdowns in attempts to control the public discussion. \u003cbr/\u003e\u003cbr/\u003eSudan  doubled down on social media  amid widespread anti-government protests, with Access Now and the #KeepItOn coalition calling on network operators to fight back against state pressure — but it wasn't the only African country to do so.  \u003cbr/\u003e\u003cbr/\u003eZimbabwean authorities were quick to gag social media — including Facebook and Whatsapp — as soon as civil unrest over rising fuel prices spread in Harare and other major cities, and the DRC also ordered a full blackout following recent elections. \u003cbr/\u003e\u003cbr/\u003eThe first official Internet shutdown in Africa happened in February 2007 in Guinea, when former president Lansana Conte blocked access to the country's four main Internet service providers.  \u003cbr/\u003e\u003cbr/\u003ePrior to that moment, authorities simply resorted to arresting journalists or shutting down specific websites. But the foundations for the practice were really laid out by former Egyptian leader Hosni Mubarak in 2011, after he cut access to all Internet and SMS services amid escalating tensions. \u003cbr/\u003e\u003cbr/\u003eFrom 2016 to 2018 alone, Africa witnessed 46 Internet shutdowns, weighing on the freedom of expression of citizens as well as on the countries' finances. Some of them only lasted a few hours, others went on for days. In the anglophone regions of Cameroon, where the Internet was inaccessible for citizens for 230 days between January 2017 and March 2018. \u003cbr/\u003e\u003cbr/\u003eChad, Sierra Leone, Ethiopia, Somaliland, Algeria, Togo, Cameroon, Gambia, Uganda, Gabon, Algeria, Morocco, Lybia, Tunisia, and Algeria  have all cracked down  on their citizens' access to the Internet in the past. \u003cbr/\u003e\u003cbr/\u003eHow did citizens react to Internet or social media shutdowns? \u003cbr/\u003e\u003cbr/\u003e\"People always find a way\", Zimbabwean analyst Alexander Rusero told Euronews.  \u003cbr/\u003e\u003cbr/\u003eFaced with an Internet shutdown after protests over rising fuel prices escalated, many of his fellow citizens relied on VPNs, downloadable private networks that enable users to send and received data across shared or public networks. \"But it doesn't work for everyone\", Rusero pointed out. \"Usually the ones in Harare, at the centre of the country, manage to\". \u003cbr/\u003e\u003cbr/\u003eThe analyst was quick to underline the issues behind similar crackdowns. \"People look for alternatives and turn to gossip\", he explained: \"During the Internet blackout there were a lot of lies and rumors — they spread faster than you would believe. Media relies on social media, and so do critical opinion leaders. Outside those platforms, fake news manifest\". \u003cbr/\u003e\u003cbr/\u003eJean-Hubert Bondo, a journalist from the Democratic Republic of the Congo, doesn't believe the problems end here. \u003cbr/\u003e\u003cbr/\u003e\"Many Congolese families live off their small cybercafés. Also, we are in a country where there are not enough physical libraries. Students and researchers use the Internet to research their work at the university. Young people animate pages on Facebook and WhatsApp\", he told Euronews. \"To deprive us of the Internet is to take us back to antiquity\". \u003cbr/\u003e\u003cbr/\u003eAs for the VPNs Rusero mentioned — the most common ways to avoid Internet censorship worldwide — Bondo said that, during the latest shutdown, they failed to work.  \u003cbr/\u003e\u003cbr/\u003e\"We were totally cut off from the world\", he said. \"Some of us were forced to move to neighbouring countries, like Rwanda, Congo-Brazzaville, and Zambia to get a connection. Only the major institutions and international organisations had their Wifi connection\". \u003cbr/\u003e\u003cbr/\u003eIn response to what is being perceived as a violation of human rights, Bondo reported that several Congolese civil society organisations have now lodged a complaint against the main telecommunication companies.\u003c/span\u003e\n\u003c/div\u003e\n\u003cdiv class='action-container flex justify-between'\u003e\n\u003cbutton aria-expanded='false' aria-label='Read more description' class='rp-full-description' type='button'\u003e\n\u003ci class='fai fa-solid fa-align-left'\u003e\u003c/i\u003e\n\u003cspan id='read_more'\u003eRead More\u003c/span\u003e\n\u003c/button\u003e\n\u003cdiv class='rp-report'\u003e\n\u003c/div\u003e\n\u003c/div\u003e\n\u003cdiv aria-labelledby='resource-details-heading' class='rp-info-section'\u003e\n\u003ch2 class='title' id='resource-details-heading'\u003eResource Details\u003c/h2\u003e\n\u003cdiv class='rp-resource-details clearfix'\u003e\n\u003cdiv class='detail'\u003e\n\u003cdl\u003e\n\u003cdt\u003eCurator Rating\u003c/dt\u003e\n\u003cdd\u003e\u003cspan class=\"star-rating\" aria-label=\"3.5 out of 5 stars\" role=\"img\"\u003e\u003ci class=\"fa-solid fa-star text-action\" aria-hidden=\"true\"\u003e\u003c/i\u003e\u003ci class=\"fa-solid fa-star text-action\" aria-hidden=\"true\"\u003e\u003c/i\u003e\u003ci class=\"fa-solid fa-star text-action\" aria-hidden=\"true\"\u003e\u003c/i\u003e\u003ci class=\"fa-solid fa-star-half-stroke text-action\" aria-hidden=\"true\"\u003e\u003c/i\u003e\u003ci class=\"fa-regular fa-star text-action\" aria-hidden=\"true\"\u003e\u003c/i\u003e\u003c/span\u003e\u003c/dd\u003e\n\u003c/dl\u003e\n\u003c/div\u003e\n\u003cdiv class='detail'\u003e\n\u003cdl\u003e\n\u003cdt class=\"educator-rating-title\"\u003eEducator Rating\u003c/dt\u003e\u003cdd\u003e\u003cdiv class=\"educator-rating-details\" data-path=\"/educator_ratings/rrp_data?resourceable_id=91051740\u0026amp;resourceable_type=Boclips%3A%3AVideoMetadata\"\u003e\u003cspan class=\"not-yet-rated\"\u003eNot yet Rated\u003c/span\u003e\u003c/div\u003e\u003c/dd\u003e\n\u003c/dl\u003e\n\u003c/div\u003e\n\u003cdiv class='detail'\u003e\n\u003cdl\u003e\n\u003cdt\u003eMedia Length\u003c/dt\u003e\n\u003cdd\u003e3:08\u003c/dd\u003e\n\u003c/dl\u003e\n\u003c/div\u003e\n\u003cdiv class='detail'\u003e\n\u003cdl\u003e\n\u003cdt\u003eGrade\u003c/dt\u003e\u003cdd title=\"Grade\"\u003e9th - Higher Ed\u003c/dd\u003e\n\u003c/dl\u003e\n\u003c/div\u003e\n\u003cdiv class='detail'\u003e\n\u003cdl\u003e\n\u003cdt\u003eSubjects\u003c/dt\u003e\u003cdd\u003e\u003cspan\u003e\u003ca href=\"/search?keywords=nuclear\u0026amp;page=6\u0026amp;search_tab_id=1\u0026amp;subject_ids%5B%5D=358379\"\u003eSocial Studies \u0026amp; 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