Just a couple of days after blocking access to Facebook, the new military government has given a directive to all mobile operators, international gateways and internet service providers in Myanmar to block the social media platforms, Twitter and Instagram, till further notice.
Norwegian telecom giant Telenor, which is one of the largest telecos in Myanmar, stated that it received a directive on 5 February 2021 from the Myanmar Ministry of Transport and Communications (MoTC) to block the social media platforms till further notice.
While the directive has legal basis in Myanmar’s telecommunications law, Telenor Myanmar has challenged the necessity and proportionality of the directive in its response to MoTC, and highlighted the directive’s contradiction with international human rights law.
Telenor Group is gravely concerned with this development in Myanmar, and emphasises that freedom of expression through access to communication services should be maintained at all times, especially during times of conflict.
Customers in Myanmar trying to access the affected services on web will be directed to a landing page, which states that the site cannot be reached due to the directive by MoTC.
Telenor Group believes in open communication. Together with Telenor Myanmar we are actively looking to restore access to the services as soon as possible.
Telenor Group
The military seized power shortly before a new session of Parliament was to convene on Monday and detained Ms. Suu Kyi and other top politicians. It said that it acted because the government refused to address allegations of widespread voting irregularities in last November’s general election.
We have confirmation that the block has taken effect – see tweet below
This military order is coming after many Myanmar citizens took to social media to condemn the military coup.
