Sudanese yesterday experienced a social media shutdown amidst anti-government protest against the 30-year rule of President Omar al-Bashir.
The shut-down preceded a complete power outage while Sudanese officials at the ministry of electricity have failed to give a reason for the interruptions.
Protestors since December last year have demanded the resignation of the president; a move they view as a solution to the harsh economic and political situation of the country. Not only has al-Bashir refused to step down he also declared a yearlong state of emergency in the country.
Protestors besieged the president’s residence last weekend while wooing the military to intervene and rally on their side. According to reports, security officials have blocked several roads leading to the complex and used tear gas to break up the demonstrators. The latest marches mark the 34th anniversary of the coup that overthrew the regime of former president Jaafar Nimeiri.
Digital activists say telecom operators have blocked social media outlets limiting the flow of information and media coverage as protests intensified. NetBlock, an internet monitoring organization said operators including Sudatel and Kanartel cut-off access to platforms including Twitter, Facebook, WhatsApp, and for the first time, instant messaging app Telegram.
According to Quartz Africa, the shutdown is the second the country has experienced since the protests began: the government also blocked social media networks for 68 days beginning Dec. 21 and ending Feb. 26. The move is also part of a widening trend across Africa, with longtime rulers mostly blocking the internet and social networking tools during elections or tense periods.
NetBlocks said the power disruption also disrupted 45% of Sudan’s telecom infrastructure, deepening the already-instituted social media restriction. The digital advocacy agency also noted the filtering of social media platforms by internet providers was “not technically related to the subsequent power outage, but is rather consistent with techniques used to censor online content in Sudan during previous incidents.”
Many observers believe the protests in Sudan are being inspired by those in Algeria which have pushed ailing president Abdelaziz Bouteflika to resign after 20 years in office after registering intentions to run for a fifth term.
Sequel to Sunday’s electricity and social media shutdown, prominent Algerian writer Ahlam Mosteghanemi tweeted her and her nation’s support [in Arabic] for Sudanese protestors.
“Let the electricity be cut off in Sudan,” she wrote. “What we carry in our hearts of flame of love for you is enough to illuminate a continent.”
