{"id":5633,"date":"2023-03-01T21:14:13","date_gmt":"2023-03-01T21:14:13","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/ameforum.net\/?p=5633"},"modified":"2023-03-01T21:14:49","modified_gmt":"2023-03-01T21:14:49","slug":"india-worlds-largest-democracy-leads-global-list-of-internet-shutdowns","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/ameforum.net\/ar\/india-worlds-largest-democracy-leads-global-list-of-internet-shutdowns\/","title":{"rendered":"India, world\u2019s largest democracy, leads global list of internet shutdowns"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

Rhea Mogul<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

CNN \u2014 <\/p>\n\n\n\n

India<\/a> imposed the highest number of internet shutdowns globally in 2022, a new report has revealed, in what critics say is yet another blow to the country\u2019s commitment to freedom of speech and access to information.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Of 187 internet shutdowns recorded worldwide, 84 took place in India, according to the report<\/a> published Tuesday by Access Now, a New York based advocacy group that tracks internet freedom.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

This is the fifth consecutive year the world\u2019s largest democracy of more than 1.3 billion people has topped the list, the group said, raising concerns about India\u2019s commitment to internet freedom under its current Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) government, led by Prime Minister Narendra Modi.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cThe responsibility of Indian states for the majority of shutdowns globally is impossible to ignore and a deep problem on its own,\u201d the report said. \u201cAuthorities in regions across the country are increasingly resorting to this repressive measure, inflicting shutdowns on more people in more places.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Nearly 60% of India\u2019s internet shutdowns last year occurred in Indian-administered Kashmir, where authorities disrupted access due to \u201cpolitical instability and violence,\u201d according to the report.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

In August 2019, the BJP revoked the autonomy of the Muslim-majority state of Jammu and Kashmir and split it into two federally administered territories, bringing the region under greater control of New Delhi. The unprecedented decision sparked protests and the government has frequently restricted communication lines since, a move rights groups say is aimed at quashing dissent.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Apart from Jammu and Kashmir, authorities in the states of West Bengal and Rajasthan imposed more shutdowns than other Indian regions in response to \u201cprotests, communal violence and exams,\u201d according to the report.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

India has the world\u2019s second largest digital population, following China, with more than 800 million internet users<\/a>. The internet has become a vital social and economic lifeline for large swathes of the population and connects the country\u2019s isolated rural pockets, with its growing cities.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The disruptions \u201cimpacted the daily lives of millions of people for hundreds of hours in 2022,\u201d the report said.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Concerns in India<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

The Access Now report comes at a time when India\u2019s commitment to freedom of speech and expression is under increasing scrutiny.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

In January, the country banned a documentary from the BBC that was critical of Modi\u2019s alleged role in deadly riots more than 20 years ago. Indian tax authorities raided the BBC\u2019s offices in New Delhi and Mumbai in the weeks that followed citing \u201cirregularities and discrepancies\u201d in the broadcaster\u2019s taxes.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

But critics of the government were not convinced, instead calling the raids \u201ca clear cut case of vendetta\u201d and accused the BJP of intimidating the media.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Last week, police in New Delhi arrested a senior opposition politician<\/a> for allegedly \u201cdisturbing harmony\u201d after he misstated the Prime Minister\u2019s middle name, a move Modi\u2019s critics likened to \u201cdictatorial behavior.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"People
People line up to cast their votes for first phase of India’s General Elections in April 2019.Pradeep Guar\/Mint\/Getty Images<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

In recent years, the government has repeatedly justified blocking internet access on the grounds of preserving public safety amid widespread fears of mob violence.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

While the country was in the middle of its general election in 2019, with more than 900 million people eligible to vote, some Indians were denied access to the internet<\/a> for days at a time as they prepared to cast their ballots.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Authorities said the blocking was \u201ca precautionary measure to maintain law and order,\u201d leading many critics to question India\u2019s grand exercise in political freedom during the world\u2019s largest election.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

During a nearly year-long protest by angry farmers in 2021 over controversial new pricing laws, the Indian government blocked internet access in several districts<\/a> after violent skirmishes broke out between demonstrators and police.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"Supporters
Supporters of Aam Aadmi Party take part in a demonstration held in Amritsar on August 31, 2021 following clashes between police and farmers.Narinder Nanu\/AFP\/Getty Images<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

Some individual shutdowns have been challenged in the courts, and there is an effort to change the country\u2019s laws to make such blackouts more difficult to impose.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Rest of the world<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

Last year saw more internet shutdowns worldwide than ever before, Access Now said, prompting the group to raise fears of \u201cdigital authoritarianism\u201d as governments continue the trend.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Apart from India, other countries that saw internet shutdowns last year include Ukraine, Iran and Myanmar.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

During Russia\u2019s invasion of it neighbor Ukraine, the Kremlin cut internet access at least 22 times, according to Access Now, engaging in \u201ccyberattacks and deliberately destroying telecommunications infrastructure.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The Iranian regime<\/a> responded to protests ignited by the death in custody of 22-year-old Kurdish-Iranian woman Mahsa Amini by imposing 18 shutdowns \u2013 a move Access Now called \u201ca further escalation of its repressive tactics.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Myanmar, which in 2021 saw the junta remove its democratically elected leader Aung San Suu Kyi, saw seven internet blackouts, according to the report. The Southeast Asian country continues to be rocked by violence and instability, while many are grappling with shortages of fuel, food and basic supplies<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The \u201cmilitary persisted in keeping people in the dark for extended periods, targeting areas where coup resistance is strongest,\u201d the report said.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Rhea Mogul CNN \u2014  India imposed the highest number of internet shutdowns globally in 2022, a new report has revealed, in what critics say is yet another blow to the country\u2019s commitment to freedom of speech and access to information. Of 187 internet shutdowns recorded worldwide, 84 took place in India, according to the report published Tuesday by Access …<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":11,"featured_media":5634,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[172,183,218],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-5633","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-172","category-asian-issues","category-reports-and-articles"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/ameforum.net\/ar\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/5633","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/ameforum.net\/ar\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/ameforum.net\/ar\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/ameforum.net\/ar\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/11"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/ameforum.net\/ar\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=5633"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/ameforum.net\/ar\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/5633\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":5636,"href":"https:\/\/ameforum.net\/ar\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/5633\/revisions\/5636"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/ameforum.net\/ar\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/5634"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/ameforum.net\/ar\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=5633"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/ameforum.net\/ar\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=5633"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/ameforum.net\/ar\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=5633"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}