Felicia Anthonio

Elections are increasingly becoming a trigger point for internet shutdowns, and governments have already flipped the kill switch during elections in 2020. The #KeepItOn coalition is mobilizing to keep people connected as they go to the polls in the coming weeks.

The Azerbaijani government, along with internet and telecom service providers and other essential services, must immediately restore unrestricted access to the internet across all networks, including lifting any restrictions on the use of VPNs.

WhatsApp is one of the most popular social media platforms in Chad, but the government is blocking it. Through our Shutdown Stories project, we’re sharing testimonies to show how this censorship negatively impacts the lives of the people the government is supposed to protect.

Why aren’t internet shutdowns illegal? Are there ways to bypass them? Can we fight internet shutdowns in court? Does anyone see a way to end shutdowns, once and for all? Kill Switch podcast has the answers.

Access Now denounces the persecution of Maung Saungkha, a prominent Myanmar poet and activist, by authorities in Myanmar and demands an end to his continued harassment. Maung Saungkha is being accused of organizing “unlawful” protests to demand an end to the internet shutdown in Rakhine and Chin states.

Access Now calls on the United Nations and the government of Belarus to protect the human rights of the Belarusian people in light of the internet shutdown and associated attacks.

Access Now and partners are urgently calling on President Alexander Lukashenko to ensure that internet access in Belarus remains open, accessible, and secure during the presidential elections on August 9, 2020.

The Ethiopian government must pledge to stop imposing internet shutdowns. They are never an appropriate response to protests and unrest.

The Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) Community Court of Justice ruled that the September 2017 internet shutdown ordered by the Togolese government during protests is illegal and an affront to the applicants’ right to freedom of expression.