· South Sudan has become part of the regional trend to curb social media access to block the views of protesters online against the establishment.
· The internet disruption came when widespread protests alleging the indifference of the leaders about the plight of the people were raging in the country.
· Access to communication apps like WhatsApp, Skype, Facebook Messenger, Viber, and social media platforms such as Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram, are blocked.
South Sudan has become part of a regional trend to curb social media access to block the views of protesters online against the establishment. The country reported an internet blackout, beginning on Aug 29th attributed to a technical snag. The internet disruption came when widespread protests alleging the indifference of the leaders about the plight of the people were raging in the country.
Access to communication apps like WhatsApp, Skype, Facebook Messenger, Viber, and social media platforms such as Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram, are blocked. Observers say that the fears of the government that these postings could destabilise the country are baseless as the country has the lowest access to the internet across the East African region.
South Sudan got its first-ever internet connection to the region and the world recently in 2019 with the establishment of three fiber optic companies in Juba. The political instability and internal fighting among leadership have left South Sudan technically backward. The country lacks digital literacy, especially on social media. A majority of South Sudan’s citizens continue to remain unexposed to technological developments. Telecom companies are reportedly the only internet service providers, which are limited to select cities.
According to a study, South Sudan now has become the 67th country globally to restrict social media access over the last six years. Since 2015, about 31 countries in Africa including Uganda, Senegal, Chad, the Republic of the Congo, Nigeria, Zambia etc have blocked or limited social media access. Internet censorship and blocking social media access have become a regular practice in Africa, particularly during elections, protests, demonstrations or exams.
