Internet is the oxygen of the 21st century. Without access to it, people will wilt and die.
With the launch of Reliance Jio last September, and the cut-throat competition between rival telcos, getting online has become increasingly cheaper to the point where anyone with a smartphone can afford to buy an Internet pack. People are free to choose their Internet provider, data plan, and there's a lot of flexibility for the consumer.
But that freedom is still dependent on our access to the Internet, which is not always in our control.
According to statistics from the Software Freedom Law Centre (SFLC), India has seen 29 instances of Internet shutdowns in 2017. Yes, that¡¯s almost 30 times that the government has blocked our access to the Internet in just these past six and a half months, all in the name of preserving law and order. Just the last month saw parts of Madhya Pradesh and Maharashtra cut off from the Internet, a fact that¡¯s caused the global Human Rights Watch group to question Indian authorities, calling for them to ¡°cease arbitrary restrictions of the country¡¯s internet and telecommunications networks.¡±?
Here are the few key points you need to know about the problem, and why it should matter to you.
Images courtesy: SFLC
SFLC has been tracking Internet shutdowns in India since 2012, which you can find for yourself here, cataloguing the dates, durations, and reasons behind each instance.There have been a total of 88 recorded shutdowns since 2012, with 31 reported in 2016 and 29 in 2017 alone. That number has steadily progressed since the three reported instances in 2012. And at 29, we¡¯re just two off last year¡¯s total, only halfway through 2017.
Also, 49 of the 73 recorded shutdowns (at the time of the report) targeted mobile Internet services, and 10 targeted both mobile and fixed-line services. No shutdowns were reported to have only targeted fixed-line Internet services though the targets of 14 shutdowns remain unknown.
Then, 27 of the 73 recorded shutdowns lasted for less than a day, 17 lasted between 1 and 3 days, and 16 lasted for more than 3 days. No information is available on the duration of 13 shutdown instances.
Of the 73 shutdowns recorded since 2012 (at the time), 37 were imposed preemptively to prevent a possible law and order problem, while 36 instances were reactive in nature. ¡°Authorities¡¯ concerns over the misuse of the internet and social media should not be the default option to prevent social unrest,¡± said Meenakshi Ganguly, South Asia director, Human Rights Watch, on Friday.?
In 2016, India had a total of a 31 Internet shutdowns, more than any other country around the world. As a result, statistics indicate India lost almost Rs 6,000 crore of its usual income.
Jammu and Kashmir has been cut off from the Internet a total of 38 times since 2012, with 20 of those instances being split evenly between 2016 and 2017. The most recent shutdown was initiated on the 10th of this month as a precautionary measure after separatists called for people to launch a ¡°Kashmir awareness¡± campaign on social media on July 11
The United Nations Human Rights Council has already voiced its opinion on this trend, passing a resolution in July of 2016 condemning Internet shutdowns as a means to curb the dissemination of information. The most often cited reason for Internet shutdowns in India is to prevent people from spreading messages on social media that may incite anti- social sentiments in a sensitive situation. However, the UNHRC believes the scale of the reaction is unjustified. Plainly put, when the government shuts down the internet to supposedly keep the peace, it¡¯s impinging on our freedom of speech, something the UN believes should be protected online as much as it should be offline.