The new military government in Myanmar has reportedly ordered telecommunications companies to temporarily block access to Facebook (Facebook shares), citing the fact that the platform poses a threat to the restoration of stability in the country. The measure is part of a larger effort to restrict Internet access following a coup last month.
Internet outages slow growth
NetBlocks, the non-partisan internet outage tracker, has confirmed that access to Facebook, Instagram, Messenger, and WhatsApp servers is now restricted in the country. Internet blockages were also recorded on January 31, 2021, when the Myanmar military took control in the coup that brought them to power.
When it comes to internet outages for political reasons, 2021 already has a grim collection of cases. In January alone, India, Myanmar and Uganda experienced internet outages related to political events. In Uganda, the state completely shut down the internet on presidential election day in early January.
Last week, Indian authorities restricted internet access in multiple areas near the capital, New Delhi, when local farmers protested agriculture laws passed in September last year.
According to Hanna Kreitam, a technical expert at the NGO Internet Society, in addition to violating basic human freedoms, internet disruptions are harmful to growth as they have an immediate financial impact on a country's economy.
Kreitam explained that internet disruptions hold back economic activity, thereby reducing profits for local businesses and tax revenues. “In addition, many people, organizations and businesses around the world rely on Internet-based services that depend on critical functions such as data storage, data processing and financial transactions based in various countries. Disrupting access to these services inevitably reduces productivity, resulting in significant economic losses, ”Kreitam said.
The negative effects on the economy of the nations involved
A 2020 report from Top10VPN revealed that regional internet outages combined with prolonged internet blackouts in Kashmir could have cost India $ 2,8 billion in 2020, while outages in Myanmar could have cost the country's economy 190 million $.
Due to the COVID-19 pandemic, 2021 is a critical year and emerging economies cannot afford the economic and infrastructure costs that internet blocks often cause in addition to the pressures of the ongoing pandemic, Kreitam said.
India, for example, aspires to be a technology hub, but has a complicated history of controlling the internet to crack down on dissent and protests. “We believe that internet blocks erode people's trust in the internet infrastructure to be available and to work reliably when needed. Over time, people stop using unreliable networks, leading to a reduction in investment and a further decline in investment in infrastructure and construction, ”Kreitam said.
