San Francisco Chronicle - (Sunday)
Net access cut as coup protests grow
YANGON, Myanmar — Military authorities appeared to have cut most access to the internet Saturday as they faced a rising protest movement over their coup that toppled Aung San Suu Kyi’s elected civilian government.
Internet users reported the disappearance of access, especially from mobile service providers, that accelerated sharply Saturday. Broadband connection also failed, while there were mixed reports on whether landline telephone service and mobile voice connections were still working.
Netblocks, a Londonbased service that tracks internet disruptions and shutdowns, said Saturday that “a neartotal internet shutdown is now in effect” in Myanmar, with connectivity falling to just 16% of normal levels.
The broad blackout followed Friday’s military order to block Twitter and Instagram because some people were trying to use the platforms to spread what authorities deemed fake news. Facebook had already been blocked earlier in the week — though not completely.
The communication blockages are a stark reminder of the progress Myanmar is in danger of losing after Monday’s coup plunged the nation back under military rule after a nearly decadelong move toward greater openness and democracy. During Myanmar’s previous five decades of military rule, the country was internationally isolated and communications with the outside world were strictly limited.
Suu Kyi’s five years as leader since 2015 had been Myanmar’s most democratic period despite the military retaining broad powers over the government, the continued use of repressive colonialera laws and the persecution of minority Rohingya Muslims.
The blockages are also adding greater urgency to efforts to resist the coup, with Saturday seeing some of the largest street protests against the takeover. In one of the larger rallies, about 1,000 protesters — factory workers and students prominent among them — marched down a main street in Yangon, the country’s biggest city, and were met by more than 100 police in riot gear.
Members of the crowd marched with their hands in the air, forming threefingered salutes, a symbol of defiance adopted from protesters in neighboring Thailand. The demonstration ended peacefully with no clashes reported.
Similar demonstrations took place in at least two other areas of the city, and likewise were tense but peaceful. People at a protest at Yangon’s City Hall presented flowers to the police.
Other reports that slipped through the communications blockade said protests were held in other areas, including Mandalay, the country’s secondlargest city.
Telenor Myanmar, a major mobile operator, confirmed it had received Friday’s order to block Twitter and Instagram. In a statement, Twitter said it was “deeply concerned” about the order and pledged to “advocate to end destructive governmentled shutdowns.”
“It undermines the public conversation and the rights of people to make their voices heard,” its spokesperson said.
Since the coup, social media platforms have been major sources of independent news as well as organizing tools for protests.
Amnesty International said that to shut down the internet while the country was coping with the coup, people displaced by years of civil conflict and the COVID19 crisis was “a heinous and reckless decision.”
On Friday, nearly 300 elected lawmakers from Aung San Suu Kyi’s National League for Democracy party declared themselves as the sole legitimate representatives of the people and asked for international recognition as the country’s government.
The military accused Suu Kyi and her party of failing to act on its complaints that last November’s election was marred by fraud, though the election commission said it had no found no evidence to support the claims.