Governments across the World Suspended Internet for Over 18,000 Hours in 2019

New Delhi:  International economy incurred losses of more than $8 Billion due to Internet shutdown in various countries. India was ranked third, following Myanmar and the African nation of Chad

Upholding internet access as a fundamental right of Indian citizens under Article 19 of the constitution, on 10 January the Supreme Court drew sharp criticism on the central government. The apex court slammed the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP)-led government’s decision to ban internet services in Kashmir since the abrogation of Article 370. The court also said that the Internet cannot be suspended indefinitely. 

While, Kashmir continues to reel under suspension, according to the report by top-10 VPN websites working on digital privacy and cyber-security, the Internet was suspended for 4,196 hours in different parts of the country in 2019. Apart from causing severe communication-connect issues for the locals, the internet ban in 2019 incurred losses to the tune of $1.3 billion to the Indian economy.

With the inclusion of the blanket internet ban on Kashmir, India ranked third after Myanmar and Chad (a small nation in north-central Africa) in banning the Internet for the maximum number of hours. According to the report, Myanmar witnessed Internet shutdown for was 4,880 hours, followed by suspension of Internet services in Chad’s for 4,728 hours.

As per the report, in 2019, the Internet was suspended for a total of 18,225 hours in 21 countries of the world. Internet was banned for 11,857 hours, and there was a social media ban for 6,368 hours. This caused a loss of more than $8.076 billion to the world’s economy.

Longest Time Internet Suspension in Kashmir, Loss of More Than $1.07 Billion

The report indicated that between 1 January 2019 and 31 December 2019, the Internet was suspended in the states of Jammu-Kashmir for 3,692 hours. This caused the state a loss of more than $1.07 billion – including heavy losses in tourism, agriculture and timber sectors. 

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According to the Internet shutdown website, Internet has been suspended in Kashmir for the past 159 days, which commenced on 4 August 2019. This is the longest ban imposed so far. Earlier, in 2016, the Internet was suspended in Kashmir for 133 days. Following terrorist Burhan Wani’s death at the time, the Internet was suspended from 8 July 2016 to 19 November 2016.

Longest Internet Suspensions in Myanmar and Chad

Myanmar under the leadership of State Counsellor Aung San Suu Kyi and the African nation of Chad led by Prime Minister Albert Pahimi Padacké witnessed the maximum hours of internet suspension in the world in 2019. While Myanmar suffered a loss of $75.36 million, Chad accounted for $126.8 million worth damages to its economy.

Surprisingly, India which was the third country following Chad and Myanmar in Internet shutdown suffered 18 times the loss of Myanmar and 11 times that of Chad. African nations – Sudan was ranked fourth in the longest suspension of the Internet for 1,560 hours, and Congo was ranked fifth with a ban of 456 hours.

Maximum Shutdown To Prevent Protest & Demonstrations

The report says that in 2019, the governments banned the Internet to stop protest demonstrations against them. This happened the most during elections, so that the government can maintain its control on the said nation. Internet ban causes maximum loss to the economies of less developed countries because it makes investors lose confidence. It is said in the report that Internet suspension is not just a violation of the freedom of expression of citizens, but also dangerous for the democratic process. Repeated Internet suspensions lead to the danger of violence flaring up.

India Leads in Internet Suspension

The report by State of Internet Shutdown 2018 reads that India is the leading country in imposing Internet bans. In 2018, the Internet was suspended 134 times in India, out of which Jammu-Kashmir alone witnessed shutdown for 65 times. 

Internet Suspension & Law 

A lot of hue and cry is made over internet suspension with opposition parties leveling various allegations on the central government. However, according to the Code of Criminal Procedure [CrPC] 1973 and the Indian Telegraph Act 1885, the government agencies are indeed authorized to suspend the Internet in India’s states or districts. Apart from this, the government can also ask telecom companies to suspend their services on the basis of Temporary Suspension of Telecom Services (Public Emergency or Public Safety) Rules 2017.