Uganda to suspend internet services ahead of upcoming presidential election

Uganda Imposes Nationwide Internet Blackout Ahead of Presidential Elections

A government regulatory body has instructed mobile network operators to block public internet access nationwide, starting at 6pm (15:00 GMT) on Tuesday. The move comes days before the presidential elections, in which President Yoweri Museveni is expected to seek re-election for a seventh term.

The internet outage has been confirmed by NetBlocks, an internet monitor, as a “nation-scale disruption to internet connectivity”. This development has heightened concerns about the government’s intentions ahead of the January 15 vote. The elections will see Museveni, who has been in power for over 40 years, facing opposition from pop star-turned-politician Bobi Wine.

In the lead-up to the election, security personnel have rounded up hundreds of opposition supporters and used live bullets and tear gas at pro-Wine campaign rallies. Kizza Besigye, a former presidential challenger, is currently serving a treason charge. The United Nations Human Rights Office has criticized Uganda’s authorities for creating an environment of “widespread repression and intimidation”.

The government has defended the internet shutdown as necessary to curb misinformation, disinformation, electoral fraud, and related risks. Additionally, two local rights groups that have been critical of authorities – Chapter Four Uganda and Human Rights Network for Journalists-Uganda – have been ordered to halt their work by the state-run National Bureau for NGOs.

Experts say the government’s clampdown has made it “too dangerous” for opposition forces to effectively organize. The internet outage is not the first time Uganda has blocked access during elections, having done so in 2021. This year, authorities had promised that the internet would remain available, but claims of a planned blackout have been circulating.

Source: Al Jazeera