Apagón nacional
Officials in the Republic of Congo shut down the Internet during the 2021 general elections, having previously done so during the 2016 elections. The Internet went down just after midnight on election day, several hours before polling stations opened at 7:00 local time. Governments worldwide shut down the Internet during general elections, often citing 'public security' and 'stopping the spread of disinformation' as the motivating factor. Keeping the Internet on during an election, however, does the opposite: it ensures transparency, that people can access information on electoral processes and candidates, that they can remain in contact with each other in case of emergencies or civil unrest, and ensures that the election process can be reported and results documented. Shutting down the Internet for any length of time has disastrous consequences on the economy, and both businesses and individuals lose out on critical opportunities to do business.
- Duración total 3 days
Impacto local
Las autoridades de la República del Congo cortaron Internet durante las elecciones generales de 2021, tras haberlo hecho anteriormente durante las elecciones de 2016. Internet dejó de funcionar justo después de la medianoche del día de las elecciones, varias horas antes de que abrieran los colegios electorales a las 7:00 hora local. Los gobiernos de todo el mundo cierran Internet durante las elecciones generales, a menudo citando como factor motivador la "seguridad pública" y "detener la propagación de desinformación". Sin embargo, mantener Internet encendido durante unas elecciones hace todo lo contrario: garantiza la transparencia, que la gente pueda acceder a la información sobre los procesos electorales y los candidatos, que puedan permanecer en contacto entre sí en caso de emergencias o disturbios civiles, y asegura que se pueda informar sobre el proceso electoral y documentar los resultados. El cierre de Internet durante cualquier periodo de tiempo tiene consecuencias desastrosas para la economía, y tanto las empresas como los particulares pierden oportunidades fundamentales de hacer negocios.
Otra información complementaria
CAIDA/IODA
Informe de transparencia de Google
Redes sociales
On #election day, the #Congo is experiencing a significant ongoing #Internet #outage that #IODA data shows began at ~11:00 PM UTC on Mar 20 (midnight on Mar 21 local time).
— IODA (@IODA_live) March 21, 2021
Track the status of Congo's connectivity here:https://t.co/i3GEzaXTJn#KeepItOn pic.twitter.com/bIXvDnq3sr
Internet has been cut in the Republic of Congo hours before polling stations were set to open. Congo is holding its presidential election today.
— Doug Madory (also on Bluesky) (@DougMadory) March 21, 2021
According to @kentikinc data, traffic stopped flowing into Congo at 23:04 UTC or just after midnight local. #KeepItOn pic.twitter.com/7l8bylaQ65
Internet shutdowns deny people access to information about electoral process and puts the credibility of the election outcome to questions. #Congo must #KeepItOn https://t.co/iOUQ9ogHjL
— Access Now (@accessnow) March 21, 2021
Internet cut as polls open in Congo election | The Guardian Nigeria News - Nigeria and World News https://t.co/PVdRKhz14O
— The Guardian Nigeria (@GuardianNigeria) March 21, 2021