[bestbits] [governance] Please Cameroon did not shut down the Internet !!!

Mawaki Chango kichango at gmail.com
Sun Jan 29 12:57:51 EST 2017


Thanks all trying to report out of Cameroon.

Like others, I was struck by the implications from Janvier's reporting, or
rather his attempt at a "mise au point" which completely missed the mark,
I'm sorry.

Government is blocking Internet access only in 2 regions out of 8, so the
situation is not that bad as the whole Cameroon being shutdown and we
should chill?

Oh, and money remittance operations to those 2 regions are also suspended,
but not a big deal really?

And you say that's done by the government for the sake of the whole
population in those 2 regions? How's that? We just need to swallow that
assertion made by you or the government and keep moving, nothing to see
here?

Interesting enough, the other 6 regions don't need that security and safety
which is supposed to be found in shutting down the Internet (do you really
think if there was a real terrorism threat from a section of the population
accessing the Internet, that threat will go away by maintaining access only
for their neighbors?) It's all in the (government)  motivation, isn't it?
If one cannot question the actual government's motivation in taking such
extreme measures then it's going to be hard to come to a consensus on
lasting peaceful solutions.

I myself was born francophone and still a national of the same African
francophone country of birth, and I can relate to that notion of "pleins
pouvoirs"-- not to say  "pouvoir absolu"-- found in some of our countries,
which Joash was referring to. But I would urge ISOC Cameroon to try to
relate also to the global culture of individual rights, particularly in the
age of the Internet. Then whatever you'll be able to accept as the right of
any Cameroonian, should be the right of all Cameroonians without
distinction of language, ethnicity, religion, political views or location,
etc.

And, addressing the government here, I personally can't even begin to
understand what is so difficult to understand in the notion that being a
bilingual country is an asset, an advantage rather than a threat or
drawback.

So yes, we get it, not the whole of Cameroon is cut off from the Internet.
But no, that doesn't make it any more acceptable that "only" a couple of
regions are targeted by what seems like a punishment for a "crime de lèse
majesté".

Now the question on our table here is what we, global civil society
coalitions, can do about a situation like this. I recall working for a
short while at APC on those universal periodic reviews (hope I'm not
messing up with that heavily acronym based terminology) at the UN Human
Rights Council, and Cameroon was up for review at some point. Has any
progress been made since? Any other course of action to look into?

Thanks,

Mawaki


On Jan 28, 2017 4:37 PM, "Mwendwa Kivuva" <Kivuva at transworldafrica.com>
wrote:

It is quite unfortunate the situation in Cameroon, especially how people
argue out human rights issues when the pinching shoe is on the neighbors
leg, when their "enemy", imagined or real, is being persecuted.

______________________
Mwendwa Kivuva, Nairobi, Kenya
twitter.com/lordmwesh



On 28 January 2017 at 18:19, Nyangkwe Agien Aaron <nyangkweagien at gmail.com>
wrote:

> Dear All
>
> I am right here in Douala Cameroun. And when I read Janvier, I will want
> many people to understand one thing. Mister Janvier is francophone. To many
> francophones, rights belong to authorities and not peoples . People must
> fear not respect authorities because the said authorities have all powers
> (they call it in french (plein pouvoirs) to do and undo on every citizen.
>
> To him, a Sous Prefet can ask for internet to be suspended in some part of
> Cameroon, he is in his right as an authority. Currently, a Supreme Court
> Atorney General, Mr Paul Ayah Abine is arrested and is in detention without
> due process. The same is the case another Magistrate in Buea who was
> arrested and ferried to Yaounde a day ago. Their crime; for supporting the
> anglophone call for a federation.
>
> To the likes of Janvier, it is the Government that gives liberty (C'est le
> gouvernement qui donne la liberté in French)
>
> The civilized world must act against such egregious obscurantism
>
> Agien Nyangkwe
>
> On Sat, Jan 28, 2017 at 8:03 AM, Evelyn Namara <evelyngeek at gmail.com>
> wrote:
>
>> Dear all,
>>
>> As a person who has been on the side of the shutdown, it is not right and
>> justifiable to shutdown the Internet, even for a few regions.
>> Mr. Janvier, your comments in this email hit me so hard. As a person who
>> has some level of authority, you should be concerned and fight for all
>> rights of all citizens.
>>
>> The 6 million plus people who make up the 2 regions that are deprived of
>> the Internet also matter. Everyone matters, and like the Internet Society
>> always says "The Internet is for everybody".
>>
>> Let's all fight and make leaders accountable.
>>
>> I stand with the people of Cameroun.
>>
>>
>> On Fri, Jan 27, 2017 at 12:08 PM, Joash Moitui <joash.moitui at gmail.com>
>> wrote:
>>
>>> Thank you all.
>>>
>>> This is a vital interesting topic. Having lived in Cameroon for 3 years,
>>> I would say that the shutdown in these two region is no different from
>>> shutdowns witnessed in Uganda and Gambia for instance. It is simply the
>>> political elite using their political influence to prevent the human rights
>>> violations calling for federation in these areas. The two areas made up of
>>> Anglophones, who have been marginalized largely because of their language
>>> and their calls for federation have been met by internet shutdown and full
>>> force of security agents. It is this that the Cameroon government does not
>>> want to be easily distributed within the social media.
>>>
>>> Joash
>>>
>>> On 27 Jan 2017, at 10:56, Nonhlanhla Chanza <nonhlanhlachanza at gmail.com>
>>> wrote:
>>>
>>> I still weep blood for those two regions. I have never been convinced by
>>> the argument that there might be circumstances that justifies a shutdown.
>>> So many places in turmoil and war in the world but people have access still
>>> to the Internet.
>>> On 26 Jan 2017 17:59, "Janvier NGNOULAYE" <jnoulaye at gmail.com> wrote:
>>>
>>>> Hi to all,
>>>> It seems to me that the problem of access to Internet in Cameroon is
>>>> very much amplified here on the Net. There are 10 regions in Cameroon, the
>>>> problem of access to the Internet is only concerning 2 Regions. These 2
>>>> regions actually has some political or social crisis. The government and
>>>> other stakeholders in these 2 areas are looking for suitable solutions.
>>>> Meanwhile, the government has seen fit to cut these two regions of Internet
>>>> access and Western Union money transfer services, for the sake of the
>>>> entire population of these 2 regions.
>>>> Internet works well everywhere else in the other 8 regions. I'm sending
>>>> this mail from Yaounde in Cameroon.
>>>> So the situation is not a disaster as some seem to publish on the Net.
>>>> The ISOC Chapter can only encourage the government and the other
>>>> stakeholders to seek lasting peace solutions, even if it involves a
>>>> temporary suspension of Internet and Western Union services.
>>>>
>>>> ISOC Cameroon Chapter
>>>> President
>>>>
>>>> 2017-01-26 15:45 GMT+01:00 Renata Aquino Ribeiro <raquino at gmail.com>:
>>>>
>>>>> Hi
>>>>>
>>>>> Indeed, this is a terrible situation, which can happen in any country,
>>>>> which is why everyone should take action.
>>>>> I'd think bringing in ISOC and other organizations will help deepen
>>>>> these efforts.
>>>>>
>>>>> On Thu, Jan 26, 2017 at 11:36 AM, Deji Bryce Olukotun <
>>>>> deji at accessnow.org> wrote:
>>>>>
>>>>>> Thank you, Arsène for the introduction and the summary.
>>>>>>
>>>>>> Judith, as Arsène explained, the #KeepitOn coalition
>>>>>> <http://accessnow.org/keepiton> (111 organizations from 51
>>>>>> countries) is pushing back against the shutdown. Our efforts are being led
>>>>>> by Julie Owono from Internet Without Borders
>>>>>> <http://internetwithoutborders.org/fr/regional-internet-blackout-in-cameroon/>
>>>>>> .
>>>>>>
>>>>>> At present, we are fighting the shutdown in several ways:
>>>>>> - open letter to government officials and agencies to restore access
>>>>>> - media outreach
>>>>>> - Tweet action at Cameroonian officials
>>>>>> <https://act.accessnow.org/ea-action/action?ea.client.id=1921&ea.campaign.id=62870&ea.tracking.id=tile>
>>>>>> (please support!)
>>>>>> - outreach to telcos operating in the country, including a statement
>>>>>> from the Global Network Initiative
>>>>>> <http://globalnetworkinitiative.org/news/gni-concerned-about-restrictions-internet-access-cameroon> (Microsoft,
>>>>>> Google, Facebook, Investors, academics)
>>>>>> - outreach to international officials at the UN and AU
>>>>>> - coordination with local groups in Cameroon
>>>>>> - coordinating with CDN's and other measurement entities
>>>>>>
>>>>>> We welcome any ideas or suggestions about how to get the internet
>>>>>> turned back on. With each passing day, people are at increased risk of
>>>>>> human rights violations and the economy is losing money. We'll reach out to
>>>>>> ISOC to coordinate as well.
>>>>>>
>>>>>> Best,
>>>>>> Deji
>>>>>>
>>>>>> On Thu, Jan 26, 2017 at 3:44 AM, Arsène Tungali <
>>>>>> arsenebaguma at gmail.com> wrote:
>>>>>>
>>>>>>> Hi Judith,
>>>>>>>
>>>>>>> Thanks for sharing this with us. What's going on in Cameroon is just
>>>>>>> a shame. For colleagues who have never experienced Internet shutdown,
>>>>>>> please understand that it is a nightmare.
>>>>>>>
>>>>>>> On this note about Cameroon, several organizations including Access
>>>>>>> Now and Internet Without Borders
>>>>>>> <http://internetwithoutborders.org/fr/regional-internet-blackout-in-cameroon/>are
>>>>>>> doing a lot of advocacy and statements
>>>>>>> <https://act.accessnow.org/ea-action/action?ea.client.id=1921&ea.campaign.id=62870&ea.tracking.id=Email&ea.url.id=836199>,
>>>>>>> letters have been sent to officials in Cameroon to ask them to bring back
>>>>>>> the Internet. A hashtag about this has been started and you can take action
>>>>>>> as well: #BringBackkOutInternet
>>>>>>> <https://twitter.com/hashtag/BringBackOurInternet?src=hash>.
>>>>>>>
>>>>>>> You can learn more about the #KeepItOn
>>>>>>> <https://twitter.com/hashtag/KeepItOn?src=hash> campaign here
>>>>>>> <https://www.accessnow.org/keepiton>.
>>>>>>>
>>>>>>> Eduard Snowden sent in a tweet
>>>>>>> <https://twitter.com/Snowden/status/824312606596988933> where he
>>>>>>> said: "*This is the future of repression. If we do not fight it
>>>>>>> there, it will happen here*" and I cannot agree more with him
>>>>>>> because it is just going from one country to another. Over 8 countries in
>>>>>>> Africa, including mine the DRC, have experienced shutdown and no one knows
>>>>>>> who is next. Acces Now has reported
>>>>>>> <https://www.accessnow.org/keepiton>15 Internet shutdowns across
>>>>>>> the world in 2015 and 56 in 2016
>>>>>>>
>>>>>>> If there is any question about all the statements and campaigns, I
>>>>>>> am happy to help or convey your questions since I am involved, on a
>>>>>>> personal capacity, in these movements advocating and fighting Internet
>>>>>>> shutdowns across Africa.
>>>>>>>
>>>>>>> Regards,
>>>>>>> Arsene
>>>>>>>
>>>>>>> PS: Copied is Deji Olukotun who works on Advocacy for Access Now.
>>>>>>>
>>>>>>>
>>>>>>> ------------------------
>>>>>>> **Arsène Tungali**
>>>>>>> Co-Founder & Executive Director, *Rudi international
>>>>>>> <http://www.rudiinternational.org/>*,
>>>>>>> CEO,* Smart Services Sarl <http://www.smart-serv.info/>*, *Mabingwa
>>>>>>> Forum <http://www.mabingwa-forum.com/>*
>>>>>>> Tel: +243 993810967 <+243%20993%20810%20967>
>>>>>>> GPG: 523644A0
>>>>>>> *Goma, Democratic Republic of Congo*
>>>>>>>
>>>>>>> 2015 Mandela Washington Felllow
>>>>>>> <http://tungali.blogspot.com/2015/06/selected-for-2015-mandela-washington.html>
>>>>>>> (YALI) - ISOC Ambassador (IGF Brazil
>>>>>>> <http://www.internetsociety.org/what-we-do/education-and-leadership-programmes/next-generation-leaders/igf-ambassadors-programme/Past-Ambassadors>
>>>>>>> & Mexico
>>>>>>> <http://www.internetsociety.org/what-we-do/education-and-leadership-programmes/next-generation-leaders/Current-Ambassadors>)
>>>>>>> - AFRISIG 2016 <http://afrisig.org/afrisig-2016/class-of-2016/> -
>>>>>>> Blogger <http://tungali.blogspot.com/> - ICANN Fellow (Los Angeles
>>>>>>> <https://www.icann.org/news/announcement-2014-07-18-en> & Marrakech
>>>>>>> <https://www.icann.org/resources/pages/marrakech55-attendees-2016-03-14-en>
>>>>>>> ). AFRINIC Fellow (Mauritius
>>>>>>> <http://www.afrinic.net/en/library/news/1907-afrinic-25-fellowship-winners>
>>>>>>> )* - *IGFSA Member <http://www.igfsa.org/> - The HuffingtonPost UK
>>>>>>> <http://www.huffingtonpost.co.uk/liza-bel/drc_b_8958150.html>
>>>>>>>
>>>>>>> 2017-01-26 5:34 GMT+02:00 Judith Hellerstein <
>>>>>>> judith at jhellerstein.com>:
>>>>>>>
>>>>>>>> HI All,
>>>>>>>>
>>>>>>>> Just passing on a note from Mafor Edwan of ISOC Cameroon about the
>>>>>>>> Cameroonian Government shut down of the Internet in his country.
>>>>>>>>
>>>>>>>> I am at a loss for words of yet another country that has cut off
>>>>>>>> Internet Access for its citizens. Thanks to ISOC Cameroon for all their
>>>>>>>> efforts to resolve this crisis, even though they have not been successful,
>>>>>>>> I am glad that they have tried. I am a passionate believer in an open
>>>>>>>> Internet. One that is available to all. By connecting the world, working
>>>>>>>> with others, and advocating for equal access to the Internet, We can make
>>>>>>>> the world a better place.
>>>>>>>> Edwan hopes people can share this word about this and hopefully
>>>>>>>> some one can reach the President and tell him what a bad idea this is. I
>>>>>>>> told him I would share it around. Hope others can do the same
>>>>>>>>
>>>>>>>> Best,
>>>>>>>> Judith
>>>>>>>>
>>>>>>>> _________________________________________________________________________
>>>>>>>> Judith Hellerstein, Founder & CEO
>>>>>>>> Hellerstein & Associates
>>>>>>>> 3001 Veazey Terrace NW, Washington DC 20008
>>>>>>>> Phone: (202) 362-5139  Skype ID: judithhellerstein
>>>>>>>> E-mail: Judith at jhellerstein.com   Website: www.jhellerstein.com
>>>>>>>> Linked In: www.linkedin.com/in/jhellerstein/
>>>>>>>> Opening Telecom & Technology Opportunities Worldwide
>>>>>>>>
>>>>>>>>
>>>>>>>>
>>>>>>>>
>>>>>>>> -------- Forwarded Message --------
>>>>>>>> Subject: Re: [Chapter-delegates] FYI- Constance's blog post about
>>>>>>>> the G20 - and the updated Internet Governance timeline
>>>>>>>> Date: Wed, 25 Jan 2017 21:49:53 -0500
>>>>>>>> From: Queen Mother <edwannfon at gmail.com> <edwannfon at gmail.com>
>>>>>>>> To: Dan York <york at isoc.org> <york at isoc.org>
>>>>>>>> CC: ISOC Chapter Delegates <chapter-delegates at elists.isoc.org>
>>>>>>>> <chapter-delegates at elists.isoc.org>, Carl Gahnberg
>>>>>>>> <gahnberg at isoc.org> <gahnberg at isoc.org>
>>>>>>>>
>>>>>>>> Good evening Fellow ISOC Delegates,
>>>>>>>>
>>>>>>>> I bring you sad news about the state of internet access in my home
>>>>>>>> country Cameroon.
>>>>>>>> I have sobbed uncontrollably for weeks as the govt of my country
>>>>>>>> tortures and mimes her citizens and recently has cut off the ability to
>>>>>>>> send financial support to our families through western union and has now
>>>>>>>> cut off the internet.
>>>>>>>>
>>>>>>>> Please if you can read the articles below.
>>>>>>>>
>>>>>>>> Cameroon Cuts Internet in English-speaking Regions
>>>>>>>> <http://www.voanews.com/a/cameroon-cuts-internet-in-english-speaking-regions/3682688.html>
>>>>>>>> http://www.voanews.com/a/cameroon-cuts-internet-in-english-s
>>>>>>>> peaking-regions/3682688.html
>>>>>>>>
>>>>>>>> How Cameroon pressured mobile operators to shut down the internet
>>>>>>>> and stifle dissent
>>>>>>>> <https://qz.com/893401/cameroon-pressured-mtn-and-other-operators-to-shut-down-internet-in-bamenda-buea-regions/>
>>>>>>>>   https://qz.com/893401/cameroon-pressured-mtn-and-other-opera
>>>>>>>> tors-to-shut-down-internet-in-bamenda-buea-regions/
>>>>>>>>
>>>>>>>> Thank you.
>>>>>>>> Mafor edwan
>>>>>>>> Vice President #2
>>>>>>>> ISOC Cameroon
>>>>>>>>
>>>>>>>>
>>>>>>>> _______________________________________________
>>>>>>>>> As an Internet Society Chapter Officer you are automatically
>>>>>>>>> subscribed
>>>>>>>>> to this list, which is regularly synchronized with the Internet
>>>>>>>>> Society
>>>>>>>>> Chapter Portal (AMS): https://portal.isoc.org
>>>>>>>>>
>>>>>>>>
>>>>>>>>
>>>>>>>> ____________________________________________________________
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>>>>>>>
>>>>>>
>>>>>>
>>>>>> --
>>>>>> Deji Bryce Olukotun
>>>>>> Senior Global Advocacy Manager
>>>>>> Access Now | accessnow.org
>>>>>>
>>>>>> tel: +1 415-935-4572 <+1%20415-935-4572> | @dejiridoo
>>>>>> PGP: 0x6012CDA8
>>>>>> Fingerprint: 3AEE 4194 F70E C806 A810 857A 6AD5 8F48 6012 CDA8
>>>>>>
>>>>>> *Subscribe to our free weekly newsletter on digital rights, the
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>>>>>>
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>>>>>
>>>>>
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>>
>>
>> --
>>
>>
>> Evelyn Namara | T: +256 754 440893 <+256%20754%20440893> | E:
>> enamara at riseup.net | Twitter: @enamara <http://www.twitter.com/enamara>
>> | Skype: enamara
>>
>> PGP: B94D 3950 38D6 914A E054 D6C5 E82E 0F66 DC01 E30D
>>
>>
>>
>>
>>
>>
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>
>
> --
> Aaron Agien NYANGKWE
> P.O.Box 5213
> Douala-Cameroon
> Tel. 237 673 42 71 27
>
>
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