Zimbabwe blacklists Global Voices
What if Zimbabwe declared “cyberwar” and no one noticed?
Evidently, Global Voices is one of the sources of “‘virulent propaganda’ to delegitimise ‘our just struggle against Anglo-Saxons’.” We’re one of 41 websites blacklisted by the ZANU-PF government, a list that includes the Washington Post and CNN, as well as the personal blog of our Zimbabwe correspondent, Zimpundit.
It’s unclear whether Zimbabwe is actually blocking access to these sites at an ISP level - according to the Independent, which reported the story, “It was not immediately apparent what measures, if any, the party can take against offending websites.” In other words, a country that’s having a very hard time keeping its currency from collapsing likely doesn’t have a lot of free cash to pay for internet filtering technology.
When I was in Zimbabwe last September, I ran some tests for the Open Net Initiative and couldn’t see any evidence of content filtering by ISPs, despite extensive rumors that the Mugabe government had partnered with China to implement extensive network monitoring. (In fairness, it’s almost impossible to detect effective surveillance, while filtering is pretty easy to detect - if you can’t reach a site that should otherwise be reachable, you might suspect that filtering is taking place.) It’s possible that “blacklisting” these sites merely means that there are legal consequences for visiting this banned content - I’ll see whether friends at ONI are interested in testing Zimbabwe again now that “cyberwar” has been declared.
I’d love to tell you that I knew that cyberwar had been declared because our traffic fell precipitously a few days ago, but frankly, we didn’t notice. Given the current economic crisis in Zimbabwe, most Zimbabweans can’t afford much time in a cybercafe to peruse world news. (Zimbabwe ranks #119 in the list of countries accessing our site, between Moldova and Zambia…) I found out about the block from my friends at Kubatana, who helpfully point out that it’s farcical for ZANU-PF to block our publication while failing to block most of the blogs we cover in Zimbabwe…
Even if this block reflects little more than the growing paranoia of a crumbling regime, it would be frustrating to discover that Zimbabweans can’t use our site to find blog news in China, Cameroom or Costa Rica. (Blogs seem to be a special focus of ire for the ZANU-PF blacklist, as Technorati is blocked as well.) So, as a service for my Zim friends, let me point you to the RSF Handbook for Bloggers and Cyberdissidents, which includes an excellent chapter on getting around internet filtering and censorship.
Do you know of any other countries that have chosen to block Global Voices? I’d love to hear. And I’d love to hear from friends in Zimbabwe whether they can still reach blacklisted sites like GlobalVoices and CNN.com - feel free to use the comments, since I’m not personally at cyberwar with ZANU-PF… yet.
August 16th, 2007 at 1:21 pm
We should also point out your excellent guide to anonymizing one’s self when surfing, using Tor, since if Zimbabwe isn’t actually filtering, but perhaps monitoring usage, it could prevent nasty situations. :\
August 16th, 2007 at 3:38 pm
[...] government of Zimbabwe blacklists Global Voices Online: “Evidently, Global Voices is one of the sources of “‘virulent propaganda’ to [...]
August 16th, 2007 at 4:57 pm
[...] Ethan Zuckerman the co-founder of Global Voices, writes: Global Voices is one of the sources of “‘virulent propaganda’ to delegitimise ‘our just struggle against Anglo-Saxons’. He continues “It’s unclear whether Zimbabwe is actually blocking access to these sites at an ISP level - according to the Independent, which reported the story, “It was not immediately apparent what measures, if any, the party can take against offending websites.” In other words, a country that’s having a very hard time keeping its currency from collapsing likely doesn’t have a lot of free cash to pay for internet filtering technology. [...]
August 16th, 2007 at 7:04 pm
Heh… watch out, they’re coming for you next Ethan!
But I’ve got your back. I registered freeethanz.com :-)
- Amy Gahran
August 17th, 2007 at 2:23 am
As this post rightly indicates, “it [is] not immediately apparent what measures, if any, the party can take against offending websites.”
At present, the sites on the list are not “blocked” in the slightest. Aside from the usual hassles of slow page loading speeds and dropped connections, there is no difference in trying to access Global Voices or the Washington Post than there is in accessing Google or Amazon (which aren’t on the list).
I do think its important to note that, to date, the sites are on just that - a “blacklist” about which the regime might, or might not, do anything. To go so far as to say they’re “blocked” now, when they are not, makes it harder to mobilise later, in the eventuality that they are.
August 17th, 2007 at 3:21 pm
[...] Ethan Zuckerman: Zimbabwe blacklists Global Voices “Evidently, Global Voices is a source of “‘virulent propaganda’ to delegitimize ‘our just struggle against Anglo-Saxons’.” 41 sites blacklisted by ZANU-PF govt. Also: Washington Post, CNN, & the personal blog of our Zimbabwe correspondent.” (tags: government world Africa censorship freedom blogs info+access tidbits+fodder) [...]
August 17th, 2007 at 9:30 pm
[...] की सरकार ने ग्लोबल वायसेज़ आनलाईन को काली सूची में डाल दिया है, “स्पष्टतः, ग्लोबल वायसेज़ एंग्लो [...]
August 20th, 2007 at 1:40 am
[...] است. از جمله این سایتها صداهای جهانی هاروارد است که به گفته دولت زیمبابوه صداهای جهانی علیه مبارزه این کشور علیه [...]
August 20th, 2007 at 12:43 pm
[...] and Technorati’s websites, were met with scepticism by bloggers such as Ethan Zuckerman on My Heart’s in Accra and those at [...]
October 8th, 2007 at 7:28 am
You block Blogspot, I block Boing Boing
A tale of two internet blockers. In Ethiopia, you start suspecting your website has been blocked when it suddenly disappears from your screen. Your suspicion grows as you check it on friends’ internet connections, at different times of day, during…
October 8th, 2007 at 7:40 am
[...] Ethiopia as the only country in sub-Saharan Africa to carry out widespread blocking (although Zimbabwe seems to be joining in now as well). In a report on the region it said: ONI research has found that [...]
March 30th, 2009 at 8:47 am
[...] 2007 Zimbabwean government created a blacklist of 41 websites, which included Global Voices. In the same year the Interception of Communication Bill was passed [...]
March 31st, 2009 at 2:43 am
[...] 2007 il governo dello Zimbabwe ha stilato una lista nera di 41 siti web [in], che comprendeva anche Global Voices. Nello stesso anno è stata approvata la Legge sulle [...]
April 8th, 2009 at 4:03 am
[...] 2007 Zimbabwean government created a blacklist of 41 websites, which included Global Voices. In the same year the Interception of Communication Bill was passed [...]
April 14th, 2009 at 2:56 am
[...] 2007 Zimbabwean government created a blacklist of 41 websites, which included Global Voices. In the same year the Interception of Communication Bill was passed [...]