Top 10 Internet-Censoring Countries
Many residents of the 6 billion strong global village are missing out on the wealth of services provided by the new age miracle we call the internet because their governments won’t let them use it. The scope of outreach provided by the web means that freedom of expression has gone to a whole new level of effectiveness. Unfortunately some totalitarian regimes don’t see that as a good thing. They want total control over their people. Resultantly many countries have opted to restrict internet access and freedom to their public. This is a list of the top ten countries by order of the scale of internet censorship.1. Iran
The internet has come under intense scrutiny by the government of Iran since president Ahmadinejad’s re-election. There was a surge of online protesters against alleged rigging in the elections. To curb that, the government imposed strict censorship on the internet. Many protesters were arrested for ‘propaganda against the state’. All ISPs, bloggers and websites are now required to register with the Ministry of Culture and Islamic Guidance.
2. Uzbekistan
Following the Andijani events in May 2005, Uzbekistan imposed a comprehensive ban on independent news websites. Any websites featuring discussion about the situation in Uzbekistan are blocked as are all independent NGO websites.
3. Saudi Arabia
Although it is not influenced by any political events, censorship in Saudi Arabia is the most comprehensive in the world. Most anti-Islamic and religiously prohibited websites are banned. All internet traffic is controlled by the Communications & Information Technology Commission (CITC) through a proxy farm located in King Abdul-Aziz City for Science & Technology.
4. Egypt
The President of Egypt Hosni Mubarak has always been very permissive to internet users regarding access to controversial websites. The only confirmed act of censorship was the blockage of the Muslim Brotherhood movement’s websites. But due to an increase in international pressure to react against online activity of terrorist organizations, Egypt raised its censorship threshold in 2007. To connect to a public internet connection nowadays, a person must supply his identity information to government servers and wait for approval before he can access the web.
5. China
China spends more capital on internet censorship than any other country. Reporters Without Borders states it as the champion of online freedom denial. The termination of freedom blogs served as an important tool in taming the Tibetan independence movement. China also filters content relating other civil protests. Apart from that pornography and religious and anti-government propaganda are also banned.
6. Tunisia
The main focus of Tunisian censorship is on ceasing anti-dictatorship motions. Freedom on the net has been profoundly critical of the censorship laws of the government of Ben Ali. Online activists like the prominent lawyer Mohammed Abbou have been imprisoned for raising their voices in support of democracy. There is no access to unapproved websites in government offices.
7. Cuba
The majority of the Cuban population does not have the right to access the web. Online the elite class and powerful people of Cuba have the privilege of the internet. Even so there very limited access to websites and online activity is constantly monitored. Online journalism and news-casting are prohibited. The government issues licenses for computer ownership and all incoming and outgoing email traffic is scrutinized.
8. Belarus
The police in Belarus are allowed to issue arrest warrants for irresponsible usage of web access. The Belarusian State Telecommunication Inspection issues a list of banned websites with the assistance of government officials. Internet café owners are required to keep a record of any visited website for a whole year and can be ordered by the police to produce it at any time. It is common practice for the government to block access to opposition websites during elections.
9. Myanmar
Myanmar Wide Web is a satirical name given to the internet services in Burma. All accessible websites are preselected by the military junta government. There are no email accounts except those provided and administered by the government. Monitoring is so intense that the government records a screen-shot every 5 minutes a computer is in use in a net café.
10. North Korea
