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Berhan Taye

Africa Policy Manager, Global Internet Shutdowns Lead

Berhan Taye leads Access Now’s work on digital rights in Africa as the Africa Policy Manager. As the Global Internet Shutdowns Lead, Berhan advises Access Now’s #KeepItOn Coalition on policy and advocacy engagements against internet shutdowns. Berhan is also a visiting researcher at the Center for Intellectual Property and Information Technology (CIPIT) at Strathmore University in Nairobi, Kenya. She previously led the #KeepItOn campaign, a global campaign that fights against internet shutdown with a coalition of more than 220 member organizations worldwide. Before joining Access Now, she was a researcher on the Technology for Social Justice Field Scan project, where she researched the tech and social justice space in the US. Before that, she was a Ford-Mozilla Open Web Fellow (2016-2017) with Research Action Design and Open Technology Institute. Berhan previously worked with the Alliance for Affordable Internet researching the gender digital divide in Kenya and at the IGAD’s Conflict Early Warning and Early Response Center mitigating violent conflict in East Africa. Berhan holds an MA in Peace Studies and Public Policy from the University of Notre Dame and a BA in International Relations from Malmö University.

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Back in the dark: Ethiopia shuts down internet once again

16 Jul 2020

At approximately 09:00 EAT today, Tuesday June 30, a blanket internet shutdown was implemented by the Ethiopian government, cutting the entire nation off, and denying people their fundamental rights to freedom of expression and access to information.

Press Release
Back in the dark: Ethiopia shuts down internet once again
16 Jul 2020
Back in the dark: Ethiopia shuts down internet once again
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الإنترنت في اليمن: عمليات حجب ورقابة بعد انتقال الحرب على الإنترنت

13 Jul 2020
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الإنترنت في اليمن: عمليات حجب ورقابة بعد انتقال الحرب على الإنترنت
13 Jul 2020
الإنترنت في اليمن: عمليات حجب ورقابة بعد انتقال الحرب على الإنترنت
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#KeepItOn: The Ethiopian government must end internet shutdowns to quell protests

2 Jul 2020

The Ethiopian government must pledge to stop imposing internet shutdowns. They are never an appropriate response to protests and unrest.

Press Release
#KeepItOn: The Ethiopian government must end internet shutdowns to quell protests
2 Jul 2020
#KeepItOn: The Ethiopian government must end internet shutdowns to quell protests
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#KeepItOn: As Yemen’s war goes online, internet shutdowns and censorship are hurting Yemenis

25 Jun 2020
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#KeepItOn: As Yemen’s war goes online, internet shutdowns and censorship are hurting Yemenis
25 Jun 2020
#KeepItOn: As Yemen’s war goes online, internet shutdowns and censorship are hurting Yemenis
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ECOWAS Court upholds digital rights, rules 2017 internet shutdowns in Togo illegal

25 Jun 2020

The Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) Community Court of Justice ruled that the September 2017 internet shutdown ordered by the Togolese government during protests is illegal and an affront to the applicants’ right to freedom of expression.

Press Release
ECOWAS Court upholds digital rights, rules 2017 internet shutdowns in Togo illegal
25 Jun 2020
ECOWAS Court upholds digital rights, rules 2017 internet shutdowns in Togo illegal

Court rules the internet shutdowns in Papua and West Papua were illegal

3 Jun 2020

A coalition of civil society groups working on freedom of expression issues in Southeast Asia has successfully sued the government for purposely shutting down the internet in Papua and West Papua during protests in 2019.

Press Release
Court rules the internet shutdowns in Papua and West Papua were illegal
3 Jun 2020
Court rules the internet shutdowns in Papua and West Papua were illegal
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#KeepItOn: Internet shutdowns put lives at risk during COVID-19

26 May 2020

There is no excuse for internet shutdowns during a global pandemic, but governments keep ordering them. Join the #KeepItOn coalition in calling for an end to shutdowns globally.

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#KeepItOn: Internet shutdowns put lives at risk during COVID-19
26 May 2020
#KeepItOn: Internet shutdowns put lives at risk during COVID-19
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#KeepItOn: Burundi fait taire la majorité de la population le jour du scrutin

20 May 2020

Alors que des millions de Burundais se rendent aux urnes pour élire leur prochain président aujourd’hui, le 20 mai 2020, le Gouvernement de Pierre Nkurunziza n’a pas hésité de bloquer accès aux réseaux sociaux, notamment Facebook, Twitter, WhatsApp et Youtube.

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#KeepItOn: Burundi fait taire la majorité de la population le jour du scrutin
20 May 2020
#KeepItOn: Burundi fait taire la majorité de la population le jour du scrutin
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#KeepItOn: Burundi silences the majority on election day

20 May 2020

On election day, the Burundi government has rushed to block access to social media including Facebook, Twitter, WhatsApp, and YouTube.

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#KeepItOn: Burundi silences the majority on election day
20 May 2020
#KeepItOn: Burundi silences the majority on election day
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Ethiopia’s hate speech and disinformation law: the pros, the cons, and a mystery

19 May 2020

The government has made online hate speech an easy scapegoat for violence that may have deeper causes, while pushing through new legislation that increases its power to censor.  

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Ethiopia’s hate speech and disinformation law: the pros, the cons, and a mystery
19 May 2020
Ethiopia’s hate speech and disinformation law: the pros, the cons, and a mystery