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Deji Olukotun

Senior Global Advocacy Manager

As a member of the advocacy team, Deji Bryce Olukotun (email: [email protected]) manages Access Now’s global campaigns on fighting internet shutdowns, the open internet, cybersecurity, and ensuring that our fundamental rights are respected online. He came from the literary and human rights organization PEN American Center, where he founded PEN’s digital freedom program and managed its capacity-building work in Myanmar, South Africa, Haiti, and Nigeria. He holds a J.D. from Stanford Law School, a BA from Yale University, and dual masters degrees in Creative Writing and Justice & Transformation from the University of Cape Town, where he was a Rotary Ambassadorial Scholar. He has also worked as corporate counsel for a small technology startup. An avid writer, Deji is the author of the novel Nigerians in Space (Unnamed Press) and After the Flare (forthcoming, 2017). His work has been featured in The Atlantic, NPR, The New York Times, and Vice.

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Politwoops is coming back! Inside Twitter’s transparency reboot

4 Jan 2016

This New Year’s Eve, we reached an agreement with Twitter and our partners to bring back the transparency and accountability tool called Politwoops.

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Politwoops is coming back! Inside Twitter’s transparency reboot
4 Jan 2016
Politwoops is coming back! Inside Twitter’s transparency reboot

Access Now condemns blocking of WhatsApp in Brazil

17 Dec 2015

The block is the latest in a string of internet shutdowns in 2015 and shows worrying backsliding in Brazil on digital rights.

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Access Now condemns blocking of WhatsApp in Brazil
17 Dec 2015
Access Now condemns blocking of WhatsApp in Brazil

Nigerian and global rights groups urge Nigeria to drop social media bill

16 Dec 2015

Access Now joined a coalition of nearly 20 Nigerian, African, and international rights groups to deliver a letter to key officials in the Nigerian Senate, citing concerns about a new bill that threatens to criminalize free expression.

Press Release
Nigerian and global rights groups urge Nigeria to drop social media bill
16 Dec 2015
Nigerian and global rights groups urge Nigeria to drop social media bill

#Notosocialmediabill: Nigeria on verge of criminalizing social media

7 Dec 2015

Nigeria is the verge of sending people to jail for their tweets and Facebook posts.

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#Notosocialmediabill: Nigeria on verge of criminalizing social media
7 Dec 2015
#Notosocialmediabill: Nigeria on verge of criminalizing social media
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Nigerian government levies $5.2 billion fine, threatens anonymity online

19 Nov 2015

MTN Nigeria was fined a record $5.2 billion for providing services to users with unregistered SIM cards, protecting their anonymity. We stand with MTN in its efforts to meet its responsibility to respect human rights.

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Nigerian government levies $5.2 billion fine, threatens anonymity online
19 Nov 2015
Nigerian government levies $5.2 billion fine, threatens anonymity online
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Bangladesh and the U.S.: Internet shutdowns are the wrong response to national security threats

19 Nov 2015

Yesterday, authorities in Dhaka, Bangladesh shut down some internet services for several hours, including blocking access to Facebook, Whatsapp, and Viber. Service was later restored, but key services remain offline. The latest shutdown in Dhaka shows worrying backsliding to the use of internet shutdowns as a blunt instrument to deal with threats to national security. It also solidifies the South Asia region as a hub for these intentional disruptions, given that Pakistan and the Indian provinces of Gujarat and Kashmir have also chosen to disrupt networks in the past few months. Worse, it looks as though lawmakers around the world are seeing threats to national security as a justification for undermining the open internet.

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Bangladesh and the U.S.: Internet shutdowns are the wrong response to national security threats
19 Nov 2015
Bangladesh and the U.S.: Internet shutdowns are the wrong response to national security threats
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Nauru in hot seat as U.N. decries internet blocking, clampdown on free expression

3 Nov 2015

Today countries around the world urged the small island state of Nauru to restore access to social media and support free expression. Delivered in a session at the United Nations Human Rights Council, the recommendations — presented by official delegations from the United Kingdom, Australia, Canada, and Timor Leste, among others — represent a sharp rebuke after Nauru clamped down on free expression over the past year, including blocking Facebook. In a separate action, Access Now delivered a petition to the government of Nauru signed by more than 5,000 people calling on the government to restore full access to the internet.

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Nauru in hot seat as U.N. decries internet blocking, clampdown on free expression
3 Nov 2015
Nauru in hot seat as U.N. decries internet blocking, clampdown on free expression

Twitter CEO Responds to Pressure from Rights Groups

21 Oct 2015

San Francisco – Today Twitter CEO Jack Dorsey pledged his company’s support for free expression, accountability, and transparency. His statement — including an explicit mention of Politwoops, the politician accountability tool — is a clear response to grassroots pressure, including an open letter signed by 50 global groups in support of Politwoops.

Press Release
Twitter CEO Responds to Pressure from Rights Groups
21 Oct 2015
Twitter CEO Responds to Pressure from Rights Groups
|Vietnam: Immediately release Pham Doan Trang

Government may have ordered internet shutdown in Congo-Brazzaville

20 Oct 2015

Today, several news outlets reported an internet shutdown in Congo-Brazzaville, where thousands of people are protesting after news surfaced that President Sassou Nguesso is contemplating a proposal to extend presidential term limits. While it’s not clear yet what’s happening in Congo-Brazzaville, we’re very concerned about the safety and security of the people protesting. Internet shutdowns do not restore order, help victims, or protect rights.

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Government may have ordered internet shutdown in Congo-Brazzaville
20 Oct 2015
Government may have ordered internet shutdown in Congo-Brazzaville

One million deleted tweets archived, but Twitter still won’t bring back Politwoops

17 Sep 2015

This week the Open State Foundation, creator of Politwoops, uploaded more than one million deleted politicians’ tweets to the Internet Archive, preserving the information for the public record. The collection archives the deleted tweets of 10,404 politicians worldwide, which were published before Twitter cut off Open State’s access to its Application Programming Interface, or API. Unfortunately, Twitter still refuses to reinstate access to the API, which means that people in 32 countries can’t see what politicians are deleting right now.

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One million deleted tweets archived, but Twitter still won’t bring back Politwoops
17 Sep 2015
One million deleted tweets archived, but Twitter still won’t bring back Politwoops