A project of Freedom on the Net
Elections and internet censorship often go hand in hand. As citizens head to the polls, repressive governments limit access to information, and in the most extreme cases, cut off internet service entirely. Freedom House’s Freedom on the Net project has estimated the risk of restrictions on internet freedom during upcoming elections in selected countries.
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Brazil
October 2018
General Election
Internet Freedom Status: Partly Free
Analysis
- The Electoral Act limits publication of content deemed “injurious” to candidates during electoral periods. In 2014, the law was used to justify almost 200 lawsuits and numerous content removal requests.
- Intimidation and violence against online journalists and bloggers threaten freedom of expression. Those exposing local corruption scandals are especially at risk.
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United States
November 2018
Parliamentary Elections
Internet Freedom Status: Free
Analysis
- With a third of the Senate and the entire House of Representatives up for election, in addition to state and local offices, the online sphere could again become a partisan battleground.
- While the internet in the United States remains vibrant and diverse, the 2016 election campaign featured a wave of online disinformation.
- Concerns over Russian cyberespionage and electoral interference may reemerge in light of cyberattacks that struck U.S. political organizations in 2016.
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Bangladesh
January 2019
Parliamentary Elections
Internet Freedom Status: Partly Free
Analysis
- The government blocked some news sites with ties to the opposition in 2016.
- Dozens of users have been charged for criticizing companies, individuals, or political figures, though prison sentences are rare.
- Religious extremists have killed bloggers with secular views.
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Cambodia
July 2018
Parliamentary Elections
Internet Freedom Status: Partly Free
Analysis
Restrictions on internet freedom run a high risk of intensifying around the July 29 elections, as Prime Minister Hun Sen’s Cambodian People’s Party seeks to retain its 40-year grip on power.
- Censorship: The government ramped up restrictions on digital media starting in 2016. Authorities recently released a list of controversial guidelines for journalists covering the elections and passed a directive to penalize those accused of posting “fake news” online with up to five years in prison.
- Arrests: Opposition politicians have been charged and jailed for content posted on Facebook. Cambodia’s recently implemented lèse-majesté law is an additional avenue for arrests based on legitimate online activity.
- Harassment: Political activists, opposition members, and civil society organizations also face cyberattacks and smear campaigns.
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Pakistan
July 2018
Parliamentary Elections
Internet Freedom Status: Not Free
Analysis
- Political parties campaign vigorously online, but regulators recently blocked one party’s website for carrying allegedly anti-Pakistan views.
- Authorities frequently impose brief shutdowns of internet service on security grounds.
- Other threats to internet freedom could increase, including physical attacks and criminal charges in reprisal for digital speech involving religion or government officials.
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Thailand
February 2019
Parliamentary Elections
Internet Freedom Status: Not Free
Analysis
- The military government has postponed elections since seizing power in a 2014 coup, while increasing censorship and imposing long criminal sentences for online speech.
- Online discussion of a 2016 constitutional referendum was heavily restricted, boding ill for the upcoming parliamentary vote.
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Georgia
October 2018
Presidential Election
Internet Freedom Status: Free
Analysis
- The online media environment is free and unrestricted, though some news outlets have a strong partisan bias.
- The 2016 parliamentary elections were deemed largely free and fair, with no curbs on internet freedom.
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Rwanda
September 2
Parliamentary Elections
Internet Freedom Status: Partly Free
Analysis
There is a medium risk of further restrictions to internet freedom around Rwanda’s September 2 parliamentary elections, continuing the government’s trend of repressing online activity.
- Harassment: Government critics and online journalists face intimidation and harassment from progovernment social media users, including a so-called “Twitter Army.” Such tactics also proliferated ahead of the 2017 presidential election.
- Blocking: The government restricts access to critical and independent content by blocking a number of websites and news outlets produced locally, regionally, and internationally.
- Legal framework: Numerous vague laws may be used to silence and surveil critics. There are laws against insulting officials or police; drawing cartoons ridiculing government officials or the military; and disseminating “grossly offensive” or indecent” messages as well as the use of ICTs to cause “annoyance, inconvenience, or needless anxiety.” The government monitors the telecommunications of individuals considered potential threats to “public security.”
- Self-censorship: Online news outlets often avoid political, social, or critical topics for fear of government retribution. Self-censorship is so prevalent that despite a range of restrictive criminal laws, arrests for online comments are relatively infrequent.
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Zimbabwe
By July 2018
General Election
Internet Freedom Status: Partly Free
Analysis
There is a high risk of further internet restrictions around Zimbabwe’s July 30 elections, the first since the end of Robert Mugabe’s 30-year presidency.
- Shutdowns: Access to WhatsApp was disabled during antigovernment protests in July 2016. After service was unblocked, the government temporarily hiked the cost of mobile data plans by 500 percent to limit civic organizing.
- Arrests: Individuals have been routinely arrested for expressing political opinions online, including a pastor for criticizing the government over fuel shortages on Facebook, and at least four people for posting “falsehoods or hate speech” on social media.
- Cyberattacks: Voter information held by the Zimbabwe Electoral Commission was reportedly taken by hackers in July and published online. Around the same time, Zimbabweans received unsolicited texts from the ruling ZANU-PF party.
- Fake News: ZANU-PF and the opposition MDC have used social media to attack one another and to share misleading images. Fake news has also been employed to question the integrity of the electoral commission.
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