Mauritius suspends access to social media ahead of parliamentary elections

JOHANNESBURG (AP) — Mauritius’ government on Friday banned access to social media websites ahead of Nov. 10 parliamentary elections in which Prime Minister Pravind Jugnauth is seeking a second term.

The directive was announced by the national communications regulator, which said social media sites will be banned until November 11, the day after the election.

The unprecedented ban on social media follows a wiretapping scandal that rocked the country last month when recorded conversations of politicians, businesspeople and members of civil society were leaked onto social media.

According to media freedom organization Reporters Without Borders, the recorded conversations of five well-known journalists have also been published on social media.

The government of the Indian Ocean island nation of 1.2 million has claimed these leaks pose a threat to national security and has ordered the communications authority to suspend all access to social media.

“The ICT Authority wishes to inform the public that in response to concerns regarding illegal messages posing a serious threat to national security and public safety, it received guidelines on the evening of October 31, 2024 directing all internet service providers to temporarily suspend internet access. access to all social media platforms until November 11, 2024,” the Information and Communications Technology Authority said on Friday.

Network service provider EMTEL said on Friday it would comply with the directive and that the user experience would be “progressively disrupted”.

More than fifty countries will go to the polls in 2024

“EMTEL understands the inconvenience this action will cause to its customers, but reiterates that it has no alternative but to comply with the ICTA directive,” the company said.

Local media on Friday quoted a statement from the prime minister’s office saying the suspension of social media was essential to protect national security and the country’s integrity.

It says that a crisis committee will meet to contain “existing risks”.