Venezuela: Independent News Portals Blocked By State-Backed, Private ISPs
Location: Venezuela, Bogota
Date: February 7, 2022
Multiple news websites known for being critical of the country’s authoritarian government experienced disrupted accessibility after being blocked by private Internet Service Providers (ISPs). Several independent news websites have faced blockades by state-run IPSs in the past decade but they were accessible on 25% of residential internet connections provided by private companies. The Coalition For Women In Journalism strongly condemns censorship of the few independent news outlets that remain in the country. The Internet blockade of critical news and interference with accessibility is a serious violation of the free press, the right to information and the right to free speech.
According to Venezuela Sin Filtro, a watchdog project that monitors Internet censorship, private ISPs Movistar, Digitel, Inter, NetUno and Supercable started blocking access to news websites Efecto Cocuyo, Crónica Uno and EVTV Miami, a streaming station which reports on Venezuela, on February 1, 2022.
“...this February 1, the regime that has been destroying Venezuela for the last 22 years once again issues a thrust against freedom of expression [...] Connections from Venezuela to enter the evtv.online page have been blocked,” said Executive Vice President of EVTV Miami Carlos Acosta in a statement issued the next day.
Acosta, a Venezuelan journalist, facing persecution by the Venezuelan regime, reiterated EVTV's commitment to the fight for freedom and democracy. "Today, we are the ones who directly suffer the onslaught of an authoritarian media such as [that of] the usurper regime that reigns in Venezuela. But this attack does not weaken us, this attack makes us stronger."
Most independent news websites have been blocked by CANTV, the state-run ISP, for a decade now. But this month was reportedly the first instance that news websites were blocked by private internet connections as well. Given the continuing encroachment on press freedom and widespread censorship in the country, only a handful of independent news media outlets remain. The websites which reported disruption in service were reportedly accessible on 25% of residential internet connections provided by private companies until recently.
“This is a total blockage,” Celina Cárquez, editorial director of Crónica Uno, told the Committee to Protect Journalists (CPJ). “The links do not open. This has never happened to us before.”
The fresh wave of censorship brought condemnation from local and international journalistic bodies. The Venezuelan National Union of Press Workers, a press freedom association, denounced the blockades in a statement issued on social media. The union stressed that limiting access to news is the goal of digital censorship in the country.
Denunciamos igualmente el cerco en internet que ha construido la administración de Nicolás Maduro en los últimos años. Limitar el acceso a las noticias es objetivo de la censura digital en Venezuela.
— SNTP (@sntpvenezuela) February 2, 2022
The Coalition For Women is extremely concerned over escalating censorship on independent press in the country. Restricting citizens’ access to information and hindering the publication of critical news is a blatant violation of the right to information. We laud Venezualan journalists and news media outlets striving to inform the public. The CFWIJ calls on President Nicolas Maduro’s administration to cease its crackdown on the Venezualan press. Critical and independent media should be protected and encouraged to thrive not hindered.
The Coalition For Women In Journalism is a global organization of support for women journalists. The CFWIJ pioneered mentorship for mid-career women journalists across several countries around the world and is the first organization to focus on the status of free press for women journalists. We thoroughly document cases of any form of abuse against women in any part of the globe. Our system of individuals and organizations brings together the experience and mentorship necessary to help female career journalists navigate the industry. Our goal is to help develop a strong mechanism where women journalists can work safely and thrive.
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