Human Rights Watch: Taliban Must Abandon Baseless Justifications and End the Internet Shutdown

Photo: AFP

Human Rights Watch has announced in a report that the Taliban’s internet shutdown has dealt a heavy blow to the rights and livelihoods of millions of Afghan citizens and deprived them of education, information, and vital services.

This blackout began in mid-September and, from Monday evening (September 29), spread across the entire country.

In the report published today, Wednesday (October 1), Fereshta Abbasi, Afghanistan researcher at the organization, said: “The Taliban’s actions in cutting the internet have made the livelihoods of millions of Afghans vulnerable and deprived them of their basic rights to education, health care, and access to information. The Taliban must abandon their baseless justifications and put an end to these shutdowns.”

According to Human Rights Watch, the Taliban have justified this action in the name of “preventing immoral behavior,” but in practice its consequences have been catastrophic, disrupting banking, commerce, media, health services, and even Kabul flights.

Humanitarian aid groups have also stressed that this blackout has prevented coordination and the distribution of vital assistance. Indrika Ratwatte, the UN humanitarian coordinator in Afghanistan, said: “This is another crisis on top of existing ones that severely affects people’s lives.”

The internet shutdown has most of all isolated women and girls. Many of them, who after the Taliban’s bans could only continue learning through online education, have now lost even this last window of hope. A university professor told Human Rights Watch that out of 28 students in an online class, only 9 were able to connect.

Journalists have also reported that they are unable to make local and international calls, and this blackout has disrupted reporting and documenting human rights violations. Domestic media remained silent for hours, while exiled media faced serious problems in verifying reports from inside the country.

The Office of the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights had previously emphasized that access to the internet is an integral part of freedom of expression, political participation, education, and vital services, and its shutdown can exacerbate social and gender inequalities.

Abbasi warned: “Afghans were already isolated from the world, but now they are completely cut off. The longer this blackout continues, the more devastating its consequences will be for the people and the future of the country.”