by Yilma Bekele
The origins of the Internet can be traced to ARPANET (Advanced Research Projects Agency Network) that was funded

The Ethiopian government has made using Skype a crime punishable up to fifteen years in prison
by
the US Department of Defense (DARPA) for use by its research labs in
the 1960’s. The Internet as we know moved from connecting research
institutions and Universities into commercial use in the middle of the
1980’s.
Today the Internet is a global system of interconnected
computer networks. The beauty of the Internet is nobody really owns it.
Every computer that is connected to the Internet is part of the network.
Your laptop or desktop together with millions of private, public,
academic, business, government networks forms part of this vast system
of interconnected computers.
The Internet has revolutionized human
communication like nothing before. It is the most outstanding
innovation in human history regarding communication capability. Our
lives have changed dramatically due to the Internet. The great economic
boom of the 90’s all over the world can be traced to innovation that
accompanied the Internet. Where does our Ethiopia fit in this human
advancement story?
I am afraid we are absent or unaccounted for!
We are not even in the periphery. Our participation in this humongous,
game changer event is nothing to write home about. It is so embarrassing
the best option is not to talk about it, discuss it or raise the issue.
If our country was a computer it will be considered to be in
hibernation mode, not on not off barely alive. The Meles regime and his
TPLF party can get all the credit for condemning eighty million people
to live in darkness. That is exactly where we find ourselves-in complete
darkness and no chance of light at the end of the tunnel either. You
think I am exaggerating and being so negative because I am filled with
hate. I am afraid that is not so. Look at the table below and you be the
judge my friend.
See what I mean? Out of eighty million plus
people only half a million Internet users. That leaves seventy nine
million five hundred thousand in the dark. Why do you think this is so?
Is it because we are poor? We are stupid? Uneducated? Unable to figure
how it works? Not interested? Didn’t think it is important? Felt
investment in such technology is a waste of time and resources? Or too
busy developing other technology? Or you think it could it be due to
lack of leadership? As people we are no different than Americans
Europeans or our African neighbors. The only thing we see here is the
quality of leadership that differentiates our country from others. The
leaders set the pace, define the priorities and the people follow.
When
it comes to the Internet our leader felt that is not a priority and
that is not where our budget should be invested on. Why do you think Ato
Meles and company felt the Internet not to be the place to invest and
grow? The simple but obvious answer is the word ‘communication’.
Communication is knowledge and knowledge is the first causality of a
tyrannical regime. Keeping people in the dark is the main goal of a
dictatorship. Illiterate people are docile. It is easy to manipulate a
damned down population. Internet is the number one enemy of the
Ethiopian government. Instead of laying fiber optic to speed up the
wiring of our country the Meles regime invests the limited budget in
blocking, censoring and spying on the citizen. The last two weeks have
been a busy time to the TPLF regime. It has rolled out one draconian law
after another to bully, intimidate and ride rough on our people. Here
is the evidence.
Skype is a voice- over-Internet Protocol service
and software application. Skype allows users to communicate over the
Internet using voice, video and instant messaging. As of September of
2011 Skype has over six hundred million users worldwide. The Ethiopian
government has made using Skype a crime punishable up to fifteen years
in prison.
Tor (short for The onion router) is a system intended
to enable online anonymity. The Tor project a 501(c) research/education
nonprofit organization distributes the software free of charge.
According to the wonderful people of Tor network their ‘client software
routes Internet traffic through a worldwide volunteer network of servers
to conceal a user’s location or usage from anyone conducting network
surveillance or traffic analysis.’ The Ethiopian government is actively
blocking Tor network.
There are over eighty million Ethiopians. As
of 2012 there are about a million fixed line service users and close to
three million mobile users in Ethiopia. It is the lowest teledensity in
Africa. There are less than half a million Internet users in Ethiopia
and that is in the bottom even for Africa. That number constitutes .06%
of the Ethiopian population.
Why is the Ethiopian government
enacting such draconian law when you can clearly see Internet does not
play any major role in the life of the citizen? Why is the government
becoming the laughing stock of the planet by equating phone usage to
committing murder? All indications are the issue is not about Skype or
Tor but it is all about control and bullying into submission. It is all
about instilling fear. Fear is the main currency of a dictator. They are
not worried about the .06% but they are very much interested in showing
the ninety nine percent who exactly is in charge. In your face is how
they like to operate. They are saying we can do anything we want and
tough luck there is nothing you can do about it!
Do you think they
are crazy? I am afraid not. They have been getting away with that kind
of attitude the last twenty years what makes you think it will be
different this time? We will talk about it, we will gossip, we will
condemn silently ( yechelema gelmecha) and life will go on as usual.
Actually that is not true about all of us. There are a few working hard
to circumvent this tragedy. Groups such as Ginbot7, OLF, ONLF, ALF,
Andenet Party, our independent Web sites, ESAT among others are working
day and night to teach, organize and help our people stand up to Woyane
abuse.
There are different avenues to fight injustice. There are
hundreds of ways to resist oppression. I will paraphrase two Chinese
educators on this subject. According to Sun Tzu the ‘best defense is a
good offense’ and Mao Zedong followed it with ‘the only real defense is
active defense.’ meaning for the purpose of counter attacking and taking
offense. I believe the current aggression against our people begs for a
robust counter offense. Here I am speaking about cyber warfare.
It
is about time our people developed this type of self-defense to protect
our freedom. It is within our capability and it is our moral duty to
protect our country and people. According to a recent Time magazine
article that is what the US is helping the Syrian opposition with.
Developing a cyber warfare capability. They are training the freedom
fighters to resist the Assad regime in the art of circumvention
technology. The use of encryption, SIM card in cheap burner phones that
can easily be discarded and developing ‘Internet in a suitcase’ to
provide Web access when Assad shuts it down is being explored. Apps are
being developed that download a panic button that will instantly wipe
out contacts and documents from smart phones and computers. They are
experimenting with Apps that present a false screen when the wrong
security code is entered and Apps that blur the faces of dissidents when
posting videos and photos on line. Today the camera is as powerful as
the AK47.
It is also important our highly educated lawyers and
Human Rights advocates explore the concept of ‘I am just following
order’ defense that is sure to be used by those that are doing the dirty
work for the minority based illegal regime. Whereas the current
Ethiopian Constitution is full of guarantees of rights and freedom to
the citizen those that are killing, imprisoning, torturing, spying and
using their know how to block and jam should be warned about
accountability. They should be made aware of their oath to uphold the
Constitution not the rule of one man or a single party. ‘I am just
following order’ did not hold water in the Nuremberg trials of Nazi
criminals.
Those educated Ethiopians that are enabling the regime
to spy on fellow citizens, block Web sites, target emails and social
media postings should be warned about the consequences of their actions.
They are following illegal and immoral orders given by those that are
using force and coercion to stay in power. Sooner or later this house of
cards will come tumbling down and it will be time to answer for all
those that used their technical know how to hurt their people. Blind
allegiance is not a wining strategy or ignorance a valid defense. It is a
shame some sell their soul to the devil for fame and fortune.
Read
more:
http://world.time.com/2012/06/13/hillarys-little-startup-how-the-u-s-is-using-technology-to-aid-syrias-rebels/#ixzz1yXisIkPB