Blocking the Internet for the first year Myanmar Rakhine Province Criticism of human rights group.

The threat of livelihood and safety for residents has increased since the 21st year of the interception of the Internet in 9 regions, including 8 provinces in western Lacaine and 1 province, because the Myanmar government is being exploited for rebel activities. Reuters reported on the 20th.

Rakhine Province was the place where the massacre of the Muslim minority Rohingya was carried out by the Myanmarese army in 2017.

However, there was a new conflict between the rebels Arakan ( AA ) and Myanmar, which insisted on expanding the autonomy of the minority Rakine (or Arakan) .

According to the United Nations, more than 160,000 inhabitants fled to 151 refugee camps in Rakhine province in a clash between the Myanmar government and AA, which began in November 2018 .

As the clashes between the two sides intensified, the Myanmar government cut the Internet in nine provinces in two weeks, claiming that AA would use the Internet to simulate attacks on government forces and to explode land mines.

"The Internet promotes anxiety and destructive activity," said Ms. Suwe, general manager of the Ministry of Transport and Communication, Reuters.

Human rights groups have criticized the Myanmar government for justifying their actions through rebel activities, but this is the world's longest blockade of the Internet.

Myanmar college students protesting against internet blocking measures. 2020.2.11[ EPA = Yonhap News]

Because of this, residents in the area said the difficult life was worsening, and that they were suffering.

Lawyer Wu Wan Hla, who was checking the trial schedule on the Internet, now has to go through the battle-prone area and go directly to the court to see the bulletin board.

A doctor wannabe, who used to search for treatments on the Internet to help a difficult neighbor, would no longer find a way.

There are also a number of cases where people cannot make a living by not using the Internet.

Rai Tan Nadi, 22, who lives in one of the eight regions in La Cain, where the Internet is blocked, expressed a dismal feeling by saying, "I think I have read sight."

When I closed the online shopping mall I was running, I couldn't pay my brother's tuition.

In particular, residents in the area say that Internet blocking not only harmed the economy, but also threatened safety because they could not obtain information about the rebels and the conflict.

This is because it is difficult to know which area or road is safe.

In addition, it is pointed out that the new coronavirus infection (Corona19) is sweeping the world, but information about it has not been properly understood and the health threat has increased.

Mobile communication pylon installed in Rakhine State, Myanmar [ EPA = Yonhap News]

It has been a year since the Internet was cut off, but despite the Myanmar authorities saying that the Internet was blocked because it was being abused by rebels, the conflict has not stopped.

As a result, it has been continuously pointed out that blocking the Internet may be a measure to cover the'second rohingya' situation.

The UN Special Rapporteur on Myanmar, Yang Yang-hee, issued a statement in June of last year and said blocking the Internet could be a measure to conceal significant human rights abuses by the Myanmar military in the region.

Amnesty International, an international human rights organization, also expressed concern that civilians in the region felt isolated and had no means to report human rights abuses.

Despite the concerns of the international community, the Myanmar government said that Internet blocking will continue until at least August 1.

Since it is a policy that the related measures can be withdrawn only if the security situation improves in the future, there is still the possibility that the Internet blocking will be longer.

Rai Tan Nadi complained that the civilians felt punished because of the civil war, and said, "Don't punish civilians for this."