- Title: MOROCCO: 'YouTube' blocked for four days in Morocco
- Date: 4th June 2007
- Summary: (SOUNDBITE)(Arabic)OTHMAN DEHBI, MOROCCAN BLOGGER, SAYING: "If the state can censor the print and broadcasting media, it cannot censor the Internet. When you block information on one site, it will appear on another site in no time at all. Experiences throughout the short history of the Internet the world over has demonstrated this."
- Embargoed: 19th June 2007 13:00
- Keywords:
- Location: Morocco
- Country: Morocco
- Topics: Science / Technology
- Reuters ID: LVA7KAZJHAWJB57GD62L8XJSJQSG
- Story Text: Internet users in Morocco were shocked to find they were unable to access the videoblogging website 'YouTube' for four days. Despite Maroc Telecom authorities' claim it was a technical glitch, it has raised concerns over whether the site was deliberately blocked by authorities. For four days last week, Moroccan Internet users were surprised to discover they were unable to access the video sharing Web site YouTube.
Users promptly launched online forums and petitions for the re-opening of this popular Web site, visited by some 30 million people each month. Some feared the Moroccan government had stepped up a campaign to restrict independent media and others speculated that the site was censored.
Maroc Telecom, which supplies most Internet access in Morocco, blamed the problem on a technical glitch.
A spokesman for the company denied that the Moroccan government censored Youtube. He added that the site was victim of its popularity because Maroc Telecom's engineers only knew about the problem after it was reported in the media.
He also mentioned that this kind of problem was not unusual and some very popular sites were not easily accessible when there was a huge demand.
To overcome this problem, Maroc Telecom last month started a new programme called "Atlas offshore" in order to increase the Internet flow in Morocco, available at the end of June when Morocco and France will be linked by a new optic fibre cable.
Mohamed Nabil Ben Abdallah, the Moroccan Information minister and government spokesman have said that his department had nothing to do with censoring the Web site.
But, both the Moroccan and Maroc Telecom's denials did not convince the Moroccan Society for Human Rights, (AMDH) a non-governmental organisation fighting for press freedom. The organisation sent a letter to the chairman of Maroc Telecom asking for answers why Internet users in Morocco were still able to access YouTube using the other net providers.
Khadija Riadi, chairperson of the AMDH told Reuters: "Press freedom is a public freedom and one of the freedoms that we fight for. We have always supported journalists who have been harassed. We also extend our support to all kinds of media, including electronic media that connects citizens through websites."
Several countries have blocked access to YouTube this year, including the United States, Thailand, Turkey, China and Australia. But unlike some countries where Internet censorship is extreme, Morocco has banned few sites, mostly related to the Western Sahara.
But, Web users are adamant that nowadays, it's virtually impossible to completely block a site because there are different ways to outsmart censors.
"If the state can censor the print and broadcasting media, it cannot censor the Internet. When you block information on one site, it will appear on another site in no time at all. Experiences throughout the short history of the internet the world over has demonstrated this," said Othman Dehbi, a Moroccan blogger from Casablanca.
The Internet has flourished in Morocco since ADSL became available in 2004. Tech-savvy Moroccans have started blogs and Web sites and the Internet now is the scene of lively debate for many topics off-limits to the country's mainstream media.
However, the Internet remains a tool mainly in the hands of the educated in a country where the illiteracy rate is still officially at 40 percent. Although the price for Internet access has dropped drastically over the years, it still remains high for a lot of people and as a result, those people in particular are unable to afford access.
Morocco has embarked on a series of reforms over the past few years but some topics remain very sensitive. This is the reason why some Internet watchers in Morocco are calling for the Web community to avoid the state censorship by being ethically and morally responsible when using the Web.
Abdelwahab Rami, an academic from the Rabat-based High Institute for Media and Communication (ISIC), said that instead of talking about censorship or about total press freedom, it would be better to find ways of moralising the Internet content, something he says can be done by educating people at a family and school level and by using the media in general. - Copyright Holder: REUTERS
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