Internet Freedom A Foreign Policy Imperative in the Digital Age

Voronin called for a recount, andthe electoral commission foundno evidence of fraud. The Party ofCommunists proceeded to take themajority of seats in Parliament but,weakened by the protests, failed toelect a prime minister. 77 The presidentdissolved Parliament threemonths later.In June 2009, supporters of theopposition candidate, Mir-HosseinMousavi, staged massive protestschallenging the results of theIranian presidential election thatnamed the incumbent PresidentMahmoud Ahmadinejad the winner.The protests known as the GreenRevolution were also nicknamed the“Twitter Revolution” for the role thatTwitter and other Internet-basedsocial networking sites reportedlyplayed in facilitating communicationwithin Iran and with the rest ofthe world. The demonstrations wereput down with brutal force and therevolution failed.In April 2010, a series of riots anddemonstrations took place inKyrgyzstan stemming from dissatisfactionand anger againstPresident Kurmanbek Bakiyev’sadministration. Observers haveoffered differing perspectives onthe role social media played duringthe Kyrgyz protests (with some, forinstance, arguing that platformssuch as Twitter were more effectivein broadcasting the demonstrationsthan in organizing them). 78 Ageneral consensus exists, however,that Twitter and other social mediaplatforms helped bring attentionto the revolt and contributed tomounting pressure for Bakiyev tostep down.In December 2010, Tunisianstook to the streets protestinghigh unemployment, high foodprices, corruption and the lack offreedom of speech, and called forPresident Zine el-Abidine Ben Alito step down. These protests weredubbed the “Jasmine Revolution,”but were also called the “FacebookRevolution.” 79 The protests werespearheaded by a number of youngbloggers that employed Facebook,Twitter, blogging sites and emailto organize protests nation-wide. 80On January 14, 2011, after 28 daysof protests, Ben Ali dissolved theParliament and then resigned, endinghis 23-year rule.In January 2011, Egyptians took partin peaceful mass demonstrationsand strikes calling for PresidentHosni Mubarak to step down,actions that escalated into violentclashes with the police. The protestswere organized through the “WeAre All Khaled Said” Facebook page,named after a young blogger whowas beaten to death by police inJune 2010, and whose death fueledthe outrage surrounding the initialrevolts. 81 Over 2 million people protestedin Cairo’s Tahrir Square andprotests were held in several othermajor Egyptian cities. 82 Observingthe protestors’ use of social media,the Mubarak regime shut downnearly all Internet and cellphoneservice within the country for fivedays. 83 The shutdown backfired –the protests grew enormously andthe move prompted both internationalcondemnation and domesticoutrage. 84 On February 11, Mubarakstepped down after 30 years ofpower and handed control to militaryleaders.As of this writing, mass protestscontinue in countries acrossthe Middle East. The role of theInternet in influencing and facilitatingthese demonstrations varies bycountry, and the extent to whichthe protests will ultimately causepolitical change remains unclear.However, these examples showthat the Internet gives activistsin closed societies tools throughwhich to express dissent and uniteindividuals at an unprecedentedpace and scale, and will undoubtedlyserve as a tool for politicalaction – among both protestorsand the regimes they oppose – forthe foreseeable future.| 23