Austrian-owned A1 Telekom Austria Group must acknowledge its role in election-related internet shutdowns in Belarus, maintain free and open internet, and resist and denounce future orders by the Alyaksandr Lukashenka government to interfere with internet access. Via an open letter, 23 members of the #KeepItOn coalition... are calling on A1 Telekom Austria Group to publicly outline how and why they implemented internet shutdowns and throttling in August and September 2020, report on their impacts, and challenge their legality in courts.

... Beginning before the election, but peaking on August 9, polling day — after the announcement of Lukashenka’s “victory” — targeted internet shutdowns denied Belarusian people of their rights to freedom of expression and of assembly, and access to information at the height of a nation’s democratic process. A1 Telekom Austria Group’s actions aided efforts by state actors to cover up egregious rights violations, such as excessive use of force by Belarusian law enforcement against protesters, and the use of arbitrary arrest and detentions targeting journalists, activists and protesters.