"They Know Everything We Do" - Telecom and Internet Surveillance in Ethiopia

Human Rights Watch (HRW) has produced a detailed 137 page report which details the technologies the Ethiopian government has acquired from several countries and uses to facilitate surveillance of perceived political opponents inside the country and among the diaspora.

HRW says the government’s surveillance practices violate the rights to freedom of expression, association, and access to information. While monitoring of communications can legitimately be used to combat criminal activity, corruption, and terrorism, in Ethiopia there appears to be little in the way of guidelines or directives on surveillance of communications or use of collected information to ensure such practices are not illegal.

The government appears to have a monopoly over all mobile and Internet services through its sole, state-owned telecom operator, Ethio Telecom, something which HRW says facilitates abuse of surveillance powers.The HRW report is based on research conducted between September 2012 and February 2014, including interviews with more than 100 people in 11 countries.

The report makes interesting reading. http://www.hrw.org/reports/2014/03/25/they-know-everything-we-do-0

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