After eight months of silence on the screens where many of its young people lived their working and social lives, Gabon has chosen to loosen its grip. The High Communication Authority announced on television that the social media ban imposed in February is over, closing a disruptive chapter that began when the state, citing content it said was feeding conflict and division, moved to cut digital channels while teachers and civil servants were striking over pay and conditions. The episode sits uneasily within the story of a leader who came to power promising a break from a past of controlling in
Gabon Restores Social Media Access After Eight-Month Ban Criticised as Abuse of Power
Eight months after cutting off social media, Gabon switched it back on.
Mark
Why does this reversal matter beyond Gabon's borders?
Mimi
Because it's a test of a promise. Nguema said he would reform a country where earlier governments used digital blackouts to control information, and then his own regulator shut down social media for eight months.
Luke
Careful, though. What we actually know is that the HAC announced the lifting and that the BBC has asked it for comment. We don't know why it reversed.
Mark
What was the stated reason for the original ban?
Mimi
The HAC said online content was fuelling conflict and deepening divisions. The opposition called it an abuse of power.
Luke
Those are two competing characterisations. The reporting confirms the ban and the strikes happened around the same time, but it doesn't establish that the ban was aimed at the strikes.
Mark
Who felt it most?
Mimi
Younger people, who use Facebook, TikTok, YouTube and Instagram for business as well as pleasure. Many turned to VPNs to get around the block.
Luke
We don't have numbers on how many used VPNs, or what the economic cost was. Those are unknowns.
Mark
What should readers watch next?
Mimi
Whether the authorities explain the U-turn, and whether the government deals with the pay and working conditions complaints from teachers and civil servants.
El Pulso
- The High Communication Authority abruptly ended an eight-month social media ban that had cut off Facebook, TikTok, YouTube and Instagram across the country.
- Young Gabonese scrambled to VPNs to reach the platforms they use for business as well as leisure, turning a state block into a daily workaround.
- The suspension, imposed on 17 February amid teacher and civil servant strikes, drew sharp condemnation from the opposition as an abuse of power.
- Authorities have yet to explain the U-turn, and the grievances behind the unrest that prompted the original ban remain unaddressed in public view.
After eight months of silence on the screens where many of its young people lived their working and social lives, Gabon has chosen to loosen its grip. The High Communication Authority announced on television that the social media ban imposed in February is over, closing a disruptive chapter that began when the state, citing content it said was feeding conflict and division, moved to cut digital channels while teachers and civil servants were striking over pay and conditions. The episode sits uneasily within the story of a leader who came to power promising a break from a past of controlling information, and the reasons for the reversal have not yet been spoken aloud.
On a Saturday, Gabon's High Communication Authority, known as the HAC, appeared on television to say that the country's social media ban was over. The suspension had run for eight months, imposed on 17 February during a period of unrest that has marked the first year of President Brice Oligui Nguema's elected term.
At the time, the regulator had explained that online content was fuelling conflict and deepening divisions. The opposition saw it differently and called the suspension an abuse of power. The source material does not say what led to the reversal, and the BBC has requested comment from the regulator.
The ban landed hard in a country of roughly 2.5 million people, where Facebook, TikTok, YouTube and Instagram are central to how young people work and socialise. Many users turned to VPNs to keep reaching those sites, a small act of defiance that showed how little a block could hold back daily life.
The ban also collided with strikes by teachers and civil servants protesting low pay and poor conditions. Nguema, who won last year's election with over 90% of the vote after a coup ended more than five decades of Bongo family rule, had pledged to reform Gabon. Critics noted that digital blackouts were a tool of the old order he promised to leave behind.
The reversal follows months of criticism. What remains open is whether the authorities will explain the change of course, and whether they will address the grievances that gave rise to the strikes and unrest in the first place.
On Saturday, Gabon's High Communication Authority, known as the HAC, went on television to announce that the country's social media ban was over. The suspension had lasted eight months. It was imposed on 17 February, and its reversal now closes one of the more disruptive episodes of President Brice Oligui Nguema's first year in elected office.
The HAC had given a specific reason for the ban at the time: online content, it said, was fuelling conflict and deepening divisions in the country. The opposition read it differently and condemned the suspension as an abuse of power. The BBC has approached the regulator for comment on the decision to lift the ban. The source material does not say what prompted the reversal.
The ban was a shock in a central African country of about 2.5 million people. Platforms such as Facebook, TikTok, YouTube and Instagram are especially popular with young Gabonese, who use them for business as well as for leisure. Losing access therefore meant more than losing entertainment. Many users turned to VPNs, tools that route traffic around blocks, to keep reaching the sites.
The timing mattered. The suspension came while Nguema was facing a wave of social unrest, less than a year after he was elected. Teachers and civil servants had gone on strike over what they described as low pay and poor working conditions. The regulator's language about conflict and division arrived against that backdrop.
Nguema's political standing makes the episode more striking. He won last year's election with more than 90% of the vote. That followed a coup two years earlier that ended more than five decades of rule by the Bongo family. When he took power he pledged to reform Gabon, a small country rich in oil and timber.
One reform target was the habit of earlier governments of cutting off digital access to control information. Digital blackouts were a tool the previous administrations used. Critics of the February suspension therefore saw a government that had promised a break with the past reaching for a familiar measure.
The reversal comes after widespread criticism of the ban, both when it was introduced and during the months it stayed in place. What remains to be seen is whether the authorities will explain the U-turn, and whether the government addresses the grievances behind the strikes and unrest that surrounded the original decision.
Citas Notables
Online content was fuelling conflict and deepening divisions in the country.— High Communication Authority, justifying the original ban (paraphrased)
The suspension was an abuse of power.— Gabon's opposition (paraphrased)
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