Access to major social media platforms including Facebook and TikTok was severed in Gabon on Wednesday, just one day after the country’s communications regulator announced an indefinite suspension to prevent what it described as “conflict-inducing excesses.”
The ban was imposed late Tuesday by the High Authority for Communication, the nation’s media regulatory body. Spokesman Jean-Claude Mendome announced the “immediate suspension” in a televised address, citing a surge in harmful online activity.
Mendome stated that the decision was necessitated by the proliferation of “inappropriate, defamatory, hateful, and insulting content.” He argued that such material undermines human dignity, public morality, and national security, while also posing a threat to social cohesion and the stability of state institutions.
Further justifications for the shutdown included the spread of misinformation, instances of cyberbullying, and the unauthorized disclosure of personal data. According to the regulator, these actions have the potential to generate social conflict and jeopardize national unity and democratic progress.
While the regulator did not provide an exhaustive list of banned platforms, journalists from AFP confirmed that both Facebook and TikTok were inaccessible in the country on Wednesday.
Despite the suspension, the authority reaffirmed its commitment to freedom of expression, calling it “a fundamental right enshrined in Gabon.”
The shutdown comes as President Brice Oligui Nguema, in office for less than a year, faces his first significant wave of public discontent. Social tensions have been mounting since December, when school teachers launched a strike over pay and working conditions.
The labour unrest has since spread to other sectors, with civil servants in health, higher education, and broadcasting also threatening to down tools.
