Govt refuses to license ISPs

The ban is seen as a serious blow to long-suffering Zimbabweans who rely on the internet for accurate news and information amid a barrage of state propaganda. Independent newspapers and broadcast stations are either banned, frustrated or forced to operate from outside the country. The Posts and Telecommunications Regulatory Authority (POTRAZ) which licences ISPs confirmed the ban.

The Authoritys considered way forward is to suspend issuance of internet access provider (IAP) licences until further notice, said POTRAZ in a statement. The organisation claimed that allowing more players in this sector would result in unnecessary duplication of infrastructure and a waste of scarce financial resources.

Experts immediately dismissed the claim, noting that only 10 per cent of Zimbabweans have some form of internet access. They noted that even those with access could not make full use of it due to high costs partially caused by lack of meaningful competition in the sector.

Instead there are claims that the ban was meant to protect the interests of Zanu (PF) heavies who were jostling for a piece of the action in the fast-growing information technology sector. POTRAZ said it had recently received an unprecedented number of applications for IAP licences.

The Zimbabwean government has become notorious for shutting off areas that would bring in immediate investment and then complaining that foreign investors were shunning the country. The trend is evident in the media sector where Mugabe is blocking the establishment of a commission to provide licences to newspapers.

In agriculture, state-sponsored thugs are chasing farmers off their land and looting property with the Presidents active encouragement. In June, defence minister Emmerson Mnangagwa said the army would begin training soldiers to monitor cyberspace as the internet could be used by the countrys enemies.