Last week we were alerted that
, an Egyptian opposition website, had been blocked in the UAE by the internet filtering system managed by Etisalat. The site is no longer blocked.
The timing of the blocking raised some eyebrows, coming in the same week that
Kuwait arrested and deported a number of Egyptian expatriates
for expressing opposition sentiments.
An email from the Telecommunications Regulatory Authority, which oversees the national internet censorship policy, explained the background to the site's blocking, and unblocking:
It seems that somewhere on the site, there was an article talking about how to get around internet filters, or containing language that appeared to the automated filter to be doing that. The robot blocked the site automatically; on second glance a pair of human eyes decided the site was OK and reversed the block.
The Save Egypt Front describes itself as "a political and national organization to bring together all elements of overseas opposition to help save Egypt from its present brutal and corrupt regime and to steer it towards a better future."
Internet censorship will always be problematic, and as a free speech junkie I find it difficult to justify. But I will say this: the UAE's internet filtering is on the less offensive side of the spectrum, and largely stays away from political speech - which is why the blocking of an Egyptian opposition site troubled me in the first place. It is good to see this site unblocked, and the TRA giving a prompt and transparent explanation for what happened.
Regardless, it is important that the press and the public stays vigilant on this. In a universe of slippery slopes, this is one of the slipperiest. All systems are flawed and will inevitably make mistakes, and the UAE censorship regime is no different. If you spot a site that is blocked and should not be, report it to the TRA - and to us.
