'Draconian' internet shutdowns in parts of India mean Canadians can't contact family. And it's happened before

Tony Huidrom, a Toronto-based medical professional, was visiting family in India's eastern state of Manipur for a month, during which time he had no way of contacting his family in Toronto due to internet blackouts. 

"Once I entered Manipur, I was in the dark for seven days," he said. Now that he's back in Canada, Huidrom says he has to muddle his way through to connect with his 90-year-old father, who's still in India. 

The sparsely populated state is reeling from ethnic violence that's affected tens of thousands of people. Amid the ongoing violence, Manipur remains under a government-authorized internet shutdown that has lasted for more than a month, leaving diaspora communities in Canada scrambling to reach families back home. Notwithstanding expensive international calling, the internet is the only way for many here to connect with friends and relatives.

The government calls the clampdown on the internet a way to maintain law and order in the area, similar to the long-lasting internet blackout that took place in India-controlled Kashmir in 2019. But experts say denying internet access has become a default policing tactic by Indian authorities.

Huidrom's brother works in a government office in India, one of the few places where the internet still works. Huidrom, mindful of the nine and a half hour time difference, calls his brother's office every day. 

"When I miss the timing of my brother's office hours, I cannot communicate," he said, calling the government's move to ban the internet inhumane and unacceptable. 

"That's the crudest form of punishment to the public, showing their naked failure to control the violence, and this is not the only time we've had something like this," Huidrom said.

Manipur is the latest addition to a long list of internet shutdowns in India. According to Access Now, an internet advocacy watchdog, India has topped the yearly count of internet shutdowns across the world for five straight years.

Since 2018, India has shut down the internet more often than any other country in the world. One Access Now estimate says India was responsible for the most shutdowns in 2022 — with 84 out of 187 global shutdowns. 

CBC News reached out to the High Commission of India in Ottawa about the internet shutdowns and how they are impacting people trying to reach relatives back home, but did not receive comment by publication time. 

Vancouver-resident Lienlaltheng Gangte's ancestral home in Manipur was burned down at the beginning of the conflict. His 80-year-old father is currently one of nearly 60,000 people who are out of their homes. 

Manipur is teetering on what many believe is the brink of a civil war. Ethnic clashes between two communities — the Kukis and the majority Meitei — have left more than 100 dead and over 400 wounded.

Gangte is the founding member of North American Manipur Tribal Association, formed as a response to the conflict. In a little more than a month, it has gained more than 150 members from across the country.

With the internet blackout, Gangte says, the government has made the conflict worse.