One Phone Call Can Cost 15 Years

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Ethiopia passed a law last month that bans the use of services such as Skype or Google Talk, or any other service that uses Voice over Internet Protocol (VoIP). This means that using practically any type of video or audio chatting in the country is considered illegal.  This may not seem like a serious offense, but anyone caught making a call over the Internet faces a minimum sentence of three to eight years and expensive fines.  The sentence is increased if the perpetrator uses an official calling service like Skype -- then offenders can be sentenced to up 15 years in Ethiopian prison. 

The Ethiopian government doesn’t see these punishments as excessive; rather, they feel that the legislation was necessary to maintain national security by controlling and censoring the communication of its citizens.  It is much more challenging to intercept an Internet-based call than a regular phone call. 

Another key reason this law was implemented was due to the government’s desire to maintain a monopoly over telephone calls, which are all currently made through Ethio Telecom, the government-owned telecommunication company.  Without competition, calling rates can remain expensive, which wouldn’t be the case if Internet calling was allowed and provided a cheaper, or even free service.  In a country that is so hesitant to accept any modern technological advances, it is not surprising that this measure passed. 

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