Over three million populations in Egypt will not be getting access to the Facebok program of free Internet. The country has abruptly shut down the service on Wednesday. The reason for the move is yet to be made clear either by the social media giant or its ally, an Egyptian cellphone company.
According to official of Egyptian telecommunications, the Etisalat was granted a two-month permit for the so-called Free Basics which expired on Wednesday.
Meanwhile, the Egyptian President Abdel Fattah El-Sisi and his government have intensified its efforts to thwart the possibilities of protests on the 5th anniversary of uprising, the Arab Spring, on January 25 that toppled President Hosni Mubarak.
The revolt of 2011 was strongly coordinated through social media including Facebook and organizers used it in mobilizing massive demonstration.
For over two years the new government has put a ban on any unauthorized protests and several arrests have been made of young anti-government dissidents who were affiliated to the anti-Mubarak uprising.
The government has also raided several cultural organizations that used to gather young activists at different places.
Facebook said they are disappointed of Egyptian government move and hopes to resolve the situation to the earliest.
The Free Basics program of the social giant started in October this year in Egypt and it is a part of Facebook’s ambition to bring Internet service to billions of people in developing countries.
The program has also drawn criticism for selected partners and limited service. It has also violated net neutrality.
Currently the program operates in over two dozen countries across the world.
