Presenter/s
Sara Hossain | Bangladesh Legal Aid and Services Trust (Blast) | Bangladesh
Jyotirmoy Borua | Supreme Court Bangladesh | Bangladesh
A B M Hamidul Misbah | Advocate, Supreme Court Bangladesh | Bangladesh
Razia Sultana | RW Welfare Society | Bangladesh
Raman Jit Singh Chima | Access Now | Bangladesh
In Cox’s Bazar, home to around one million Rohingya refugees, phone restrictions and the internet ban are limiting the ability of humanitarian groups to provide critical, life-sustaining services and to coordinate and respond to the COVID-19 pandemic. Face-to-face therefore communication remains the only way through which information about COVID-19 symptoms and prevention can travel, which puts lives at risk and facilitates transmission and spread. This session aims to address both the implications of continuing restrictions on internet-based communication tools, the ban on mobile SIM cards, and the little to no mobile phone reception that is preventing access to information and to hotlines, as well as explore emerging cyber issues and opportunities for challenging the Telecommunications Act and the internet ban.