TeliaSonera subsidiary accused of censorship in Tajikistan
Tcell, a subsidiary of the Swedish-Finnish teleoperator TeliaSonera, is said to have blocked the free and independent exchange of information in the central Asian state.
According to the Tadzhikistani activist Nuriddin Karsiboyev, Tcell helped the government censor the movement of information in the country.
In an interview with the Swedish broadcaster, Eko Karsiboyev—who heads the Independent media organisation—said that Tcell shut down news portals at the government’s behest.
The organisation said that some 15 online newspapers or services such as the BBC and YouTube have suffered from the government blackout since March.
The activists have criticised Tcell and other teleoperators for bowing to the government’s demands.
Tcell currently serves roughly two million customers in Tadzhikistan and is the largest provider in the local market.
Last year TeliaSonera’s Eurasian operations contributed more than one billion euros to the groups’ turnover.
TeliaSonera has also been condemned in Sweden for its cooperation with dictatorial governments.
In its defence, the company has said that it must abide by local laws and regulations.
TeliaSonera is part owned by the Finnish and Swedish states.
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