The nation of Central African Republic gained independence in 1960. Things have been pretty rough for them ever since. They still have modern conveniences though. Like mobile service. Speaking of which, the government has forced a shut-down of SMS services throughout the country across the four mobile network carriers. This is due to the apparent planned continuation of violent demonstrations in the capital of Bangui.
You see, organizers of work strikes used text messaging to coordinate activities in protests against violent responses by the government. Thousands have been killed and millions have been displaced in the chaos since last year. That was when a coup overthrew the government. See what I mean about having it rough?
If someone attempts to send a text message they receive a notification that says “SMS not allowed.” The ban is indefinite. This kind of shut down of network services should chill anyone however. It could happen anywhere at any time they want. Well, people being people will just find other novel ways to communicate, even if they have to go back to the old days of sending a runner with a written letter, so I doubt this will have any lasting effect. It is not a good situation though.
Source Phone Arena
Image Credit The Verge