Tuesday, June 12, 2012 -
Internet users in Tajikistan on Monday lost access to the country’s leading news site run by the Asia-Plus Media Group, allegedly on orders of the Tajik government.
Internet service providers (ISPs) said they cut off the popular website after receiving an official directive from the state-run communications agency, the Asia-Plus news agency reported.
According to the ISPs, the Communications Service under the Government of Tajikistan told them to cut off access to the www.news.tj web site “for technical reasons”, the news agency said.
Asia-Plus said the communications agency did not contact them directly.
The news agency has resorted to posting news on its Facebook page, which is still accessible by internet users in Tajikistan.
The web site news.tj can be viewed outside the country, as its host servers are located abroad and beyond the reach of the restrictive government.
The news agency is frequently critical of the authoritarian regime of Tajik President Emomali Rahmon.