Faced with criticism from users on Facebook, authorities at Tajikistan have blocked access to the networking site a second time. Tajik communications service head Beg Zukhurov said that Facebook has been spreading criticism about the Central Asian country’s leadership. He added that users were spreading ‘mud and slander’ about top government officials, including President Emomali Rakhmon. Rakhmon has been ruling Tajikistan since 1992 and is going to run for the new term as well.
“These people are obviously paid well for this,” Zukhurov said. He also said that the authorities had received many requests from “indignant Tajik citizens asking that this hotbed of slander be blocked.” Facebook has more than 41,000 users in Tajikistan. However, the country’s three internet providers and three mobile operators blocked access to Facebook starting Monday,
This is not the first time Facebook has been blocked in Tajikistan. This ban was also placed in early March for several days in early March.
