Contd. Ethiopia and Geedge A Tool to Suppress Social Unrest While the war in Tigray may have been a motivating factor for the Ethiopian government’s decision to engage a new contractor for internet censorship and surveillance, it is clear from independent measurements that once the system was set up, it was used to respond to other incidents of social unrest. In February 2023, a dispute between the Ethiopian Orthodox Church and the national government led to protests in Oromia, leading to several deaths.40 Organizations that monitor internet censorship like the Open Observatory of Network Interference reported that access to social media networks was restricted.41 Geedge services, like TSG, can implement these types of targeted disruptions and restrictions. Geedge’s revision logs indicate that there is a correlation between switching from mirrored to in-line modes and governments preparing for internet shutdowns.42 For example, transitioning from mirrored to in-line configurations may indicate an internet shutdown is imminent as, broadly speaking, mirrored mode is more optimized for surveillance, and inline mode is more suitable for internet shutdowns. In total, the logs show 18 changes to inline mode in Ethiopia, with two switches made at Safaricom data centers before the February 2023 internet shutdown. The Ethiopia example can be instructive for several reasons. Ethiopia is a key partner state for China in Africa, with Addis Ababa hosting the African Union and other international governance organizations.43 The contract with Ethiopia is an instance of a country using Geedge-enabled internet shutdowns to cover up serious crimes of state, including possible war crimes and genocide. Because of the history of telecommunications in Ethiopia, it is also possible to study how the Geedge system is deployed in a context with limited competition and a recent state monopoly on internet service. Finally, as Ethiopia is Geedge’s only client state outside Asia that we know of, the knowledge of this area of operations can provide insight into the future expansion of the company.