Does switching off social media calm a crisis? Gabon's reopening revives the question

Libreville — On 24 October 2026, Gabon restored several social networks after a suspension of more than eight months. The country's communications authority had imposed it in February, citing national security and institutional stability, and it affected Facebook, TikTok and YouTube among others.

Fabrice Lollia, a researcher in information and communication, uses the case to ask a wider question: does cutting access reduce a crisis, or only make it less visible?

Not only an African question

Senegal restricted platforms and mobile internet during protests in 2023. Mozambique did so after the 2024 elections, and Tanzania's internet was cut for days around its October 2025 vote. France blocked TikTok in New Caledonia in 2024, a decision its top administrative court later annulled. Access Now counted at least 313 deliberate shutdowns or restrictions in 52 countries in 2025.

What the research suggests

Lollia accepts that content can incite violence and that authorities must prevent that risk. But anger over the cost of living or distrust of institutions does not vanish when an app goes dark.

• Conversations can move to VPNs, other apps, phone calls or meetings.
• Citizens lose useful information, and institutions lose a way to correct rumours.
• A shutdown can itself become a source of protest.

Protests continued despite blocks in Ethiopia in 2017 and in Sudan in 2018-19, although that does not prove such measures have no effect.

What comes next in Gabon

The reopening comes with a tighter framework that requires users to identify themselves, with details still to be set. Lollia says nothing yet shows that the suspension reduced social tension, and he argues that dialogue, transparency and answers to underlying causes are what count.

Source: The Conversation, 30 October 2026.