Access inside Tajikistan to Asia-Plus website and social networking sites has been blocked again.  Internet users across the country now are able to open these websites only via proxies.

Access to a number of social networks was blocked in the country yesterday evening while access to the Asia-Plus website was blocked several days earlier.  

Internet users across the country say they are able to open the websites only via proxies.  One of Internet users says access to Facebook and YouTube was blocked yesterday evening.  “I was able to open them via VPN and saw photos and videos from Khorog protest rally,” he said.  

The communications service agency has refused from commenting on the situation.  

Representative of the Unified Electronic Communications Switching Center, or EKTs in its Russian-language acronym, says they even do not know about the blockage of the social networking sites.  “We just provide Internet to our customers, while blockage of website does not depend on us.  This can be done without us,” the EKTs representative added. 

Recall, starting this year, authorities deprived local fixed-lined and mobile service providers of the right to buy data traffic from neighboring countries.  The government cited security as grounds for the prohibition. Internet service providers (ISPs) must now buy data from the Unified Electronic Communications Switching Center.