Around 10,000 people converged on Sakharov Prospect in Moscow earlier this month, wielding signs like “Putin Net” and chanting “Hands off the internet!” It was the latest show of resistance to a legislative push to isolate Russia’s internet from the world wide web by making it self-sufficient, supposedly to guard against external “threats.”

A Kremlin spokesperson swiftly dismissed the protesters’ concerns as a “misconception,” and claimed internet freedom was safe. But then, this week, President Putin signed two laws restricting online speech: one imposed fines on fake news and the other prohibited “disrespect for authorities and state symbols.” Both are seen as censorious.

In other words, Russia’s government is tightening its control over the internet. And in this push, Russia is not alone.

Russia and a set of less-than-democratic countries like China, Saudi Arabia, and Iran have certain aspirations for the internet. Domestically, these countries want control and think governments should get to decide what information flows across their borders. Globally, they want governments, not companies and NGOs, to be in charge of the internet.