On Friday July 3, Ethiopian activists planned to gather outside their national consulate in Beirut in protest against the kafala system — a form of employment sponsorship that operates across the Middle East and has been blamed for widespread cases of abuse. But, with Lebanon’s economic collapse dominating the domestic media and an online blackout in force at home, organizers postponed the event.

Ethiopia’s government blocked internet access across the country on June 30. The move followed a wave of deadly protests, sparked by the killing of the popular singer Haacaaluu Hundeessaa, whose music focused on the rights of the nation’s Oromo people. 

The ongoing shutdown, which applies to cellular and home networks, has been widely condemned by humanitarian groups as a “tool to muzzle activism” within the nation. But it is also denying a voice to citizens facing intolerable hardships abroad.

“If we held the protest while the internet was down, the Ethiopian government would not see it, so it would really be pointless,” said Banchi Yimer, the founder of the domestic workers rights organization Egna Legna Besidet.