Some countries experiencing internet shutdowns are also faced with an erosion of the separation of powers by incumbent governments, calling into question the willingness and ability of courts to be a neutral arbiter.'® In some cases, such as successfully challenged these shutdowns in both instances. Petitioners Gaurav Sureshbhai Vyas and Murad Khazbiev, courts paid excessive deference to the discretion of the government while also hastily rushing to conclusions about the intentions of the protestors. However, the reality is quite the opposite— governments have used internet shutdowns to further their grip on democratic processes and unleash violence.'? Who are the petitioners? In several cases, the internet shutdown was support to continue as petitioners are often under- preceded and accompanied by the unleashing of severe state violence. Take the backdrop of ZLHR and MISA Zimbabwe. The directive shutting the internet down was prompted by public debates, discussions and protests in response to a 200% hike in fuel prices announced by the government of Emmerson Mnangagwa.”° What ensued was Zimbabwe’s security forces meting out violence at a scale unseen in at least a decade.” The Zimbabwe Human Rights NGO Forum recorded 844 human rights violations in the first four 4 days of the strike.?? These did not include hard-to-quantify violations such as those privacy invasions and derogation of informational freedoms. Similarly, the Indonesian government used excessive force against antiracism protests in West Papua, which resulted in arrests and injuries of the protestors, as well as one person killed.?3? The government also ordered internet shutdowns and banned journalists from accessing the protests. Under the pretext of preventing the spread of false information, the Ministry of Communication and Informatics throttled and then blocked the internet in the provinces of Papua and West Papua.*4 Despite the adversity, the petitioners in both these cases In most cases of internet shutdowns that have been challenged in a court of law, the petitioners have been public spirited lawyers, human rights groups, media persons and even law students. In several instances, petitioners and petitioner groups have been supported by different transnational efforts, bodies and coalitions. It is imperative for this resourced and may face retaliation from the state. Strikingly, in CM Pak, the appellant—CM Pak Limited—is a major Pakistan-based telecommunications service provider operating through a license granted by the Pakistan Telecommunication Authority.75 The successful appeal was heard together with connected petitions by customers of licensed providers of telecommunication services such as CM Pak. CM Pak was arguing for the rights granted to it by the license - of being able to provide uninterrupted services to its customers. It should be noted that the appeal was filed by CM Pak only after the Islamabad High Court solicited responses for telecommunications providers while hearing a public interest petition.”° Petitioners’ arguments Admissibility It is pertinent to note that the Supreme Court of Pakistan in PTA, in April 2020, overturned CM Pak. Petitioners adopted a variety of arguments both on admissibility and the merits of each case. The first hurdle was admissibility and getting the 18 Ndifor, B. (2014). The Politicization of the Cameroon Judicial System. Journal of Global Justice and Public Policy Volume 1:1. https: //papers. ssrn.com /sol3 /papers.cfm?abstract _id=3172973 19 Gohdes, A. (2015, 24 February). When Internet access becomes a weapon. https: //www.washingtonpost.com/news/monkey-cage/ wp/2015/02/24 /internet-access-as-a-weapon/?arc404=true 20 BBC. (2019, 14 January). Zimbabwe protests after pertrol and diesel price hike. BBC. https: //www.bbc.com /news/world-africa-46862194 21 The Economist. (2019, 6J ny AN AEDT sees its worst state violence in a decade. https: //www.economist.com /middle-east-andbab de zimbabwe / 23 Lamb, K. (2019, 26 August).West Papua: thousands take to streets after week of violence. The Guardian. https: //www.theguardian.com/ world /2019 /aug /26 /west-papua-thousands-expected-at-fresh-protests-after-week-of-violence 24 Ibid. 25 CM Pak Limited v Pakistan Telecommunications Authority, Para 2. 26 ee H. (2018, 23 March). Reflections on the Pakistan Ruling Banning Network Shutdowns. Institute for Human Rights and Business. : ihrb. f hnol