FEATURED
Elif Shafak on divisive language
Following the Charlie Hebdo attacks in 2015, the best-selling Turkish novelist wrote for Index about how writers are staying silent on their self-censorship
By Elif Shafak
NEWS
LATEST FROM INDEX ON CENSORSHIP
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A story of forgotten fiction in Vietnam
The country's rich literary history has been plagued by censorship and book bans, writes Thiện Việt
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Will Meta’s changes to content moderation work?
Are Mark Zuckerberg's recently announced plans to ditch existing fact-checking policies motivated by winning political gain?
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What could Assad’s downfall mean for freedom of expression in Syria?
Syrian journalists have been subjected to free speech violations for decades. Could the future hold hope for a more open media landscape?
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Bashar al-Assad has fallen: now I must continue writing
A formerly imprisoned, exiled journalist talks about his plans to return to Syria and resume reporting
UNSUNG HEROES
An evening of music and poetry in solidarity with censored musicians
With music and poetry by Uyghur musicians Rahima Mahmut and Shohrat Nur, and Belarusian poet Hanna Komar. Final act will be Sola Akingbola and the Eegun Rhapsodies.
Be the first to hear from uncensored writers and artists
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Index on Censorship campaigns for and defends free expression, promotes debate, and monitors threats to free speech worldwide.
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MAGAZINE
LATEST ISSUE: VOLUME 53.04 WINTER 2024
Unsung heroes: How musicians are raising their voices against oppression
Music has been described as a “cultural universal” – a practice found in all known human cultures and societies. While anthropologists still scratch their heads over exactly where the concept originated, evidence indicates that humans have used musical instruments for an astonishing 40,000 years.
During an excavation in 1995 in Slovenia, researchers discovered a bear’s femur bone with holes in it and concluded that it could be an ancient flute.
Humans have always found ingenious ways to make music, and it’s not difficult to see why. It is one of the most powerful forms of self-expression, capable of eliciting both intense happiness and sadness in the listener. It is used to celebrate, lament, respect and enrage, and its endless genres, styles and instruments form a core part of countries’ unique cultural heritages.
But despite its universality, music is being silenced globally. Religious extremism, political factions, racism and nationalism are all driving forces, stopping it being performed, produced and listened to. In this issue we explore how music bans have been weaponised to silence communities and erase histories.
ARTISTIC FREEDOM
UNCENSORED ARTWORK
Index commissions censored and exiled artists and illustrators from around the world
INDEX WRITERS
Jemimah Steinfeld
CEO[ba_post_list order="DESC" posts_number="4" include_categories="42893" show_date="on" date_format="d M y" list_type="grid" items="2" item_spacing="11px"...
Jemimah Steinfeld
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Turkey’s elections: “No rule of law anymore”
The country’s human rights landscape has disintegrated since Erdogan took over in 2003
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Don’t give up on Myanmar
The country has a vibrant future believes author Oliver Slow, despite the military junta's attacks on dissent
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Censoring Roald Dahl is not the answer, just a problem
Rewording Dahl's classics sets a worrying precedent. Instead of censoring his works we should invest in promoting new, diverse talent
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Hong Kong’s travesty of a show trial begins
The Hong Kong 47 are now on trial. There is nothing free or fair about this
Katie Dancey-Downs
Assistant Editor[ba_post_list include_categories="42894" order="DESC" posts_number="4" show_date="on" date_format="d M y" list_type="grid" items="2" item_spacing="11px"...
Katie Dancey-Downs
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Why we need Banned Books Week more than ever
In just one year, book bans in the USA have increased by a third – largely targeted at works containing content on LGBTQ+ rights, race and racism, ...
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Turkey and Thailand: Two elections, different outcomes
One poll remains deadlocked while another has seen the population vote for a change of direction
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The daily risks taken by Afghanistan’s female journalists
Life for women in the media has been bleak since the Taliban takeover, and experts don’t see that changing anytime soon
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The shock waves from Turkey’s Twitter restriction
Criticism of the Turkish government in the wake of this week's deadly earthquakes led to the blocking of the social media platform
Martin Bright
Editor at large[ba_post_list include_categories="42895" order="DESC" posts_number="4" show_date="on" date_format="d M y" list_type="grid" items="2" item_spacing="11px"...
Martin Bright
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Sir Salman Rushdie wins Freedom to Publish Award
Author says has freedom of expression has never been under greater threat in the West in his lifetime
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New play gives a voice to the forgotten Crimean Tatars
The powerful work tells the stories of indigenous Tatar dissidents and their families on the Russian-occupied peninsula
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Journalism is at risk from the National Security Bill. We’re fighting back
Imagine a country where the authorities target investigative journalists as spies, and outlaw news and campaigning organisations that receive forei...
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Mikhail Gorbachev: the Soviet leader who learned to love freedom of expression
The former president, who has died at the age of 91, wrote presciently in the pages of Index on Censorship
Francis Clarke
Editorial Assistant and 2022-23 Tim Hetherington Fellow[ba_post_list include_categories="42896" order="DESC" posts_number="4" show_date="on" date_format="d M y" list_type="grid" items="2" item_spacing="11px"...
Francis Clarke
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Argument for urgent intervention in Jimmy Lai case laid bare in new report
Pressure on UK government to intervene in Lai case highlighted in a new report, which exposes the destruction of media freedom in Hong Kong
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Defying the Taliban – A stark reminder of the collapse of Afghan women’s rights
Last Thursday, human rights organisation Anotherway Now hosted a screening of the Sky News documentary ‘Defying the Taliban: women at war in Afghan...
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Bunker Cabaret: From the bomb shelters of Kyiv to Somerset House
Ukranian collective explores the making of art in time of war
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Seeing Auschwitz is a timely reminder of the importance of documenting atrocities
A new exhibition in London takes a different viewpoint on the horrors of the Holocaust
Jessica Ní Mhainín
Head of Policy and Campaigns[ba_post_list include_categories="42898" order="DESC" posts_number="4" show_date="on" date_format="d M y" list_type="grid" items="2" item_spacing="11px"...
Jessica Ní Mhainín
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Yulia Tsvetkova’s hunger strike: “I have reached a dead end”
Index award-winner calls on her supporters not to waste any more time "on the farce called Russian justice"
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New report on protecting the media against Slapps
What measures can be introduced to protect journalists facing vexatious legal actions?