BAHRAIN
What free speech means to Bahrain
In the last week, Bahrain’s treatment of its citizens and their right to free expression has been repeatedly in the news. Sara Yasin reports on a spate of developments that raise questions about the Bahraini government’s commitment to free speech. (Index on Censorship)
CANADA
Canada: ‘Israeli apartheid’ censorship row puts Toronto Pride funding in jeopardy
Pride Toronto faces the loss of its annual cultural grant over indecision as to whether the phrase ‘Israeli apartheid’ should be banned from the event, in a row which Peter Tatchell has called “straightforward censorship”. (Pink News)
IRAN
An election that might save books in Iran
Once the Islamic republic’s biggest cultural event, the Tehran International Book Fair – now in its 26th year — has wilted under President Mahmood Ahmadinejad’s hardline government. Raha Zahedpour reports on the recession in Iran’s publishing industry. (Index on Censorship)
KUWAIT
Rights group blasts Kuwait proposed tough media law
Human Rights Watch said Thursday a proposed media law by Kuwait would increase state control and curtail the right to free speech, as authorities suspended a popular talk show programme on a pro-opposition television channel. (Ahram Online)
UNITED KINGDOM
Sally Bercow pleads innocence over Lord McAlpine Twitter storm
Speaker’s wife says she was merely sharing random thought over Newsnight show that wrongly linked peer to abuse scandal. (The Guardian)
UNITED STATES
Free expression must not be attacked
Enough already. The public has the right to advocate causes, and the media the right to report news, without government intrusion. (Shelbyville Times-Gazette)
No Sex Talk Allowed
In a joint letter to the University of Montana, (intended as “a blueprint” for campus administrators nationwide) the Justice Department (DOJ) and the Education’s Department’s Office of Civil Rights (OCR) define sexual harassment as “unwelcome conduct of a sexual nature,” verbal or nonverbal, including “unwelcome sexual advances or acts of sexual assaults.” (The Atlantic
