07 Jun 13 | In the News
AZERBAIJAN
Europe criticizes Azeri leader over Internet defamation law
European institutions criticized Azeri President Ilham Aliyev yesterday for signing legislation making defamation over the Internet a criminal offence punishable by imprisonment as the country prepares for an autumn presidential election.
(Free Malaysia Today)
EGYPT
Columnist sentenced to prison for libel
Writer Osama Ghareeb did not know he had already been sentenced to one year in prison by a Cairo court until being summoned to Moqattam Police Station on Wednesday, according to the writer’s Twitter account. (Daily News Egypt)
GLOBAL
Gallery: Five free expression exiles
IFEX marks World Refugee Day, 20 June 2013, with profiles of five people living in exile for practicing the right to free expression through their professions (IFEX)
INDIA
Safeguards needed to protect privacy, free speech in India: HRW
The Indian government should enact clear laws to ensure that increased surveillance of phones and the Internet does not undermine rights to privacy and free expression, Human Rights Watch said today. (Business Standard)
Standing up to censorship central
A recent judgment on the airing of ‘low value’ television programming misinterprets the proportionality doctrine and raises the question: should the state be giving advice to adults? (The Hindu)
MALAWI
(Censorship Board Says Does Not Regulate Material On the Internet
The Malawi Censorship Board has said it does not censor materials on the Internet because it is not mandated to do so.(AllAfrica.com)
NEW ZEALAND
Racial stereotypes pervade
It was interesting watching the response last week after cartoonist Al Nisbet was allowed to draw cartoon stereotypes in the Marlborough Express about Maori and Pacific Islanders. (Auckland Now)
SINGAPORE
Web ‘blackout’ in Singapore to protest new online rules
Over 130 Singaporean bloggers blacked out their homepages Thursday to protest new licencing rules for news websites they say will muzzle freedom of expression. (NDTV)
TURKEY
Protests expose the extent of self-censorship in Turkish media
Only days after Turkish Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan called social media “the worst menace to society”, the country arrested 25 social media users in Izmir for allegedly “spreading untrue information” on Twitter. Sara Yasin gives a rundown on Turkey’s Twitter phobia. (Index on Censorship)
Turkey’s prime minister vows to continue Gezi Park development
Despite mass protests, Recep Tayyip Erdogan to push ahead with construction, saying it will make Istanbul more beautiful (The Guardian)
UKRAINE
Censorship by violence
One of my friends recently told me a story about the son of her friends. He had to be taken to a psychologist after watching news on TV about a mother killing her child. (Kyiv Post)
UNITED STATES
Documents: U.S. mining data from 9 leading Internet firms; companies deny knowledge
The National Security Agency and the FBI are tapping directly into the central servers of nine leading U.S. Internet companies, extracting audio and video chats, photographs, e-mails, documents, and connection logs that enable analysts to track foreign targets, according to a top-secret document obtained by The Washington Post. (Washington Post)
Drawing Line On Free Speech
The freedom to say what we think, no matter how repugnant to others, is one of the greatest glories of our system of government. It also is the foundation supporting our other liberties. (The Intelligencer)
Lindsey Graham Hates Free Speech
Are we starting to get under the skin of U.S. Sen. Lindsey Graham (RINO-S.C.)? At first glance it would appear that way … Graham, a frequent target of this website’s criticism (due to his frequent awfulness), suggested this week that bloggers don’t deserve one of the most basic freedoms guaranteed to all Americans under the U.S. Bill of Rights.
(Fits News)
IRS Attorney Carter Hull Sent Targeted Letters to ACLJ Tea Party Clients from Washington, D.C.
The Wall Street Journal reports that transcripts of interviews by congressional staffers point the finger to IRS attorneys in Washington, further confirming that the targeting of conservative groups originated by the IRS in Washington, D.C. and that it was not the mistake of a couple of rogue, low level IRS agents in one Cincinnati office as the Obama Administration and the IRS continue to claim. (ACLU)
New York Post hit with libel lawsuit over ‘Bag Men’ Boston bombings cover
Two Massachusetts residents sue New York Post on claims it falsely portrayed them as suspects in Boston Marathon attack (The Guardian)
ZAMBIA
Kasonokomona Wins First Round of Court Battle
Zambian activist Paul Kasonkomona has won an important first round in his court battle. In an interview on Zambian television in April he called for the recognition of gay and lesbian rights, as well as the rights of sex workers. He was arrested after the interview and charged under section 178(g) of the Zambian Penal Code. (AllAfrica.com)
04 Jun 13 | In the News
INDEX REPORT
Taking the offensive – defending artistic freedom of expression in the UK
Report Contents: Summary | Introduction | What is artistic freedom of expression? | What are the limits to freedom of expression? | Institutional self-censorship | Reinforcing support for artistic freedom of expression | Conclusion | Appendix I: Audience Feedback and Statistics | Appendix II: Conference Programme | Appendix III: Cases of Censored Artwork | Artist Videos | Full report in PDF
INDEX EVENTS
10 June: Caught in the web: how free are we online?
The internet: free open space, wild wild west, or totalitarian state? However you view the web, in today’s world it is bringing both opportunities and threats for free expression.
22 June: Turkey vs the UK: what’s the score on free expression?
The Turkish Writers Football Club is coming to London to play the England Writers Team and the pressure is on. But it’s not just about sport. Index on Censorship is grabbing the chance to bring both sides together to debate the state of free expression in both countries.
GLOBAL
UN report calls for freedom of expression in post-2015 development
Calling for a transformation in the approach to global development that includes a larger role for freedom of expression, the United Nations’ High Level Panel of Eminent Persons released its Post-2015 Development Agenda report, Milana Knezevic writes. (Index on Censorship)
BAHRAIN
Bahrain court jails three protesters
A Bahrain court on Monday jailed three protesters for up to 15 years on charges including attempting to kill a policeman and taking part in anti-government demonstrations, a lawyer said. (AhramOnline)
CANADA
CJFE disturbed by arrest of Toronto Star reporter
Canadian Journalists for Free Expression (CJFE) is concerned about the arrest and treatment of Toronto Star journalist Alex Consiglio, charged with trespassing for taking photos on June 2 of an injured GO Transit officer at Union Station in Toronto. (Press Release)
CHINA
7 things you can’t talk about in China
They’re like George Carlin’s seven dirty words, except it’s not the FCC who’s banning them, but the Communist Party of China. (Global Post)
JORDAN
Jordan blocks over 200 ‘unlicensed’ websites
The Jordanian government began blocking over 200 websites on Sunday for failing to obtain licenses under a strict set of new guidelines, Ruth Michaelson reports. (Index on Censorship)
MALAYSIA
‘Tanda Putera’: Let the public decide, say legal activists
Show the movie Tanda Putera and let the public decide – as to do otherwise would amount to stifling freedom of speech, say legal activists. (The Sun)
MIDDLE EAST
Freedom of Expression: The Second Arab Battle
Syria and the uprisings in Bahrain and other countries represent one of the two important battles underway in the Arab world, whose outcomes will largely determine the future shape of Arab political systems. The second battle is not about who rules in a country, but rather about the right of a citizen to express him or herself. (Cairo Review of Global Affairs)
RUSSIA
Shutting down Russia’s LGBT community
Elena Vlasenko reports on the continuing official campaign against lesbians and gays. (Index on Censorship)
SINGAPORE
Singapore’s new website licensing seen as censorship
The Government in Singapore has introduced new rules meaning popular news websites have to apply for a licence if they want to keep operating. (ABC/Radio Australia)
TAIWAN
Taiwan backs off plan to block sites violating copyright laws
Taiwan’s authorities in charge of intellectual property protection have decided to give up a plan to block overseas Internet services that violate copyright laws amid opposition to the plan from free-speech advocates.
(Focus Taiwan)
TUNISIA
In Tunisia, a free speech tussle could land a professor in jail
Last year a Tunisian academic complained that a member of the constitutional drafting committee had watered down free speech protections in the document. (Christian Science Monitor)
TURKEY
Turkey losing its way on free speech
The protests erupting across Turkey have shown a wider audience – domestic and international – the increasingly problematic nature of Turkish democracy, and its growing authoritarian tendencies. Index on Censorship CEO Kirsty Hughes writes (Index on Censorship)
“There is now a menace called Twitter”
Against a backdrop of unrest that started in an Istanbul park last week and has spread throughout the country, Ece Temelkuran asks why the Turkish government is afraid of the internet (Index on Censorship)
Turkey protests: Union to start two-day strike
One of Turkey’s big trade union groups is staging a two-day strike to support continuing anti-government protests in a number of cities. (BBC News)
UKRAINE
Ukraine holds first gay pride parade amidst intolerance and suppression
Ukraine successfully held the country’s first ever gay pride parade, but the level of intimidation faced by the LGBT community is growing. Andrew Connelly reports from Kiev (Index on Censorship)
UNITED STATES
AFDI to Protest Justice Department’s Attempt to Criminalize Criticism of Islam
The human rights organization American Freedom Defense Initiative (AFDI) is holding a demonstration for free speech in Tennessee, at the site of a Justice Department initiative advising the application of civil rights laws to shut down criticism of Islam. (Press Release)
Christian Group Believes Atheists Have Right to Post Monument at Fla. Courthouse
A member of a Christian organization that posted a Decalogue outside a Florida courthouse said an atheist group posting a monument in the same location has the right to do so. (The Christian Post)
Terminated employee’s free speech case appealed to U.S. Supreme Court
An attorney monitoring a First Amendment case from Ohio being appealed to the U.S. Supreme Court says it could set a precedent for religious freedom in the United States.
(One News Now)
The United States vs. Freedom of Speech
The criminalization of journalists in the United States is not a new occurrence, but the overt and veiled threats to reporters and their sources is becoming less of a rarity. (Huffington Post)
Pitching a Tent Is Free Speech, Says ACLU
The American Civil Liberties Union of Ohio has filed a lawsuit against the City of Columbus on behalf of the local Occupy Wall Street group. The complaint, filed on May 30 in U.S. District Court, claimed that placing a tent or other structure that “is not easily movable” in a public space qualifies as free speech protected by the First Amendment and the state constitution.
(National Review)
U.S. Attorney says Muslim tolerance event will discuss free speech rights
An event federal prosecutors and the FBI are planning Tuesday to discuss the enforcement of civil rights laws to protect Muslims will also focus on what kinds of speech are guaranteed by the First Amendment, U.S. Attorney Bill Killian said in a statement Monday.
(Politico)
The Distasteful Side of Social Media Puts Advertisers on Their Guard
As social media sites pursue advertising in a bid for new revenue, they are finding that they must simultaneously create a safe space for the advertisers they attract.
(The New York Times)
03 Jun 13 | Europe and Central Asia
Russia’s drive against lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgendered people continues unabated as the country’s Duma considers a law banning “homosexual propaganda”, Elena Vlasenko reports from Moscow.
Before 1993, being a homosexual in Russia meant the possibility of being sent to either a mental institution or prison — and it wasn’t until 1999 that it was dropped from the country’s official list of mental illnesses. Even though homosexuality was eventually decriminalised twenty years ago, there is still an active campaign to silence Russia’s gay community.
More than 70 per cent of Russians consider the LGBT community to be “dissolute” and “mentally retarded”. The government has nourished the already negative public opinion around homosexuality. Ten Russian regions have implemented laws banning “homosexual propaganda” since 2006, and the country is currently considering passing a countrywide ban.
Related: Ukraine holds first gay pride parade amidst intolerance and suppression
Andrew Connelly reports from Kiev on the backlash faced by participants in the country’s first gay pride march.
The bill was passed unanimously in a preliminary vote at the start of this year, and this month it will be considered by the State Duma. The law forbids promoting information about homosexuality amongst minors. If caught spreading the message that “traditional and non-traditional relationships are socially equal” to minors, offenders face criminal charges and a fine of up to 500,000 Roubles (£10,782).
Activists have expressed concerns over the law, which they say gives the authorities ground to fine organisations and activists for public work — in the name of protecting minors.
In addition to its campaign against “homosexual propaganda”, the country has never sanctioned a gay pride parade. Approximately 30 LGBT activists were arrested on 25 May for attempting to hold unsanctioned protests against discrimination, in front of the State Duma’s building. In 2011, the European Court of Human Rights (ECHR) declared the ban to be illegal. According to gay rights activist Nikolay Alexeev, the annual bans on pride parades as well as his own appeals to the ECHR should make it clear to the court that Russia’s violations of gay rights are systematic.
Russia was recently rocked by a violent homophobic murder: Vadislav Tornovoy was allegedly brutally beaten and murdered by 2-3 drunk acquaintances last month. Investigators say that Tornovoy came out to his friends, and they then broke his ribs, and pushed beer bottles into his anus. After a failed attempt to set him on fire, the men smashed unconscious Tornovoy’s head with a 20 kg stone. Alexeev told Index that the authorities’ policies towards the LGBT community reflect a deep-seated homophobia in Russia, and unless they change the country would still continue to see cruel and homophobic attacks.
24 May 13 | In the News
BRAZIL
Brazil’s Federal Police seize journalist’s equipment
Brazil’s Federal Police seized a journalist’s equipment – including his computer – during an operation to remove indians from a farm in the state of Mato Grosso do Sul. The seizure was decried as illegal by the reporter’s employer, one of the country’s most prominent aid agencies aimed at indigenous peoples, Rafael Spuldar reports. (Index on Censorship)
ISRAEL
Bill protecting IDF from slander passes first Knesset reading
New law will allow for defamation lawsuits to be filed against people or groups who slander the IDF, without having to go through the attorney-general, as is the case today. The bill aims to protect the IDF from libel by Israel detractors. (Israel Hayom)
PHILIPPINES
DOJ deletes libel from new anti-cybercrime bill
THE Department of Justice (DOJ) has removed libel from the provisions of Republic Act (RA) 10175 or the Cybercrime Prevention Act of 2012, pruning away one of the questioned sections of the law. (Business Mirror)
RUSSIA
Putin’s war on dissent in Russia
A year after the mass protests marking Vladimir Putin’s controversial presidential win, Elena Vlasenko reports from Moscow on the heavy-handed repression confronting the Russian opposition. (Index on Censorship)
SYRIA
Birthday wishes for Bassel Khartabil
Software engineer and open-source advocate Bassel Khartabil spent his second birthday in prison yesterday. Index calls on the Syrian government to release Khartabil. (Index on Censorship)
THAILAND
Critic’s Facebook page suspended; cartoonist ‘ignores’ summonses
Thammasat University academic Somsak Jeamteerasakul’s Facebook account has been suspended for 30 days, leading to widespread criticism on social media. (The Nation)
TUNISIA
Crackdown on radical Islamists tests Tunisia’s stability
For the first time since the Arab Spring uprisings of 2011, relations between mainstream Islamists in government and radical Salafist Muslim activists have reached breaking point, sparking deadly clashes in two Tunisian cities. (Reuters)
TURKEY
Turkey presents Prophet’s sayings for the 21st Century
cholars around the Muslim world were alarmed five years ago by news reports that Turkey planned a new, possibly heretical, compilation of the Prophet Mohammad’s sayings that might scrap those it thought were no longer applicable. (Al Arabyia)
UKRAINE
Journalists defend colleagues in Ukraine’s ‘new war with press’
Two journalists were attacked while covering a street rally in Kiev, and nine more Ukrainian reporters were in danger of losing government accreditation following a protest to support their colleagues, Andrei Alaiksandrau reports. (Index on Censorship)
UNITED KINGDOM
A responsible internet
Internet companies and service providers need to do much more to keep pornography away from children. (The Telegraph)
Woolwich attack: two arrested over Twitter comments
Two men are arrested for making alleged offensive comments on Twitter about the murder of British soldier Lee Rigby in Woolwich. (Channel 4)
UNITED STATES
Associated Press Scandal: Does the Media Only Care About Free Speech When It Comes to Their Own?
It is no surprise that the media has been quick to voice its support for Fox News reporter James Rosen and the Associated Press , following revelations of invasive government investigations into their respective sources. (PolicyMic)
Obama to Gitmo Speech Heckler: ‘Part Of Free Speech Is…You Listening’
President Barack Obama had a hard time getting through parts of his foreign policy speech at the National Defense University Thursday, thanks to Medea Benjamin, co-founder of left-leaning, female anti-militarism group Code Pink. (Personal Liberty Digest)
Sexual harassment rules on college campuses trickle down to freedom of speech
The places where you might find some of the freest thinkers and those that want to protect their right to free speech are now also the target of new policies that will limit that same speech. (MyNorthwest.com)
PostScript: McConnell and free speech
Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell appears with an opinion piece on our page today. He argues that the IRS and AP scandals are part of a pattern with the Obama administration’s push for the disclosure of political donors. (Washington Post)
LePage tells legislative leaders he’s moving out of State House because of ‘censorship’
Democratic legislative leaders said Thursday that Republican Gov. Paul LePage told them he would move his office from the State House in a protest over not being able to have a television display outside his office. But LePage said his staff would remain there “until partisan leaders of the Legislature choose to evict them.” (Bangor Daily News)
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Index on Censorship Events
Caught in the web: how free are we online? June 10, 2013
The internet: free open space, wild wild west, or totalitarian state? However you view the web, in today’s world it is bringing both opportunities and threats for free expression. More >>>
