Stories about Censorship from April, 2015
An Unexpected TV Rerun Sends Serbia's Social Media Into Censorship Panic
Satirical news show 24 Minutes was supposed to air a new episode with Serbia's embattled ombudsman as a guest, but a rerun ran instead. Censorship-weary viewers feared the worst.
Ukraine's Security Service Takes Down 30,000 Websites to Fight ‘Pro-Russian Propaganda’
In an attempt to shut down a handful of pro-Russian websites, Ukraine's Security Service seized servers from one of the country's largest hosting providers, taking down thousands of innocent websites.
VIDEO: The World Is Saying #FreeZone9Bloggers
Global Voices marks the one-year anniversary of the arrest of Ethiopia's Zone9 bloggers with this crowd-sourced this video of support. Say it with us: #FreeZone9Bloggers!
TV Reporter Sacked Over Less-Than-Rosy Tweets About Australia’s War Memorial Day
Scott McIntyre tweeted about the "execution, widespread rape and theft committed by these ‘brave’ Anzacs." "We've gone from #JeSuisCharlie to #SackScottMcIntyre in 4 short months." one observer remarked.
“Take the Right Side in the Struggle of the Oppressed”: A Letter to John Kerry from Kilinto Prison, Ethiopia
In a letter to John Kerry, jailed Ethiopian blogger Natnael Feleke writes: "Because of the repressive regime, the Ethiopian constitution is powerless to protect citizens from being abused."
A Year After Their Arrest, Ethiopia's Zone9 Bloggers Remain Strong and Determined
"It is eery the degree to which the bloggers seemed to anticipate their current fate."
In Taiwan and on Facebook, the Nipple is Not Yet Free
"Before we label it as "indecent" and "obscene", a body is just a body, a part of the human self." Taiwanese women speak up for the #FreeTheNipple campaign.
Vietnamese Netizens Are Getting Bolder Online, Despite Tough Laws
"Thanks to social media it has become possible and even trendsetting to publicly question the Communist Party’s legitimacy."
How Blogging is Held Hostage by Ethiopian Politics
"Why is there just a single—and poorly functioning—Internet service provider for Ethiopia’s 90 million people? We know better than to ask this of public officials."
GV Face: Breaking Pakistan's Silence on Balochistan
Public discussions on Balochistan's war are rare. Nationalists think silence on Balochistan is their patriotic duty, others self-censor out of fear of Pakistan's powerful military.
Japan's ‘Vagina Artist’ Denies Obscenity Charges
Japanese artist Megumi Igarashi, nicknamed "The Vagina Artist" by the Western media, says there's nothing obscene about artwork based on her genitalia.
There’s Already a Rap Song Dedicated to Russia’s Twerking Bee-Costumed Teens
Young people in Orenburg are changing their profile pictures on VKontakte, Russia’s most popular social network, to a banner that reads, “We don’t want to fight, we want to dance.”
Tsarist Russia Bans Internet Porn
A Russian court in Tatarstan has banned 136 porn sites, and the language of its ruling implies that all Internet porn is hereby against the law.
Iran's Minister of ICT Suggests Instagram Will Not Be (Completely) Blocked Until an Alternative Is Found
Iran's leading reformist newspaper, Shargh, ran an article this past Sunday entitled: “The promises of the Minister of ICT to clear the problems of mobile social media.” The focus of Iran's Minister of Information and Communication Technology Mahmoud Vaezi was the filtering status of popular mobile applications, with a particular...
An Aggressive Turn in Chinese Censorship Practices: ‘The Great Cannon’
"It is likely that this attack, with its potential for political backlash, would require the approval of high-level authorities within the Chinese government."
Pakistani University Students Protest Against State Censorship Over Balochistan
Pakistan's intelligence services and their social media supporters equate academic debate on Balochistan with treachery. The student body of the university they muffled has struck back.
The Kremlin Declares War on Memes
By saying it is illegal to add celebrities’ images to certain memes, the Kremlin could be opening the door to banning a whole genre of absurdist online humor.
Did Pakistani Spies Just Kill a University Debate on Balochistan?
Public discussions on Balochistan's war are rare. Pakistan's largest, least-populated and poorest province is witnessing its fifth separatist movement since 1947.
Is Global Voices Blocked in Iran? Yes and No.
Globalvoicesonline.org is now blocked in Iran. But you can outsmart these Internet filters and access our site by adding "https://" to the beginning of the URL. What's up with that?
Are the World's Biggest Internet Companies Under the Turkish President's Thumb?
Turkey's ruling party is becoming accustomed to getting its way more often than not in its long-running war on social media users.
Turkey Blocks Twitter, YouTube, Scores of Websites After Prosecutor’s Killing
After photos of public prosecutor Mehmet Selim Kiraz with a gun pointed to his head began circulating on Twitter, hundreds of news sites and social networks were blocked.
