Stories about Freedom of Speech from October, 2009
Martinique: Free your mind, free your hair
Blogger Imaniyé from Martinique reports the creation of a Facebook group [Fr] by people who are eager to defend the rights of Martinicans to comb their hair as they want and above all to twist it into dreadlocks, without being discriminated against.
Russia: “Twitter Against Tyrants”
Oleg Kozlovsky links to and quotes from the text of a briefing held by US Helsinki Commission/Commission on Security and Cooperation in Europe, which included “a few recent examples of how we utilized Web 2.0 to spread information about electoral fraud” in Russia.
The Balkans: Open Letter to Amnesty International
Samaha posts Ed Vulliamy's open letter to Amnesty International regarding the invitation to Professor Noam Chomsky to lecture in Northern Ireland – as well as background info on the campaign.
Slovakia, Hungary: “Linguistic Discontents”
Edward Lucas writes about the Slovak-Hungarian relations, including the “linguistic discontents.”
Russia: Khodorkovsky's Case, 6 Years On
In The Huffington Post, Robert Amsterdam writes about Mikhail Khodorkovsky's case, six years on.
Hungary: 1956
Hungarian Spectrum writes about an online collection of testimony (HUN) on the events of 1956, which “helped the western powers understand the Hungarian situation, not just events that occurred during the revolution but more importantly the reasons for the outbreak of the uprising.” Remainder of Budapest wrote this on the...
Hungary: Update on ‘Nap-Kelte’ Talk Show
Hungarian Spectrum posts an update on the situation around the Nap-kelte political talk show – and is “trying to make sense of Hungarian legal thinking.”
Cuba: Contemplating Change
“I think that for Cuba to transition to an open society from a society ‘with some emergency exits’, some of the people now occupying positions of power in the government could take a long vacation…”: Octavo Cerco contemplates what's needed for meaningful change in Cuba.
Azerbaijan: Blogger trial dilemma
Following yet another postponement in the trial of detained video blogging youth activists Adnan Hajizade and Emin Milli, In Mutatione Fortitudo offers its opinion on the case so far. The blog says the authorities in Azerbaijan face a dilemma. If the two detainees are imprisoned it will result in significant...
Azerbaijan: Video blogger trial postponed… again (updated)
In what many consider to be a politically motivated trial to stifle dissent in Azerbaijan, video blogging youth activists Adnan Hajizade and Emin Milli once again appeared in court in Baku today.
Germany and China: Berlin Twitter Wall
berlintwitterwall is a project organized by the city of Berlin to mark the 20th anniversary of the fall of Berlin wall. The wall is now filled up with messages from Chinese twitterers against the Chinese Great Fire Wall which blocks Chinese Internet user from connecting with the outside world.
Cuba: Feeling the Disconnect
Cuba's Generation Y feels like a nomad in cyberspace, but is confident that “one day my blog will be found on a server on this Island and, believe me, it will not be because it has performed an ideological pirouette.”
Malaysia: Should food bloggers reveal sponsors?
masak-masak from Malaysia asks readers if they want a food blogger to reveal if he/she was paid to review a restaurant.
Singapore plans to require bloggers to reveal sponsors
Singapore is thinking of drafting a new guideline that would require bloggers to reveal if they receive gifts or money for their articles. Bloggers react to this proposal
Syria: 80 Year-Old Human Rights Activist Arrested
Omar Mushawah reported [ar] the arrest of Haytham al-Maleh, a Syrian lawyer and human rights advocate who also spent 6 years in prison in the period between 1980 and 1986 for demanding constitutional reforms. Al-Maleh is also a co-founder of the Syrian Human Rights Society.
Brazil: Between democracy and doubt
The country awaits its first National Conference of Communication that will signal a very first step in democratising Brazil’s communications system.
Russia: Soviet Legacy and Street Names
A few weeks ago, it seemed as if every single Russian blogger took the time to write something about the re-naming of Anti-Soviet Shish Kebab Restaurant in Moscow, a dissident journalist's protest article and a pro-Kremlin youth movement's counter-protest activities. One blogger alluded to the scandal in a post about street names that kept on preserving the questionable Soviet legacy.
China: Fanfou is coming back?
Fanfou is a micro-blogging tool similar to twitter which has been closed down for more than 100 days in China. However, many still have hope that it will be back. Chinageeks translated a blog post by He Caitou discussing fanfou users’ loyalty towards the platform.
China: Best and worse countries for journalists
Joyceyland comments on the Reporter without borders‘ release on press freedom index. The blogger is surprised by the ranking of mainland China #168.
Cambodia: Award honors sex slavery survivor
Sina Vann from Cambodia is an activist with the Somaly Mam Foundation helping fellow survivors of slavery as well as those still working in brothels. For her work, she was honored with the Frederick Douglass Award.
Russia: Stalin's Grandson vs Novaya Gazeta
Foreign Policy's Passport reports on a lawsuit brought against Novaya Gazeta by Josef Stalin's grandson, Yevgeny Dzhugashvili.
