Stories about Freedom of Speech from September, 2019
29 September 2019
Censorship and online threats against the press spell trouble for the future of Pakistani journalism
The Committee to Protect Journalists says as many as 61 journalists have been killed in Pakistan since 1992; in most cases, the perpetrators could not be identified.
Press freedom watchdog dismisses China’s '70 Years of Progress on Human Rights’ as ‘smokescreen’
Reporters Without Borders slams China's white paper on human rights as "a smokescreen" to mask the country's "horrendous record" with regard to human rights and press freedom.
26 September 2019
Netizen Report: Anti-corruption protests across Egypt trigger internet blockages, arrests
Censorship spikes as protests mount in Egypt, Twitter censors hundreds of pro-state accounts and a Pakistani court delivers a win for free speech online.
20 September 2019
Netizen Report: Pro-government doxxing campaigns rock Hong Kong, Serbia
Doxxing is all the rage in Hong Kong and Serbia, an Indian judge delivers a win for internet rights, and Facebook debuts plans for its oversight board.
Serbian journalists expose a ruling party bot application used to manipulate readers’ comments on media websites
Investigative journalists discovered that a mobile application linked to their country's ruling party IP address was used for automatic voting on user comments on websites of popular media outlets.
19 September 2019
Trinidad & Tobago government to rethink Sedition Act
"What is needed is an urgent amendment of the Act to qualify seditious intention by adding a specific requirement that the prohibited acts and statements must urge forceful/violent action."
In a Pakistani town, Hindu-Muslim relations are tested after a Hindu temple is vandalised
"[The] government ought to arrest those ruined the Temple and school, no one has the right to harm other religious places."
18 September 2019
Once hotbeds of political resistance, Czech secondhand bookstores are slowly disappearing
The few surviving "antikvariat" have turned into nostalgia museums.
16 September 2019
Internet shutdowns and the right to access in Sudan: A post-revolution perspective
In response to a five-week long shutdown, a court ordered telecommunications companies to apologise to customers.
15 September 2019
Filipino community radio stations struggle to survive amid attacks and difficulties
"If the marginalized are underserved by the mass media establishment, they must be allowed to be their own voice."
13 September 2019
Netizen Report: Malicious attack takes Wikipedia offline
This week, Wikipedia went dark, Raul Castro got kicked off Twitter and the internet finally came back to Papua.
Locked down in Kashmir: A traveler's view
It's been more than a month since the Indian government placed the state of Kashmir on lockdown. A Bangladeshi traveller shares her experience of visiting the region during that period.
12 September 2019
Serbian member of pro-Kremlin biker club under investigation for assaulting a female journalist
Journalist Verica Marinčić was stalked and attacked by a member of the 'Night Wolves' biker group, after posting a photo of his car, parked illegally.
9 September 2019
Burundian refugees living in Tanzania face forced repatriation
An agreement could see Burundian refugees soon forced to return from Tanzania, despite dangers ahead of Burundi's 2020 elections.
Sedition charge against union leader sparks debate about freedom of speech in Trinidad and Tobago
The legislation is being called into question following the arrest of a prominent trade union leader, over fears it infringes on freedom of speech rights.
Singapore prime minister sues independent news website for defamation
The prime minister is suing The Online Citizen over an article that tackled the leader’s public feud with his siblings.
8 September 2019
Reading Kashmir: Understanding the conflict through its fiction and memoirs
Want to really understand the Kashmir conflict from an insider's perspective? Global Voices presents a list of essential reading by Kashmiris and authors with first-hand knowledge of the region.
6 September 2019
Netizen Report: Two years after fleeing military attacks in Myanmar, Rohingya refugees face mobile blackout in Bangladesh
Refugees lose mobile access in Bangladesh, a Hong Kong web forum weathers a DDoS attack, and Turkey expands internet regulations.
‘I want a chance to prove my innocence': Formerly jailed Macedonian journalist denied retrial
The case against investigative journalist Tomislav Kezarovski is considered an example of judicial corruption during the country’s democratic backsliding between 2006 and 2017.
How Turkey's broadcast regulator is taking over the supervision of online content
Under a new regulation, local streaming services like Netflix are required to adjust their content to the regulator's rules and guidelines.
