· March, 2008

Stories about Freedom of Speech from March, 2008

Cuba: Verifying Blocked Websites

  27 March 2008

Yoaní Sanchez of Generación Y [es] in Cuba details which blog and websites are currently being blocked within the island after verifying this fact at a local cybercafe.

Tajikistan: Politicized Navruz

  27 March 2008

Navruz is one of the main celebrations for Tajiks. This time — more than ever — it means end of one of the harshest winter in several decades. People could hardly wait for these warm days that have come with the beginning of spring. Navruz has been celebrated throughout the...

China: The Wolves are Here!

  27 March 2008

Huge commented on the debate about Tibet news: When a kid kept on telling lies, one day when the wolves really popped up, no one would believe him anymore [zh].

China: Remembering Our Predecessors

  27 March 2008

A number of intellectuals, media and cultural workers have written a joint declaration [zh] to commemorate their predecessors, who died for seeking and speaking the truth, before Ching Ming Festival.

Russia: Blogging Kozlovsky

  26 March 2008

Grigory Pasko, over at Robert Amsterdam's blog, writes about the newest ordeal of Oborona leader Oleg Kozlovsky. Kozlovsky (LJ user welgar) reprints the text on his new English-language blog. Also, Kozlovsky has announced (RUS) the launch of his English-language column at Robert Amsterdam's blog.

Cuba: Blocking Bloggers

  26 March 2008

Want to get the Cuban blogosphere talking? Block access to a popular blog. Ever since Cuban authorities did just that to several less-than-supportive Havana-based blogs earlier this week, the blogging diaspora have come out in full support of Cuban bloggers – especially Yoani Sanchez and her popular Generacion Y blog,...

Egypt: Journalist Sentenced for Six Months

“Ibrahim Eissa received a prison sentence of six months for having spread false information about President Mubarak´s health in August 2007. The sentence was given by Judge Sherif Kamel Mustapha at Bulaq Court of misdeamenours this morning. He was found guilty of having harmed Egypt´s economy,” announced Ibn Al Dunya...

Bermuda: Retribution?

  26 March 2008

As the government pulls its advertising dollars from local newspapers, supposedly for reasons of retribution, Vexed Bermoothes asks: “Is this about governing or controlling Bermuda?”

Armenia: Opposition Diaries

  26 March 2008

Unzipped posts videos produced by the radical opposition on the post-election turmoil in Armenia. Although both government and opposition continue to disseminate propaganda, The blog says that until an independent and objective inquiry is held, a plurality of opinion should be heard.

Yemen blocks Maktoob blogging platform

Maktoobblog.com, one of the most popular Arab blogging platform, has been recently blocked in Yemen cutting off Yemeni Internet users from the more than 46960 blogs the service hosts. According to MaktoobBlog, there are currently 1226 Yemeni blogs hosted by the service. All of them disappeared from the Yemeni Internet.

Cuba: Blog Access

  25 March 2008

Child of the Revolution reports that “the Castro regime has restricted (and in some cases, blocked) access to semi-critical blogs written from inside Cuba.”

Iran:Protest against filtering

Key1one says[Fa] that Cloob.com,a Persian-language social networking website, mainly popular in Iran, has been filtered for about one month.About 2000 people signed a petition and protested against this filtering.

Serbia, Kosovo: Milorad Cavic's Protest

  25 March 2008

Balkan Baby writes about Serbian swimming champion Milorad Cavic: “Many of us who firmly support Kosovo’s independence will have paradoxically supported Cavic’s protest though, seeing in it an expression of the democratic right of the individual to speak his mind. When so many athletes concern themselves solely with wearing branded...