Stories about Freedom of Speech from December, 2009
Global: Tweeting for #Gaza
In honor of the one-year anniversary of Israel's attacks on Gaza in December 2008, a number of activists have planned a targeted "tweet for Gaza" campaign on Twitter. Jillian C. York has more.
D. R. of Congo : Human rights activist's house burnt down
Ouvertures website [fr] reports that the house of human rights activist, Emmanuel Kabengele Kalonji, in Congo has been burnt down while he is in Morocco to receive the Harubuntu Award...
China: Liu Xiaobo sentenced to 11 years
C.A. Yeung pointed out that the harsh sentence of Liu Xiaobo to 11 years on subversion charges implied a open rejection of public demands for democratic reforms by the Chinese...
Malaysia: Press Freedom Advocate Sues Blogger
A veteran journalist-blogger is being sued for libel by a politician who is known for espousing press freedom in Malaysia. Check out the reactions of Malaysian bloggers.
Tajikistan: The price tag of truth
The Tajik government has recently instituted fees for information requests from journalists and the general public. Botur examines how putting a price tag on information will hurt freedom.
Uzbekistan: Bloggers stand for Umida Akhmedova
GV has already covered a story of the Uzbek documentary photographer Umida Akhmedova, accused of insult and slander against Uzbek people and traditions. This fact caused indignation among local and...
China: Chinternet
As a result of a new round of internet regulation policies, such as the ban on individual's registration of CN domain name, Chinese netizens invent a new English word, Chinternet,...
Iran: Death of Top Dissident Cleric, Ayatollah Hossein Ali Montazeri
Iranian citizens posted photos and videos of clashes with pro-government militamen during the funeral of the country's top dissident cleric, Ayatollah Hossein Ali Montazeri.
Uzbekistan: Criminal Charges Filed Against Documentary Photographer Umida Akhmedova
Umida Akhmedova, photo by Fergana.ru Umida Akhmedova, the Uzbek [EN] documentary photographer, has been accused of insult and slander against Uzbek people and traditions, reports Fergana.ru [EN]. The maximum penalty...
Cuba: Proceeding With Caution?
Generation Y comments on Raul Castro’s speech in the Cuban National Assembly.
China: White-listing the Internet
DANWEI has translated the Beijing News’ report on the Chinese Ministry of Industry and Information Technology (MIIT)'s plan to white list websites on the Internet. More background can be found...
China: People's microblogging online?
While the Chinese government has blocked a large number of social media websites such as twitter and fanfou, the official online media, people.com.cn, fills in the gap and launches its...
Russia: Livejournal Vs. Tor and New Battle for Anonymity

Livejournal.com preventing users from accessing its site via an anonymizer caused panic and anger among global online community. It also showed the importance of anonymizers and revealed vulnerability of online privacy tools.
St. Vincent & the Grenadines: Political Climate
Discuss SVG shares her take on the island's political situation: “I believe this is how our leaders want us to feel…powerless so they can be strengthened…”
Trinidad & Tobago: Tax Lover
This Beach Called Life writes a letter to the Trinidad and Tobago government concerning the proposed amendments to the Property Tax.
Bermuda: Injuction Update
Bermudian bloggers supply updates on the government's injunction against the island's Royal Gazette newspaper.
Australia pushes internet censorship; Twitter erupts
Australia's Communications Minister Stephen Conroy declared his determination last week to push through mandatory internet censorship of a government-defined blacklist of websites, sparking an online frenzy in blogs and on...
China: Internet Triad Organization?
ESWN translated a CCTV article “Internet triad organization manipulates public opinion: 50,000 yuan can influence court verdict” which tries to justify the crackdown of organized-opinion making activities.
Qatar: Critiques bristle; calls to shut down popular online forum
A series of scathing posts on Qatar Living, an popular online forum, prompts locals to call for site's demise. Campaign not against all expats, says founder of anti-QL Facebook group.
Sri Lanka: Groundviews wins Manthan South Asia Award
ICT for Peacebuilding (ICT4Peace) reports that the Sri Lankan citizen journalism platform “Groundviews” has won the prestigious Manthan Award for South Asia under the e-news category.
Russia: Popular Blogger Would Be Glad If Russian Authorities Restrict Internet

Popular Russian blogger and activist Roman Dobrokhotov talks to GVO about the Internet and online activism in the country.