Stories about Freedom of Speech from April, 2011
Cuba: Fonseca Released
“The publicity on Facebook, Twitter and blogs only intensified…”: Uncommon Sense says that the release of Cuban human rights activist Sara Martha Fonseca “is a victory for freedom.”
China: The Murder Case of Yao Jiaxin
Over the past few months, the cold-blooded murder of a young woman, Zhang Miao, by affluent music student Yao Jiaxin, has been the most heated topic on the Chinese Internet. On the eve of the verdict in the murder trial, propaganda authorities have demanded that all media outlets use the Xinhua report as their only news source, as well as to monitor all related online discussions.
China: Facebook's PR strategy
Bill Bishop at DigiCha and Imagethief's Will Moss ruminate on Facebook's PR strategy as speculation grows over the social networking site's possible entry into the Chinese market.
Azerbaijan: Protest to demand journalist's release
Mark Grigorian [RU] posts photographs of today's protest demonstration outside the Azerbaijani Embassy in London in support of imprisoned journalist and Amnesty International prisoner of conscience Eynulla Fatullayev. Marking the...
India: Twitter, The Life Changer
Venkat Ananth at Blogadda writes how twitter has changed his life: “twitter has been a supremely humbling experience for me not just because of the fact that ‘a nobody’ got...
Russia: Reactions to Freedom House Internet report
LJ user dolboeb discusses [RU] how Russia is portrayed in the recent Freedom House report on Freedom on the Net 2011.
Cuba: Communist Party Ushers in Entrepreneurism and Term Limits
For the minority of Cubans who are within it, the blogosphere provides a space to exchange ideas. And there were plenty prompts for discussion this week, with the Castro brothers holding the first Congress of its Communist party since 1997 (it is supposed to be every five years) and announcing term limits for leadership on the island.
Cuba: Women as Soldiers?
Octavo Cerco is irritated by a sign which suggests that “we Cuban women form a battalion for the defense of the fatherland”, saying: “It bothers me greatly that the multiple...
Cuba: The More Things “Change”
Uncommon Sense finds recent announcements about reform in Cuba ironic in the context of developments like these.
Algeria: A Sit-In for Reporter Khaled Sid Mohand, Detained in Syria
A group of journalist, members of the MJIC and a few leaders of the FFS organised a protest in front of the Syrian embassy in Algiers in solidarity with reporter...
Madagascar: Censorship Comes in Different Shapes and Sizes
Blogger Achille52 reviews the state of media and free speech in Madagascar (fr), detailing the different manners in which bloggers are harassed (also explained in an Amnesty International report). He...
Global: Bloggers Take Issue with Anti-Niqaab Punditry
On April 16, 2011, France's ban on the niqaab and burqa went into effect, re-stirring emotions on the subject and sparking protests in the European country and beyond. In cyberspace, bloggers are taking issue with popular pundits on the subject, focusing particular attention on Egyptian journalist Mona Eltahawy's pro-niqaab ban stance.
Bhutan: What's Good With The Facebook Ban At Office?
“Wasting time on Facebook is Not the problem, it is a symptom of a greater problem,” opines Dipika while discussing about the efficacy of the Facebook ban at some offices.
Mexico: Felipe Calderon's Cabinet on Twitter
In mid-April, the government headed by Felipe Calderon announced with much fanfare that every member of the cabinet was now registered on Twitter, and prepared to deal more directly with the public via social media. The initiative, however, is shadowed by a concurrent report ranking Mexico just 78th out of 133 countries in terms of its effective use of information technology.
How China reports the Arab world
David Bandurski from China Media Project has translated al-Jazeera‘s chief correspondent, Ezzat Shahrour's excellent blog post raising questions on Chinese media's reports on the Arab world.
Azerbaijan: The ‘Terror’ of Tiny Town
Tamada Tales comments on the detention of a small child and her mother at an opposition protest in Baku on Sunday. Captured on video uploaded to YouTube and shared online,...
Ukraine: Kyiv Post Editorial Staff on Strike
Democratist writes about the situation with Kyiv Post, an English-language newspaper whose staff went on strike last week to protest the publisher's decision to fire the editor-in-chief over the publication...
China: Sunday Night Political Chat
Chinese academic and Internet celebrity Yu Jianrong found time during a recent visit to the United States to talk about China's current political climate amid the long string of recent arrests, and the country's future direction, bringing the discussion onto his microblog account late Sunday night.
Uzbekistan: President's daughter sues French publication
Joshua Foust opines on the news that the daughter of Uzbekistan’s authoritarian ruler Islam Karimov filed suit against the French website Rue89.com over an article that identified her father as...
Russia: Art Group “Voina” and Innovation 2010 Prize
RussiaWatchers writes in detail about Art Group Voina, whose “phallus on the Liteiny bridge opposite to St. Petersburg FSB headquarters has been awarded the Innovation 2010 prize for best visual...
Equatorial Guinea: Few, but Strong Virtual Voices
In Equatorial Guinea, where only 2% of the population has access to the Internet, and there are about 11,000 Facebook users and two known blogs. Juan Tomás Ávila Laurel and Eyi Nguema are the only bloggers writing in Equatorial Guinea. For them, blogging is a true commitment with democracy.
