Stories about Freedom of Speech from July, 2010
India: From Stone Pelting In Kashmir Streets To Facebook Protests
Indian administered Kashmir valleys are boiling over tensions and rage against Indian security forces over killing of a number of young protesters. An SMS ban ensued to stop rumors and Kashmiri youths are increasingly relying on social media tools to share news and carry on with their protests amidst crack down on them.
Brazil: Electoral Blogsphere Censored
Censorship in the Brazilian blogsphere is an extremely sensitive issue due to a dictatorship past when it was legal. As the presidential elections of 2010 approach, the siege tightens and bloggers react.
China: Police's call to set up censorship norms
Beijing City Chaoyang district police station issued an urgent notice today regarding "Calling for a working meeting on the security norm of Internet Company". Jason Ng tweetcasts the talk on censorship norms in the meeting.
Azerbaijan: Facebook shuts down Scary Azeri?
Much to the astonishment of her many fans, Scary Azeri says that she thinks her Facebook fan page has possibly been shut down by the popular social networking site. The popular blogger, whose often unique posts have featured highly in Global Voices’ Caucasus section and who was interviewed by this...
Côte d'Ivoire: Blogger and Journalist Théophile Kouamouo Arrested with his Team since July 13th
Three journalists of Le Nouveau Courrier d'Abidjan were taken into police custody when they refused to disclose sources for an investigative report on the coffee and cocoa export trade. Here are reactions from citizens and media in Côte d'Ivoire as the three colleagues are still fighting for their release.
Cuba: Looking In from the Outside
Generation Y tells the story “a Communist Party member, academic, and specialist on issues relating to the United States, [who] had the dangerous idea of writing an article against corruption”, saying: “Those ousted eventually realize that those they used to consider the ‘enemy,’ could at some point prove to be...
Southeast Asia: Sex and web censorship
Regulating internet content today is viewed as an anti-democratic practice but Southeast Asian governments seem able to justify it by invoking the need to save the young from the scourge of indecent sexual behavior.
Guinea: Elections change media landscape
Elections in Guinea are changing the media landscape in the country: “Since last month, the military-led Transitional National Council has passed two new laws decriminalizing defamation and created a new media regulatory body.”
Brazil: Call for the First Progressive Bloggers Meeting
Conceição Lemes in Viomundo calls on bloggers for the 1st Progressive Bloggers Meeting, to take place in São Paulo in 21-22 August [pt]. The meeting will gather bloggers from all over the country in order to share experiences on freedom of speech, politics, and democracy in the Brazilian society, in...
Venezuela: Documents Reveal US Funding to Venezuelan Media
Eva Golinger writes: “US State Department documents declassified under the Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) evidence more than $4 million USD in funding to journalists and private media in Venezuela during the last three years. This funding is part of the more than $40 million USD international agencies are investing...
Philippines: Discrimination Against Filipinos in Baltimore Hospital
Four Filipina staffers of the Bon Secours Baltimore Health System in Baltimore City were recently fired from their jobs for speaking Filipino during their lunch break. Bloggers share their views on the issue.
Singapore: Political film removed from youtube
Martyn See was ordered by Singapore's Media Development Authority to remove the political film he uploaded on youtube. The film was banned by the government but Singaporean netizens have already widely distributed it in many sites.
Zimbabwe: Mugabe controls the media
Bev Clark argues that Zimbabweans shouldn’t pay their TV or radio licences and why companies shouldn’t advertise on state-controlled media because of government control of the media.
Cuba: A Different Kind of Prison?
The Cuban Triangle wants to know: “Are the releases unconditional? Spanish officials and Church authorities say they are. We will know for sure in due course, as we’re beginning to see reports that some of the prisoners are saying they want to remain in Cuba.”
China: Green Dam-Youth Escort closed down
ESWN translated Beijing Times‘ news story about the shutting of Green Dam-Youth Escort Software Project in the Beijing Huajie Building. Last year, the Chinese government insisted that all personal computers had to install the censor software.
Côte d'Ivoire:3 Journalists Including Théophile Kouamouo Arrested for Posting Classified Documents on Coffee and Cocoa
Reporters Sans Frontières (RSF) reports that three journalists were arrested on July 13th in Abidjan, Côte d'Ivoire for publishing classified documents regarding coffee and cocoa production [Fr]. Among them is Théophile Kouamouo, the founder of Abidjan Blog Camps, a Rising Voices project grantee. Here is a petition to show support...
Cuba: Biscet Stays
“Oscar Elias Biscet, perhaps the best-known political prisoner in the Cuban gulag, has refused to take exile in Spain as a condition of his release from prison”: Uncommon Sense reports.
Russia: Priest's Blog Hacked
While police denied to start investigation [RUS] of the hack attack of Maxim Sviridenkov's blog [EN], one more blog had been hacked [RUS]. This time the victim of “Hacker Hell” (alleged Bonn-based hacker Sergey Maksimov) is Yakov Krotov [EN], a priest and a publicist. Content of both his LJ-account and personal site krotov.info had been...
Google to Resume Search Service in China
Josie worries that Google will start filtering search result again after the renewal of Internet Service License in China.
United Kingdom: Video Tagging to protest Nokia's Actions in Iran
Reverse the Wave is a blog by Ms.Deena DeNaro-Bickerstaffe, an artist who is “video tagging” public buildings with documentary footage from the Iranian election protests in 2009 to draw attention to Nokia's sale of technology used for surveillance by the Iranian government.
Cameroon: The Death of Pius Njawé, a Freedom of Speech Pioneer
Blogger Allain Jules gives a vibrant homage to Pius Njawé, a legendary Cameroonian journalist who passed away on July 12th [Fr].
