Archive for March, 2011
Thursday, March 31st, 2011
Reuters has
announced that two of their reporters are missing in Syria. Jordanian correspondent, Suleiman al Khalidi, was detainted by the Syrian authorities on Tuesday, while Syrian photographer, Khaled al Hariri, has been out of contact since Monday. The disappearances follow the
detention of two of Reuters television journalists who were
released by the Syrian authorities on Monday and expelled to Lebanon. Editor in chief Stephen Adler has expressed his concern for the whereabouts of Khalidi and Hariri and has stated “We call upon the Syrian authorities to help us urgently in ensuring their safe and timely release.”
Thursday, March 31st, 2011
A Turkish court has
denied an appeal of a court order for the confiscation of the unpublished book “İmamın Ordusu” or The Imams Army, written by politically outspoken (and arrested) journalist Ahmet Şık. The court claimed that the unpublished draft had been edited by Ergenekon, the alleged coup-plotting organization, and declared the manuscript to be an “illegal organizational document.” Last week the police were
ordered to seize multiple copies of the document by the court. Anyone who has refused to hand over copies of the draft is to be charged with ”aiding and abetting a criminal organization.”
Thursday, March 31st, 2011
Belarusian authorities have filed charges against journalist Andrzej Poczobut. Poczobut works for the Polish newspaper, Gazeta Wyborcza. He is charged with insulting the Belarusian President Aleksandr Lukashenko in articles that were published in the newspaper and on a Belurasian news website, Belarussky Partizan. The charges against Poczobut could result in a two year prison sentence if convicted. Poczobut, who has faced harrasment at the hands of Belarusian authorities before, including being arrested, insisted that he would not leave the country despite the persecution.
Wednesday, March 30th, 2011
Two journalists, José Luis Cerda Meléndez and Luis Emanuel Ruíz Carrillo, have been
murdered in the northern state of Nuevo León. Cerda was a television host on national channel Televisa, which has been subjected to several armed
attacks. Ruíz was a reporter for a daily newspaper in Coahuila. Ruíz was visiting the area to interview Cerda. They were both
forced into a car outside the Televisa station, along with Juan Roberto Gómez, Ruíz’s cousin . The bodies of Ruíz and Cerda were
discovered the next day by the freeway, accompanied by a note which read: “Stop co-operating with Los Zetas. Signed DCG. Greetings architect No. 1”. Two criminals have now allegedly
stolen Cerda’s body. The police have
declined to intervene.
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Category Index Index, minipost, News and Analysis | Tags: Tags: José Luis Cerda Meléndez, journalists kidnapped, journalists murdered, Los Zetas, Luis Emanuel Ruíz Carrillo, Mexico, press freedom, Televisa,
Wednesday, March 30th, 2011
After a performance in the House of Commons in support of Belarus’s imprisoned opposition activists and journalists, Denis MacShane warns the leaders of Europe’s last dictatorship that justice plays a long game
(more…)
Tuesday, March 29th, 2011
Please join us in celebrating the launch of the new series of Manifestos for the 21st Century, published by Seagull Books in association with Index on Censorship.
Join us for a drinks reception on 1 April from 6.30-8.30 at the Free Word Centre, 60 Farringdon Road, London, EC1R 3GA
Please RSVP to natasha
indexoncensorship
org (natashaindexoncensorshiporg)
020 7324 2525
*****
Free expression is as high on the agenda as it has ever been, though not always for the happiest of reasons. The Manifestos for the 21st Century series takes a fresh, inquisitive look at censorship and free speech — from sexuality to literature to the growing culture of offence and religion.
In the new series:
Stefan Collini’s Offence: Criticism, Identity, Respect looks at the common claim that criticising others’ beliefs is inherently offensive. Have the central tenets of enlightened global politics undermined our ability to speak freely and encourage challenging debate?
http://www.guardianbookshop.co.uk/BerteShopWeb/viewProduct.do?ISBN=9781906497798
In Humanitarian Assistance?, Neil Middleton considers the relationship between political agendas and humanitarian aid in times of conflict, looking at the recent histories of Haiti, Sudan and Somalia
PLUS:
History Thieves by Zinovy Zinik
Identity, politics and free expression in Who Do You Think You Are? by Andrew Graham-Yooll
And Trust: Money, markets and society by Geoffrey Hosking
Tuesday, March 29th, 2011
Belarusian politician Ales Mikhalevich has been
granted political refugee
status in the Czech Republic. He was
imprisoned after
running against Alexander Lukashenko in Belarus’ presidential elections. He claims that he was tortured in the custody of secret police, and was stripped naked and hung by his hands. Mikhalevich was one of the seven other candidates
arrested during pro-democracy protests which saw more than 700 people detained.
Tuesday, March 29th, 2011
Reporters Aleksandr Lomashkin and Ales Asiptsu were
arrested in separate incidents on Thursday, 24 March. Both were detained on the eve of
“Freedom Day”, an unofficial holiday traditionally
celebrated by members of the opposition. Lomashkin is a Russian journalist who worked in Belarus and founded the human rights website
Svoboda. He was forced to get off a train at the Belarusian border and was searched by two officers who claimed that they were looking for drugs. He was
arrested for “insulting an officer” and imprisoned for three days. Asipstu is an independent Belarusian journalist who was also arrested for allegedly “urinating in a public place.”
