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Nepal: Mohammed textbook banned

The Nepalese government has banned a social studies textbook after complaints from Muslim groups.  The book has been criticised for including factual inaccuracies and an "erroneous interpretation" of Islam:  one particular illustration is alleged...

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Michael Jackson libel case costs Channel 4 £1.7m‎

Michael Jackson’s former bodyguard, Matthew Fiddes, discontinued his libel case against Channel 4 yesterday (21 June). Fiddes, had been arguing that Cutting Edge documentary The Jackson’s Are Coming, which followed Tito and Katherine Jackson moving...

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Cambodia: Government ban critical film

The Cambodian authorities have blocked a new documentary that indicts the government in the assassination of an outspoken trade union leader. Who Killed Chea Vichea? argues that Vichea, who championed better pay and working conditions for local...

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Ukraine: Two TV stations taken off air

The broadcast licences of TV5 Kanal and TVi have been cancelled by the courts. The two stations are regarded as being critical of President Viktor Yanukovych’s administration. The day before this decision was taken, journalists at TV5 Kanal...

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Turkish journalist fined for calling judge officious

A writer for Sabah newspaper writer has been fined TL 5,000 (€ 2500) for describing a judge as "officious."Nazli Ilicak was found guilty of "attacking personal rights" in the article from 25 May 2009 entitled "The President's immunity." Ilicak had...

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Writer Zhang Jianhong released on medical parole

Zhang Jianhong, prominent writer and member of the Independent Chinese PEN Centre, was released on medical parole on 5 June.  Zhang was sentenced to six years in prison in March 2007  for writing articles critical of the government. He had been...

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Ghana: Editor claims he was tortured

The editor of the Banjul-based The Independent newspaper, Musa Saidykhan, has informed judges that the people who tortured him in a 2006 incident were members of President Yahya Jammeh's security forces.  On 3 June a community court heard that the...

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Turkey tightens Kurdish censorship

Three members of the pro-Kurdish Democratic Society Party were sentenced to six months each for speaking Kurdish in an election campaign. Although the election campaigners claimed to have welcomed the meeting in Kurdish, they were sentenced...

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Gambia: Newspaper website blocked

Editors of the US-based newspaper Gambia Echo have seen access to their website from within Gambia blocked by the country's government. In a letter sent to the US State Department on June 4, the imprint's editor-in-chief claims the move is part of...

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Belarus: ‘Morality officials’ censor Elton John

The Belarusian "Public Council of Morality" have attempted to tone down any suggestion of homosexuality during Elton John's imminent performance in Minsk. State officials have asked the singer's management for early Elton albums to ensure that they...

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Turkey blocks access to Google sites

In addition to blocking Youtube, Turkey has now blocked access to various Google functions. The High Council for Telecommunications has revealed that since June 2010, Turkish internet service providers have been instructed to block Youtube-linked...

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