Asia and Pacific Archives - Page 55 of 196

How India censored one of its own websites

by Mahima Kaul | 20 Feb 2013

India’s University Grants Commission (UGC), amongst its other responsibilities, determines and maintains the standards of institutions of higher education in India. As a part of this duty, it had warned students that an institution called IIPM (Indian Institute of Planning and Management) is not a recognised university and does not have the right to issue certificates. The message on the commission’s website has now been blocked, following an interim court order by the Gwalior High Court in relation to a case filed by one of the companies owned by IIPM’s head — Arindam Chaudhuri — seeking to block defamatory content against his institution. The UGC site is not the only website affected by the order. On 15 February, the Department of […]

How a fatwa stopped the all-girl rock

by Mahima Kaul | 8 Feb 2013

The teenaged members of Kashmiri all-girl band Pragaash decided to shelve their music career after being harassed online, and a fatwa issued against them. Mahima Kaul reports on how the controversy has unfolded Following a live performance at a...

India’s flourishing offence industry hits literary festival – again

by Mahima Kaul | 31 Jan 2013

A few days before the now-famous (and perhaps infamous) Japiur Literature festival, the only thing most people thought they knew was that Salman Rushdie's potential visit was being blocked, this time by elements of the Indian People's Party (BJP)...

Internet freedom in India – open to debate

by Kirsty Hughes | 22 Jan 2013

In the aftermath of an Index on Censorship debate New Delhi, Kirsty Hughes says India’s web users are standing at a crossroads

What is Bollywood’s role in changing Indian attitudes to women?

by Sara Yasin | 21 Jan 2013

Could greater control over Bollywood help reverse a culture of female objectification in India? No, argues Mahima Kaul, but the roles of women in Bollywood films could still do with a makeover

The modern Big Brothers

by Mike Harris | 19 Jan 2013

Autocratic, authoritarian and totalitarian states take it upon themselves to actively stifle freedom of expression. These states can look very different – “socialist” North Korea may seem very different to “theocratic” Iran, but even with vastly differing cultures and political landscapes, we can draw similarities between the methods used by these regimes to suffocate and in some cases entirely suppress free speech

Kazakhstan crackdown set to continue

by Saule Mukhametrakhimova | 18 Jan 2013

Kazakh prosecutors last month achieved international notoriety, as they sought to close eight newspapers and 23 web sites, and sued Google, Facebook, Twitter, and LiveJournal. Journalists in the country fear that this latest crackdown will destroy...

Chinese journalists back at work after “tacit agreement” with censors

by Index on Censorship | 16 Jan 2013

After a week of protests and walkouts over a censored Near Year editorial, and rigorous calls for press freedom, journalists at China’s Southern Weekly have gone back to work. A normal edition of the paper was published last Thursday. Outrage over...

The mechanics of China’s internet censorship

by Index on Censorship | 9 Jan 2013

Even rainstorms can be sensitive in China. The recent storm in Beijing which killed at least 77 people caused the censors to come out in force, with newspapers told to can coverage and online accounts of the deluge snipped. But with 500 million...

Southern Weekly censorship causes nationwide condemnation

by Index on Censorship | 7 Jan 2013

A propaganda chief has caused widespread outrage by censoring a Chinese newspaper's New Year editorial. Southern Weekly, one of the most daring media outlets in the country, has fought back and attracted the support of netizens as well as ordinary...

CATEGORY: Asia and Pacific