Arundhati Roy has been accused of sedition after claiming Kashmir was not part of India. Her comments may be controversial, but the real scandal is the law, says Salil Tripathi
Sedition? Arundhati Roy reacts
CATEGORY: News and features
Azerbaijan: Journalists on hunger strike
Ahead of a key poll, Azerbaijani journalists join jailed editor Eynulla Fatullayev on hunger strike. Vugar Gojayev
Read our new report Azerbaijan: Free expression under attack
Turkey: BlackBerry faces ban
Research in Motion (RIM) faces a ban of BlackBerry data services in Turkey if it doesn’t obey new legislation requiring companies to hand over communication encryption keys to Information and Communication Technologies Authority. The new...
Egypt: Opposition supporters detained
Security forces in Alexandria have arrested over 50 people hanging posters in support of the Muslim Brotherhood. The Brotherhood is banned from putting up electoral candidates but circumvents the restrictions by fielding candidates as independents....
Russia fined for banning gay pride marches
European Court of Human Rights has fined Russia for repeatedly refusing activists the right to hold gay pride marches. The Moscow authorities claimed the parade would cause a violent reaction, but the court said Russia has discriminated against the...
Yemen: Press freedom a distant hope
A Yemeni journalist accused of advising an Al-Qaeda cleric alleges he was kidnapped and tortured by the state. Iona Craig reports
Clarke to “scrap no-win no-fee”
Justice Secretary Kenneth Clarke has said he will abolish conditional fee agreements in libel cases. Speaking on the BBC's Law in Action programme, Clarke also said he would back a strong public interest defence in defamation cases. Read more here
Bush House blues
What does the future hold for the World Service? Adrienne van Heteren writes from within an institution still seen as beacon of trustworthiness around the world
Mexico: Laws to protect journalists improved
Legislators in the state of Ciudad Juarez have voted to impose life sentences on the perpetrators of a wide-range of crimes, including murdering journalists. A life sentence for those who kill journalists will be applied only if the victim dies in...
Mexico’s narcomedia takes over
Now the drug cartels make their own news, forcing video confessions of corruption, murder and collaboration at gunpoint. Ana Arana reports