8 Jan 2008 | Comment
Liberal Democrat MP Dr Evan Harris will tomorrow table an amendment to the Criminal Justice and Immigration Bill calling for the abolition of ‘blasphemous libel’. Here, Terry Sanderson of the National Secular Society explains why such a crime has no place in a liberal society
Religion in Britain was, until relatively recently, sinking quietly into oblivion. It was suffering a lingering death brought on by utter indifference.
But now, suddenly, it is on the front page of the newspapers just about every day of the week. It often leads on the news and its ubiquity is beginning to alert even the most news-averse citizen that something extraordinary, and quite alarming, is going on. (more…)
6 Dec 2007
Bridging the gap between the monitoring of abuse and effective advocacy for change through facilitation, research, publication, advocacy and new commissioned works.
Index on Censorship is internationally renowned for bringing leading thinkers from the creative communities to tackle the key issues of free expression, as the practitioners most often affected by censorship and most often least protected.
At the same time Index is respected for its rigorous documentation of free expression rights abuses, in partnership with free speech groups in some of the world’s most complex and dangerous regions. This unique combination of research skill and literary intelligence underpins 36 years of effective, timely and valued contributions to the free expression debate. It makes Index simply more accessible, relevant and authoritative on the issues than most media and think tanks.
- Facilitation: Index is an invaluable international partner when it comes to bridging the gap between human rights monitoring and effective advocacy for peaceful change. We give practical support for project development, fundraising, publication, advocacy and local capacity building. This year we are taking a key role in the development of the World Forum for Free Expression, to be held in Oslo and the Amsterdam World Book Capital events in 2009, in particular facilitating the involvement of international experts and advocacy groups; developing project concepts to support Burmese artists, writers and performers as well as media workers.
- Research: Index analyses how and why free speech is filtered and mediated, how the perceptions and positions of opposing communities are represented. This way the positive results of the process can be encouraged, and the negative ones contextualised and challenged – not censored. This year we are researching the links between public politics and the generation of hatred for short term political gain in countries like Turkey, Sri Lanka, Russia, Kenya and Zimbabwe; the cultivation of fear and hate in times of conflict through the spoken and published word, especially in the Middle East; how societies in conflict such as Ireland, Israel, Palestine and South Africa can be dividing or united by open debate on history and heritage; and a study of censorship of creative communities that challenge dissent, in countries like Burma, Iran, Zimbabwe and China.
- Publication: Index plays a key role in the formulation of balanced cases to underpin local campaigns for change, as a respected multi-lingual publisher in print and online and by organizing events to raise awareness or gather key actors and practitioners in free debate. We plan the publication of an updated edition of an Arabic language training guide to election coverage for reporters in the Middle East; publication of a special report on Censorship in the Maghreb; an extensive research, publication and related events programme to inform media industry debate surrounding the national regulation of the Iraqi media; continuing a three year programme to develop an Arabic language edition of Index on Censorship.
- Advocacy: We closely coordinate activities with our many international local partners so that the ideas generated and opinions heard can inform their own advocacy campaigns for peaceful change and fundamental rights to free expression, especially in societies in conflict. This work includes developing a programme of monitoring, publication and advocacy in defence of Latin American journalists facing deadly threats from drug gangs, insurgents and paramilitaries on behalf of a consortium of local media rights groups. We are also developing a programme in support of independent media and judicial groups in the Magreb.
- New works: Index on Censorship works internationally to support the creation of new work, not only articles for print and online, but also new photography, film & video, visual arts and performance – using the act of free expression to defend the right to free expression itself. This includes a European exhibition of Open Shutters, photostories produced by women in Iraq); developing a participatory online arts project for refugees and IDPs in the Middle East based on the participatory exchange of stories and images by mobile phone.
1 Dec 2007
CYBERSPEECH: FREE EXPRESSION ONLINE
NEWS
WAR GAMES
Alex De Waal: Saving Darfur is a mission with its own agenda
HOSTAGE TO A STORYLINE
Kamila Shamsie: Pakistan is struggling to escape from its image
SPEECH CONTROL
Maleiha Malik: History can teach us lessons about race hate laws
FIRST PERSON
DIARY OF A PROTEST
Leo Murray: Nineteen days in the life of an environmental activist
CYBERSPEECH
TRADING FREE SPEECH
Jon Garvie: The end of censorship?
DON TAPSCOTT
Future Web: The N-Generation
ONLY CONNECT
Andrew Wasley: The web has revolutionised activism
THE HAZARDS OF DISSENT
Ethio-Zagol: Blogging in Ethiopia is a risky enterprise
MEREDITH’S MISTAKE
Richard Morgan: You can’t take humans out of the equation
IRAN PROXY
Future Web: Censorship bypass
EVASION TACTICS
Nart Villeneuve: The challenges to online freedom
ONE MAN’S ANARCHY
Siarhei Sys: Belarus is tightening its grip
XENI JARDIN
Future Web: Exporting censorship
USERS + TOOLS = JOURNALISM
Emily Bell: Technology is driving the future of news
GHANA UNBOUND
Nii Ayikwei Parkes: The web is shifting taboos and traditions
DOWNLOADING EVIL
Stan Cohen: A test for the limits of tolerance
TRUST ME, I’M A WEBSITE
Bill Thompson: Time to rethink privacy
CHRONICLE OF DISSENT
Paying the penalty for free expression online
THEY KNOW WHERE YOU ARE
Gus Hosein: It’s getting easier for governments to track us
ONLINE ON MESSAGE
David Weinberger: Political speech isn’t what it used to be
SHAVA NERAD
Future Web: Getting the word out
ROAD TO JIHAD
Shiraz Maher: A new generation of extremists is in the making
TAKING ON THE RADICALS
David Livingstone: It’s going to take cyber tactics, not censorship
Martin Rowsom – Stripsearch
SHIFTING BORDERS
Steven Murdoch & Ross Anderson: Utopia hasn’t materialised
LINDEN LAB
Future Web: Virtual worlds
A BREACH IN THE WALL
Yetaai: Standing up to censorship in China
JIMMY WALES
Future Web: Setting knowledge
EVERYTHING YOU WANTED TO KNOW ABOUT MEDIA LAW
BALANCING ACTS
Geoffrey Robertson & Andrew Nicol: The state of press freedom in the UK
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29 Nov 2007 | Comment, News
As President Musharraf announces that he will end Pakistan’s state of emergency on 16 December, Shirin B Sadeghi looks at how the media has responded to the crackdown
When President Pervez Musharraf declared a state of emergency on 3 November, one of the first casualties was the independent media.
Having shut down every broadcasting station but state run television, Musharraf’s government proceeded to raid the offices of independent news channels such as Geo News and Aaj television. Phone lines were cut, some stations reported jamming, and there were threats of long jail terms for broadcasters who would not comply. Hundreds of journalists were arrested. But two independent news channels continued to broadcast live. Geo News and ARY One World transmitted broadcasts from their bureaus in Dubai. The predictable surge in satellite dish purchases after the state of emergency was quickly followed by a government ban, but nonetheless Geo and ARY remained accessible within Pakistan.
(more…)
