As the international community looks forward to the Eurovision Song Contest, Azerbaijan is working hard to present itself as a modern, democratic country. But a new report from Index and partners paints a very different picture
Swaziland’s justice minister has told the country’s senate that the government is finalising a law that would make it illegal to criticise the King Mswati III on social media networks. “We will be tough on those who write bad things about the king on Twitter and Facebook,” Mgwagwa Gamedze said. Internet penetration is low in Swaziland, Africa’s last absolute monarchy, but social networks have been used to organise public demonstrations, including a student protest last Monday against funding cuts. Last week Swazi senator Thuli Msane claimed online activism was spiralling out of control and disrespecting Mswati III.
A Bangladesh court last week ordered government authorities to shut down five Facebook pages and a website for blasphemous content. Judges at the high court in Dhaka ordered the telecommunications regulator, home ministry officials and police to block the offending content after two university lecturers filed a lawsuit complaining that the pages and the site were hurting people’s religious sentiments. The pages were deemed to contain “disparaging remarks and cartoons” about the Prophet Mohammed, Jesus, the Koran, Lord Buddha and Hindu gods. In 2010, Facebook was temporarily blocked on charges of malicious propaganda against the Prime Minister and hurting religious feelings.
Censorship in Pakistan has ranged from the ridiculous to the downright terrifying. But as the country entered a new phase in 1983, Salman Rushdie hoped for change
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