18 Jun 2013 | In the News
CHINA
Chinese Studio Head Wang Zhonglei Discusses Censorship
Originally, Huayi Brothers was set to launch its 2013-14 slate at Cannes – but somehow plans changed and the company decided to unveil its slate in a lavish press conference a day before the opening of the Shanghai International Film Festival’s market. It’s a pretty diverse mix: two dark Jackie Chan films and left-of-field projects from non-mainland and young directors – not to mention the earlier-announced presence of David Ayer’s Fury, a Brad Pitt-headlining World War II drama about U.S. soldiers in a tank trying to fight off their German counterparts.
(The Hollywood Reporter)
ECUADOR
Ecuador: End Assault on Free Speech
The Communications Law that the Ecuadorian National Assembly approved on June 14, 2013, seriously undermines free speech. The law includes overly broad language that will limit the free expression of journalists and media outlets.
(Human Rights Watch)
EUROPEAN UNION
US cyberspying damages trust, European Union leaders say
Europe’s top privacy watchdog and the digital agenda commissioner both said Monday that more transparency and trust is needed between the European Union and the U.S. following reports of widespread data collection by the U.S. National Security Agency.
(PC World)
GERMANY
DW – a broadcaster in its prime
Deutsche Welle has celebrated its 60th anniversary, with speakers affirming the broadcaster’s commitment to freedom of expression and for shaping Germany’s global image.
(DW)
LIBYA
In Libya, chaos is taking a toll on freedom of press, speech
Shortly after Libyan leader Moammar Gadhafi was toppled in 2011, a 31-year-old activist had a tattoo put on his arm with the date marking the start of the uprising and rebranded himself a journalist.
(The Kansas City Star)
MEXICO
Is the Mexican Government Failing to Protect Journalists?
Anabel Hernandez thinks so, and fears for her life
(VICE)
TURKEY
Turkey’s Deputy Prime Minister Bulent Arinc threatens to dispatch army to quell protests
Thousands take part in rallies across the country to demand an end to the police crackdown
(The Independent)
BBC ends Turkish partnership in censorship row
As the protests in Istanbul against the Turkish Government show no signs of abating any time soon, the BBC has become embroiled in a censorship row with Turkish nationwide television news channel NTV to whom it supplies content.
(Rapid TV News)
UNITED KINGDOM
MoD serves news outlets with D notice over surveillance leaks
Defence officials issued a confidential D notice to the BBC and other media groups in an attempt to censor coverage of surveillance tactics employed by intelligence agencies in the UK and US.
(The Guardian)
Demonstrating “a load of cock” to censorship-crazed UK MP Claire Perry
The British Government is determined to be seen to be doing something (anything, really) about pornography online. The current incarnation of “something must be done; there, we did something!” is based on blaming “Internet companies” for not doing enough to prevent children from seeing porn, and demanding an expansion of the existing program of blocking a secret and unaccountable blacklists.
(Boing Boing)
UNITED STATES
Communication surveillance undermines privacy, freedom of expression
The widespread use of surveillance technologies to monitor peoples’ communications violates the human rights to privacy and freedom of expression, the UN’s Special Rapporteur on Freedom of Expression and Opinion stated in his report.
(The Final Call)
Gagged by Big Ag
Horrific abuse. Rampant contamination. And the crime is…exposing it?
(Mother Jones)
OR lawmakers to Congress: Corporate political spending shouldn’t be free speech
The Oregon Legislature is considering a proposal that urges Congress to amend the constitution to say that corporations do not have the same rights as people.
(NW Watchdog)
Freedom of Speech on Campus Threatened by Departments of Education and Justice Policy
Alliance Defending Freedom sent the U.S. Departments of Justice and Education a letter Thursday explaining the constitutional problems with an administration “sexual harassment” policy agreement that will serve as a “blueprint” for colleges and universities throughout the country. A coalition of religious, conservative, and independent student and faculty organizations signed the letter.
(Catholic Education Daily)
More Free Expression in the News
June 17 | June 14 | June 13 | June 12 | June 11 | June 10
17 Jun 2013 | In the News
CANADA
Free speech doesn’t cover libel or slander, in any language
It was back in 2006 that Vancouver lawyer Roger McConchie warned in a CanWest News Service interview that libel cases were on the increase in Canada and that the Internet was “the single most important reason for the increase.” His law firm, McConchie Law Corp., has kept track of Canadian cases since the first Internet libel suit was launched in 1995, with one Julian Fantino awarded $40,000 in damages.
(Times Colonist)
CHINA
Is Hong Kong really free or does Beijing call the shots
The flight of a government whistle-blower – or possible fugitive from justice – to the quasi-democratic Chinese enclave of Hong Kong has given this former British colony a bit of free PR.
(Patriot-News)
EGYPT
Egyptian Politician: Jews Use Human Blood for Passover Matzos
The Muslim world is keeping the centuries old “matzah blood libel” alive and well – even in Egypt, with which Israel has a peace treaty.
(Arutz Sheva 7)
EUROPEAN UNION
EU deal to protect film, TV, sets the stage for transatlantic trade pact
Compromise protecting film, TV from market liberalisation permits progress on transatlantic talks but could stoke protectionism in US
(South China Morning Post)
INDIA
EU not ready to give India ‘data secure’ status
The European Union has picked holes in India’s data security system and suggested that a joint expert group be set up to propose ways on how the country should tighten measures to qualify as a data secure nation.
(The Hindu)
MIDDLE EAST
Lifting of censorship boosts Arab media
Lifting of media censorship in Arab Spring countries has boosted local channels which have stepped into the role Aljazeera had been playing in the region for years, according to a new book.
(The Peninsula)
UNITED KINGDOM
Met chief ‘faces libel claim over Plebgate’
Britain’s most senior police officer faces being called to testify on oath over leaks in the Andrew Mitchell ‘Plebgate’ affair.
(Daily Mail)
The home of free speech closes down for NSA whistleblower Edward Snowden
The news that the Government is trying to prevent whistleblower Edward Snowden from travelling to this country by telling airlines not to accept him as a passenger has made me furious.
(The Independent)
DIY YouTube directors to self-regulate under new censorship scheme
Film watchdogs in three countries including UK are to pilot a program in which amateur video-makers can self-regulate
(The Observer)
UNITED STATES
First Amendment Ban on ‘gruesome images’ threatens free speech
For those of us who worry about the vitality of free speech in the “land of the free,” recent news isn’t good. On June 10, the U.S. Supreme Court refused to review a Colorado appeals court decision banning anti-abortion activists from displaying “gruesome images” of mutilated fetuses that might be seen by children.
(Pantagraph)
14 Jun 2013 | In the News
GLOBAL
Q&A: “Media Concentration Is an Attack on Democracy”
“We have to understand that information, above all else, is a social service. If we lose sight of that dimension we begin to regulate it as merchandise, but the state has many other obligations, such as to guarantee freedom,” said Frank La Rue.
(European Daily Express)
AFRICA
MFWA Highlights Major Threats to Press Freedom in West Africa
Armed conflicts, violent activities of fundamentalist groups and drug cartels and general intolerance for free expression among a number of governments have been highlighted as major threats to the advancement of press freedom in the West African region.
(AllAfrica.com)
AUSTRALIA
Success for Vivid but lingering fears over censorship
Vivid festival has ended as a spectacular success with a record-breaking attendance in Sydney, but behind the scenes the relationship between the popular event and photojournalism festival Reportage has soured amid accusations of censorship and breaches of contract.
(The Guardian)
IRAN
Hacker Says Iranian Censorship Can Be Bypassed
An Israeli hacker says it’s easy to bypass the tight Iranian government censorship wrapped around media and the Internet as 50 million citizens head for the polls this Friday.
(Arutz Sheva 7)
Iran’s presidential vote not free, fair: UN rights envoy
Iran’s presidential election has been neither free nor fair as Tehran has silenced journalists and opposition leaders in the run up to Friday’s vote, a United Nations human rights investigator said in Spain. Ahmed Shaheed, UN special rapporteur on the human rights situation in Iran, warned in March that he was concerned that the outcome of the election would lack legitimacy because dozens of Iranian journalists were behind bars and hundreds of political prisoners remained in custody.
(Business Recorder)
RUSSIA
New Russian Law Makes Publication of Information on Gay Rights Illegal
On June 11 the Russian parliament passed a bill against “homosexual propaganda” that effectively outlaws gay rights rallies and bans informational or pro-gay rights material from publication in the media or on the Internet. Violators of the law will risk heavy fines and censorship and, in the case of a media outlet, risk being shut down. It had near unanimous support, passing in a 436-to-0 vote, with only one abstention.
(Tech President)
UNITED KINGDOM
LRC keeps up pressure on libel reform
Finance Minister Sammy Wilson’s decision to veto a law to strengthen protections on free speech has been vigorously defended by the DUP, following fresh criticism.
(The Bookseller)
Yesterday, an MP stood up in parliament and threatened a newspaper with censorship. Where’s the outrage?
Imagine if an MP stood up in parliament and told, say, an anarchist magazine to stop publishing cartoons mocking government officials. Imagine if that MP then said that if the magazine didn’t comply with this request, the government would “step in and legislate” in order to physically and brutally prevent it from publishing the offending material. There’d be outrage, right?
(The Telegragh)
DUP defends libel law veto
Finance Minister Sammy Wilson’s decision to veto a law to strengthen protections on free speech has been vigorously defended by the DUP, following fresh criticism.
(News Letter)
Twitter: #FreeSpeech or #EthicalCleansing?
There has been a storm of somewhat overblown hysteria about the US and UK authorities secretly spying on citizens’ private emails and postings on social-media websites. Yet there is far less debate about a much more open attempt to police free speech online in the UK, through the public pursuit, arrest and prosecution of those deemed to have said something offensive or outrageous on Twitter or Facebook.
(Spiked)
UK libel reform fight ‘isn’t over yet’
British scientists should not celebrate victory in their libel reform fight just yet, according to the campaigners who have spent years pushing for change.
(Nature)
UNITED STATES
The worst crimes against the First Amendment
Since 1992, The Thomas Jefferson Center for the Protection of Free Expression has celebrated the birth and ideals of its namesake by calling attention to those who in the past year forgot or disregarded Jefferson’s admonition that freedom of speech “cannot be limited without being lost.”
(Missoula Independent)
Freedom of Speech Lives On
“Holding Colleges Responsible” is the latest example in a slew of articles – many of them quoting the Foundation for Individual Rights in Education – that are meant to alarm anyone with a voice, and the author’s use of selective quotes out of the Education Department’s Office for Civil Rights’s response to FIRE only fans the flame.
(Inside Higher Ed)
How Colleges Label Protected Speech as ‘Harassment’–And Why the DOJ and ED Have Made Matters Worse
One would think the Departments of Justice and Education would be mindful of citizens’ constitutional rights. Unfortunately, recent developments fly in the face of that assumption: New regulations from the DOJ and ED significantly harm student and faculty free speech rights.
(Huffington Post)
Ban on “gruesome images” threatens free speech
For those of us who worry about the vitality of free speech in the “land of the free,” the news this week isn’t good. On June 10, the U.S. Supreme Court refused to review a Colorado appeals court decision banning anti-abortion activists from displaying “gruesome images” of mutilated fetuses that might be seen by children.
(GazetteXtra)
Atheist group sues Orange schools, claiming censorship
An atheist group that distributed pamphlets in 11 Orange County high schools last month filed a lawsuit today against Orange County Public Schools, claiming censorship.
(Orlando Sentinel)
Obscenity is protected free speech, NY attorneys say
A 22-year-old Connecticut man arrested for writing obscenities and “Tyranny” on his speeding ticket payment claims in a federal lawsuit that his free speech rights were violated.
(WHAM 13)
Gov. Rick Perry: ‘Freedom of religion doesn’t mean freedom from religion’
Current Republican governor of Texas, Rick Perry attacked nonreligious Americans during a signing of the “Merry Christmas” bill this week, insinuating that Americans don’t have the right to be secular.
(Examiner)
13 Jun 2013 | In the News
AUSTRALIA
WA premier denies censorship over PM event
THE West Australian government scuppered the venue booking for a Labor fundraiser featuring Prime Minister Julia Gillard, but claims it was not political censorship.
(Herald Sun)
BELARUS
The first rule of dictator club…
Belarus’s president Alexander Lukashenko will be able to count on some “like-minded” friends when it comes to a vote on his human rights record at the UN this week. Andrei Aliaksandrau reports
(Index on Censorship)
Belarus tries opposition activist for treason
An oil refinery mechanic went on trial in Belarus on Wednesday on treason charges after the government said it had foiled his attempt to pass information to foreign powers.
(Business Recorder)
BULGARIA
Bulgaria’s Ex PM Launched ‘Spate’ of Libel Lawsuits
Boyko Borisov, former Prime Minister and current leader of center-right party Citizens for European Development of Bulgaria, GERB, has informed that he has launched a number of libel lawsuits, with plans to use the proceeds for charity.
(Novinite.com)
CANADA
Ashley Madison repeats ‘censorship’ cry as CougarLife jokes canned in Canada
CougarLife.com is crying “censorship” over an ad in which a busty woman runs roughshod over younger women in a bar while explaining why cougars are better dates, because a Canadian regulatory body—the Television Bureau of Canada—has ordered that it can’t be aired unless the sandwich-shoving and the chair-pushing shots are removed.
(Novinite.com)
GREECE
Greeks protest public broadcast closure
It happened so quickly, few people inside Greece, and fewer watching from outside could comprehend it. Antonis Samaras, prime minister and leader of the Greek coalition government, announced that the state TV channel ERT, the equivalent of the BBC, would be shut down from midnight on 11 June. Dawn Foster reports.
(Reuters)
HUNGARY
Analysis: Divided EU in a bind over Hungary’s ‘erring’ Orban
Europe is in a bind over what to do about Hungary and a feeling that the former Soviet satellite is drifting back towards authoritarianism under Prime Minister Viktor Orban.
(Reuters)
INDIA
Caught in a web of censorship
Deepesh T. is only one feature film old but he is already feeling the heat of censorship. As a teacher of drawing at CHMHS, Thillankeri in Kannur, he always exhorts students to speak the truth. The filmmaker in him is no different.
(The Hindu)
PAKISTAN
Internet Censorship in Pakistan
As the people of Pakistan celebrate a historic turning point, the first successful transfer of power from one civilian government to other in the nation’s 65-year history, the country faces numerous challenges in the road to development and democracy.
(Voice of Journalists)
PHILIPPINES
Pugad Baboy and freedom of expression
There appears to be some misunderstanding on the nature of freedom of expression lately.
(Manila Standard)
RUSSIA
Anti-gay law passes in Russia
New legislation against “homosexual propaganda” has been passed against backdrop of piousness and machismo of Putinism, says Padraig Reidy
(Index on Censorship)
Russia introduces jail terms for ‘religious offenders’
A controversial law introducing jail sentences for the crime of offending religious believers was approved by Russia’s lower house of parliament on Tuesday.
(The Telegraph)
TUNISIA
Tunisia jails three Europeans for topless feminist protest
A Tunisian court sentenced three European feminist activists to four months in jail on Wednesday after they demonstrated topless in central Tunis last month against the Islamist-led government, one of their lawyers said.
(Reuters)
TURKEY
Turkey’s Taksim Square cleared after violent clashes
In a bid to gain control of Taksim Square, Turkish security forces last night clashed with antigovernment protesters camped out in Istanbul’s centre. Sara Yasin reports
(Index on Censorship)
US cautions Turkey on ‘punishing protesters exercising their right to free speech’
The United States on June 15 cautioned Turkish authorities against seeking to punish any demonstrators merely for exercising their right to free speech in the latest of several statements that have been addressed during the ongoing Gezi Park protests.
(Hurriyet Daily News)
Turkey’s history of military coups hangs over protests
Turkey’s “pashas”, the generals who once made politicians quake at the mere hint of disapproval, are staying silent as riots sweep the nation. Today the words “military coup” are nowhere to be heard, a tribute perhaps to the prime minister now accused of trampling on democracy.
(Reuters)
UNITED KINGDOM
Prism surveillance: spies thrive in the internet’s legal free-for-all
MPs almost wear their technophobia with pride. No wonder William Hague faced no serious questioning in the Commons
(The Guardian)
Drug laws amount to scientific censorship, says David Nutt
Former government adviser says illegal status of psychoactive drugs stymies research into their potential therapeutic uses
(The Guardian)
‘This rigmarole feels wrong,’ says journalist at centre of free speech row
Ahead of his talk about the Church of Scientology at the Senedd on Monday, BBC Panorama journalist John Sweeney says Cardiff council’s decision not to allow him to speak at Cardiff Library is a matter of free speech
(Wales Online)
Out of order! Speaker’s wife Sally sells furniture on eBay from flat in Parliament
Sally Bercow has blundered into controversy again – by flogging antiques from her free home in Parliament.
(Daily Mail)
UNITED STATES
Free speech outside Supreme Court: Ban on protests in plaza struck down
A 60-year-old statute barring all protest on the marble plaza outside the US Supreme Court is ‘irreconcilable with the First Amendment,’ a federal judge in Washington ruled.
(The Christian Science Monitor)
Fleming proposal to require free religious expression in military draws White House objections
The Obama administration is objecting to a proposed amendment by Rep. John Fleming, R-Minden, that would require the military to accommodate, except in cases of military necessity, “actions and speech” reflecting the “conscience, moral principles, or religious beliefs of the member.”
(The Times-Picayune)
Believers, nonbelievers vent over religious expressions during graduation
Graduation, religion and free speech combined for the perfect storm at the conclusion of the 2013 high school year.
(Deseret News)
PRISM Class-Action Lawsuit Filed: $20B, Injunction Sought Against ‘Complicit’ Companies and Officials
Lawsuit says Obama chilled free speech; attorney encourages citizens to ‘man the barricades of freedom’
(US News and World Report)
Snowden saw what I saw: surveillance criminally subverting the constitution
What Edward Snowden has done is an amazingly brave and courageous act of civil disobedience.
(The Guardian)
EDITORIAL: Trampling free speech
In a surveillance society, it’s wise to watch your words. A careless, offhand remark on Facebook can be grounds for a sacking or even probable cause for arrest, just for speaking your piece.
(The Washington Times)
Spies Without Borders I: Using Domestic Networks to Spy on the World
Much of the U.S. media coverage of last week’s NSA revelations has concentrated on its impact on the constitutional rights of U.S.-based Internet users. But what about the billions of Internet users around the world whose private information is stored on U.S. servers, or whose data travels across U.S. networks or is otherwise accessible through them?
(EFF)
