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A major new global ranking index tracking the state of free expression published today (Wednesday, 25 January) by Index on Censorship sees the UK ranked as only “partially open” in every key area measured.
In the overall rankings, the UK fell below countries including Australia, Israel, Costa Rica, Chile, Jamaica and Japan. European neighbours such as Austria, Belgium, France, Germany and Denmark also all rank higher than the UK.
The Index Index, developed by Index on Censorship and experts in machine learning and journalism at Liverpool John Moores University (LJMU), uses innovative machine learning techniques to map the free expression landscape across the globe, giving a country-by-country view of the state of free expression across academic, digital and media/press freedoms.
Key findings include:
The countries with the highest ranking (“open”) on the overall Index are clustered around western Europe and Australasia – Australia, Austria, Belgium, Costa Rica, Denmark, Estonia, Finland, Germany, Ireland, Latvia, Lithuania, Netherlands, New Zealand, Norway, Portugal, Sweden and Switzerland.
The UK and USA join countries such as Botswana, Czechia, Greece, Moldova, Panama, Romania, South Africa and Tunisia ranked as “partially open”.
The poorest performing countries across all metrics, ranked as “closed”, are Bahrain, Belarus, Burma/Myanmar, China, Cuba, Equatorial Guinea, Eritrea, Eswatini, Laos, Nicaragua, North Korea, Saudi Arabia, South Sudan, Syria, Turkmenistan, United Arab Emirates and Yemen.
Countries such as China, Russia, Saudi Arabia and United Arab Emirates performed poorly in the Index Index but are embedded in key international mechanisms including G20 and the UN Security Council.
Ruth Anderson, Index on Censorship CEO, said:
“The launch of the new Index Index is a landmark moment in how we track freedom of expression in key areas across the world. Index on Censorship and the team at Liverpool John Moores University have developed a rankings system that provides a unique insight into the freedom of expression landscape in every country for which data is available.
“The findings of the pilot project are illuminating, surprising and concerning in equal measure. The United Kingdom ranking may well raise some eyebrows, though is not entirely unexpected. Index on Censorship’s recent work on issues as diverse as Chinese Communist Party influence in the art world through to the chilling effect of the UK Government’s Online Safety Bill all point to backward steps for a country that has long viewed itself as a bastion of freedom of expression.
“On a global scale, the Index Index shines a light once again on those countries such as China, Russia, Saudi Arabia and United Arab Emirates with considerable influence on international bodies and mechanisms – but with barely any protections for freedom of expression across the digital, academic and media spheres.”
Nik Williams, Index on Censorship policy and campaigns officer, said:
“With global threats to free expression growing, developing an accurate country-by-country view of threats to academic, digital and media freedom is the first necessary step towards identifying what needs to change. With gaps in current data sets, it is hoped that future ‘Index Index’ rankings will have further country-level data that can be verified and shared with partners and policy-makers.
“As the ‘Index Index’ grows and develops beyond this pilot year, it will not only map threats to free expression but also where we need to focus our efforts to ensure that academics, artists, writers, journalists, campaigners and civil society do not suffer in silence.”
Steve Harrison, LJMU senior lecturer in journalism, said:
“Journalists need credible and authoritative sources of information to counter the glut of dis-information and downright untruths which we’re being bombarded with these days. The Index Index is one such source, and LJMU is proud to have played our part in developing it.
“We hope it becomes a useful tool for journalists investigating censorship, as well as a learning resource for students. Journalism has been defined as providing information someone, somewhere wants suppressed – the Index Index goes some way to living up to that definition.”
Norwegian freedom of speech foundation Fritt Ord has called for a state commission to investigate police handling of the attempted murder of a publisher three decades ago.
In 1993 William Nygaard – a former head of NRK and long-time director of the Aschehoug publishing house – was shot outside of his home in the Oslo suburb of Slemdal. Nygaard was left for dead on the street after being hit three times from behind as he opened his car door.
The call to look at the case again comes after one of the prime suspects in the case was tracked down by a team of journalists working for Norwegian public broadcaster NRK.
Although nobody claimed responsibility for the attack at the time, the shooting was widely believed to be linked to Nygaard’s support for Salman Rushdie and Aschehoug’s publication in Norwegian of Rushdie’s book The Satanic Verses. At the time Rushdie was the subject of a fatwa by the then Supreme Leader of Iran Ayatollah Ruholla Khomeini for heresy. Aschehoug is Norway’s second largest publisher and has a track record of publishing controversial titles.
Fritt Ord director Knut Olav Åmås has suggested that an independent investigation into the handling of the case is warranted due to the longstanding failure of the Oslo police to make progress despite ample evidence. Åmås has singled out what he sees as strange police behaviour and a failure to follow up on key leads.
“[The handling of the case] should be investigated by an independent commission due to the considerable and surprising number of strange things that have happened, not least in the Oslo Metropolitan Police ever since the murder attempt took place in 1993,” Åmås told Index on Censorship. Åmås has specifically been critical of the Oslo’ police’s failure to focus on the fatwa in the crucial period following the shooting, and the decision to let local police investigate a case of national and international significance.
Witnesses to the shooting used photofits to produce an image of the attacker at the time, but until recently nobody was ever publicly identified or charged for the crime. Last month however the name of one of the suspects was revealed by the NRK team after he was tracked down in Beirut. Lebanese national Khaled Moussawi, who was resident in Norway when the attack happened, has been accused, though he denies all claims. As part of the accusations, he is alleged to have been assisted by a still-unnamed employee of the Iranian embassy in Oslo.
“It is a very important case, both as an integrated part of the whole Rushdie affair, and also as an important precursor to the [Danish] cartoon controversy, where Islamic regimes´ pressure on freedom of expression became a dramatic global event.” says Åmås, who is a former culture editor at Norway’s leading broadsheet Aftenposten.
Moussawi lived in Norway until 1996 and regularly attended events at the Iranian embassy. Despite having a son born in Oslo his family were never granted citizenship and he was eventually deported from the country and returned to Lebanon, inadvertently complicating the investigation into the Nygaard shooting.
In 2008 the Norwegian Prosecuting Authority determined that the case should be reopened and responsibility was shifted from the Oslo Metropolitan Police to Kripos, Norway’s National Criminal Investigation Service .
Åmås says that the latest revelations mean it may finally be possible to bring Nygaard’s attackers to justice.
“It shows that Norwegian police has evidence that they should act upon, by issuing a so-called Red notice through Interpol for example – and also working with Lebanese authorities to make it possible to bring him [Moussawi] to Norway for interrogation. The same should happen to the Iranian who has been charged.” Åmås believes.
If the unnamed Iranian embassy staff member is convicted and a link is proven between Iran’s embassy and the shooting, it would also retrospectively establish the crime as an act of state-sponsored terrorism rather than attempted murder.
The Iranian Embassy in Oslo has denied the claims. “This type of allegation…is completely without basis, and we strongly reject this allegation,” it told NRK.
Moussawi also gave an extensive interview to NRK in Beirut when his identity was revealed, claiming to have been unaware of his status as one of the prime suspects. He also repeatedly denied any involvement with Hezbollah, the Lebanese religious and political movement with close ties to Iran that endorsed the fatwa against Rushdie.
“I have never been active in Hezbollah, either politically, religiously or socially,” Moussawi told NRK. “There was no political activity in the embassy. We drank tea, ate and read from the Koran,” he said.
Norwegian musician Moddi’s new album, Unsongs, is made up of renditions of songs from around the world that had been banned, censored or silenced. Unsongs includes cover versions of songs from countries including China, Russia, Mexico and Vietnam, on topics such as drugs, war and religion.
Index on Censorship caught up with Moddi on Twitter to find out more.
To kick off our Twitter Q&A with @moddimusikk: Where did the idea for your new album, Unsongs, come from? #WithTheBanned pic.twitter.com/REWUt4tvxd
— Index on Censorship (@IndexCensorship) September 29, 2016
@IndexCensorship It all began with a song about the Israeli officer Eli Geva, who refused to lead his forces into Beirut in 1982.
— Pål Moddi Knutsen (@moddimusikk) September 29, 2016
@IndexCensorship The Norwegian singer Birgitte Grimstad heard the story of the officer, and had a song written about him.
— Pål Moddi Knutsen (@moddimusikk) September 29, 2016
@IndexCensorship She didn’t perform it though – it was considered “too controversial” at the time. And so it wasn’t sung for 32 years.
— Pål Moddi Knutsen (@moddimusikk) September 29, 2016
@IndexCensorship I heard the song 32 yrs after, then the snowball started rolling. There’s so much out there never played! #WithTheBanned
— Pål Moddi Knutsen (@moddimusikk) September 29, 2016
With so many banned or censored songs to choose from, how did you narrow it down to just 12? @moddimusikk #WithTheBanned
— Index on Censorship (@IndexCensorship) September 29, 2016
@IndexCensorship First of all: 12 songs does not represent the huge amount of censored art out there. They’re just examples. #WithTheBanned
— Pål Moddi Knutsen (@moddimusikk) September 29, 2016
@IndexCensorship I wanted to choose 12 songs that represented 12 different forms of censorship. 12 different perspectives. #WithTheBanned
— Pål Moddi Knutsen (@moddimusikk) September 29, 2016
@IndexCensorship Murder, imprisonment, radio bans, social pressure, self-censorship. Different, but equally important. #WithTheBanned
— Pål Moddi Knutsen (@moddimusikk) September 29, 2016
@IndexCensorship I believe it is a great mistake to consider the brutal forms of suppression more worthy of our attention. #WithTheBanned
— Pål Moddi Knutsen (@moddimusikk) September 29, 2016
@IndexCensorship So basically, I chose 12 songs to show the diversity of the phenomenon. I could have made 12 albums though. #WithTheBanned
— Pål Moddi Knutsen (@moddimusikk) September 29, 2016
@IndexCensorship @moddimusikk It must have been hard to pick only 12 songs, what was your favourite song that didn’t make the final cut?
— Sara French (@FrenchiedMuse) September 29, 2016
@FrenchiedMuse @IndexCensorship Oh, that’s probably something Kurdish, e.g. this masterpiece: https://t.co/MELFeWcIHa. #WithTheBanned
— Pål Moddi Knutsen (@moddimusikk) September 29, 2016
@FrenchiedMuse Have no idea what the lyrics say though. It’s always a little like Christmas eve. @IndexCensorship #WithTheBanned
— Pål Moddi Knutsen (@moddimusikk) September 29, 2016
@FrenchiedMuse Another candidate is from the Iranian revolution https://t.co/WejoFpEzK8 but was too difficult to translate @IndexCensorship
— Pål Moddi Knutsen (@moddimusikk) September 29, 2016
@moddimusikk have you ever heard a song so offensive you’ve thought ‘actually yeah, ok that should definitely be banned’ #withthebanned
— James Green (@JamesGreen6) September 29, 2016
@JamesGreen6 I considered some neo-nazi music for the album, but seriously, those words hurt physically to sing. #WithTheBanned
— Pål Moddi Knutsen (@moddimusikk) September 29, 2016
@JamesGreen6 Nonetheless not sure if long prison sentences is the right response. But that of course is a long debate.
— Pål Moddi Knutsen (@moddimusikk) September 29, 2016
How did Index on Censorship magazine help you find inspiration for the album? @moddimusikk #WithTheBanned
— Index on Censorship (@IndexCensorship) September 29, 2016
@IndexCensorship Index helped me grasp the diversity of the issue. At first I only looked to Jara, Biermann…the classics. #WithTheBanned
— Pål Moddi Knutsen (@moddimusikk) September 29, 2016
@IndexCensorship Index helped me grasp the diversity of the issue. At first I only looked to Jara, Biermann…the classics. #WithTheBanned
— Pål Moddi Knutsen (@moddimusikk) September 29, 2016
@IndexCensorship Must most important: Orgs such as Index helped me understand that this is really an important topic. #WithTheBanned
— Pål Moddi Knutsen (@moddimusikk) September 29, 2016
@IndexCensorship At first it was a hobby project. In the end it felt like a small part of a big movement. That helped. #WithTheBanned
— Pål Moddi Knutsen (@moddimusikk) September 29, 2016
You tried to film the video for your version of @pussyrrriot‘s Punk Prayer in Russia but failed. What happened? @moddimusikk #WithTheBanned
— Index on Censorship (@IndexCensorship) September 29, 2016
@IndexCensorship Yes, I seriously considered going to Russia to sing in solidarity with @pussyrrriot. #WithTheBanned
— Pål Moddi Knutsen (@moddimusikk) September 29, 2016
@IndexCensorship I settled for the second best: singing it on the Russian border. There’s a beautiful old stone church there. #WithTheBanned
— Pål Moddi Knutsen (@moddimusikk) September 29, 2016
@IndexCensorship Unfortunately the parish did not approve and so the video had to be filmed on the church steps. #WithTheBanned
— Pål Moddi Knutsen (@moddimusikk) September 29, 2016
@IndexCensorship It was minus five and stormy, ubearably cold, but felt good afterwards. @pussyrrriot‘s song it a true gem! #WithTheBanned
— Pål Moddi Knutsen (@moddimusikk) September 29, 2016
@IndexCensorship Must say I’m disappointed with the Norwegian church though. I genuinely thought this song would be welcome. #WithTheBanned
— Pål Moddi Knutsen (@moddimusikk) September 29, 2016
@IndexCensorship PS: The video turned out really well. https://t.co/YRdnimuycB @pussyrrriot
— Pål Moddi Knutsen (@moddimusikk) September 29, 2016
What was the hardest journey to make when visiting one of the original songwriters? #WithTheBanned
— ΛSHΣR ΛLΣXΛNDΣR (@AsherAlexander) September 29, 2016
@AsherAlexander Vietnam. Very confusing. Officially he was allowed to have visitors but in reality we were unwelcome. #WithTheBanned
— Pål Moddi Knutsen (@moddimusikk) September 29, 2016
@AsherAlexander Also the language and culture barriers were significant. But the meeting was still incredibly inspiring. #WithTheBanned
— Pål Moddi Knutsen (@moddimusikk) September 29, 2016
@AsherAlexander And in general: For a white, Norwegian boy, meeting with the genuinely banned has really been an eye-opener. #WithTheBanned
— Pål Moddi Knutsen (@moddimusikk) September 29, 2016
#WithTheBanned Besides being a censored song, why did you choose a narcocorrido as part of the album? What caught your attention?
— Verito (@Veritokun) September 29, 2016
@Veritokun @IndexCensorship The double meaning! To me, who know that it is a narcocorrido, the underlying metaphor is obvious.#WithTheBanned
— Pål Moddi Knutsen (@moddimusikk) September 29, 2016
@Veritokun @IndexCensorship But to children and to many others, it may sound almost like a normal farm song. #WithTheBanned
— Pål Moddi Knutsen (@moddimusikk) September 29, 2016
@Veritokun @IndexCensorship The narcocororrido genre is terrible, but the way it avoided getting banned is – in this context – inspiring.
— Pål Moddi Knutsen (@moddimusikk) September 29, 2016
@moddimusikk if you had to write a protest song, like Punk Prayer, what regime would you be challenging/ trying to change #WithTheBanned
— Ethan Beer (@EthanDuffmanB) September 29, 2016
@EthanDuffmanB My own, Norway! Protest is always best from inside. #WithTheBanned @IndexCensorship
— Pål Moddi Knutsen (@moddimusikk) September 29, 2016
@EthanDuffmanB I’m not trying to change other countries, but presenting songs where others have tried. #WithTheBanned
— Pål Moddi Knutsen (@moddimusikk) September 29, 2016
@EthanDuffmanB Hopefully it can inspire other musicians across the globe to do the same. I know it has changed me, at least. #WithTheBanned
— Pål Moddi Knutsen (@moddimusikk) September 29, 2016
How did your experience cancelling a concert in Tel Aviv change your approach to music? @moddimusikk #WithTheBanned
— Index on Censorship (@IndexCensorship) September 29, 2016
@IndexCensorship It made me realise that everything – even singing a love song – is political. #WithTheBanned
— Pål Moddi Knutsen (@moddimusikk) September 29, 2016
@IndexCensorship In a conflict, remaining silent gives strength to the dominant side. #WithTheBanned
— Pål Moddi Knutsen (@moddimusikk) September 29, 2016
@IndexCensorship And in this context, singing love songs and songs about the sea was equal to remaining silent. #WithTheBanned
— Pål Moddi Knutsen (@moddimusikk) September 29, 2016
@IndexCensorship When I discovered “Eli Geva”, I felt that finally there was a song – a message – which was stronger than its own context.
— Pål Moddi Knutsen (@moddimusikk) September 29, 2016
@IndexCensorship When I write my own songs in the future, that will always be something I’ll aspire towards. #WithTheBanned
— Pål Moddi Knutsen (@moddimusikk) September 29, 2016
@IndexCensorship Like the songwriter Richard Burgess said “I could have written a song that she would have been allowed to perform…
— Pål Moddi Knutsen (@moddimusikk) September 29, 2016
@IndexCensorship …but I don’t think it would have been as good a song.” #WithTheBanned
— Pål Moddi Knutsen (@moddimusikk) September 29, 2016
What were the main things you learned about censorship when making Unsongs? @moddimusikk #WithTheBanned
— Index on Censorship (@IndexCensorship) September 29, 2016
@IndexCensorship Censorship, in one form or anohter, is everywhere, all times, and it comes in different shapes. #WithTheBanned
— Pål Moddi Knutsen (@moddimusikk) September 29, 2016
@IndexCensorship And it isn’t only states and religious authorities that are behind it. #WithTheBanned
— Pål Moddi Knutsen (@moddimusikk) September 29, 2016
@IndexCensorship Basically, whereever there is power, there is also censorship. Those two seem to be mutually constituitive. #WithTheBanned
— Pål Moddi Knutsen (@moddimusikk) September 29, 2016
@IndexCensorship So in a way, this project of interpreting banned songs is a case study of challenging power through music. #WithTheBanned
— Pål Moddi Knutsen (@moddimusikk) September 29, 2016
@IndexCensorship As a young musician, that has probably been the most important lesson: That music CAN still be powerful. #WithTheBanned
— Pål Moddi Knutsen (@moddimusikk) September 29, 2016
To mark the release of Unsongs, Index on Censorship is proud to announce a special series of appearances by currently banned voices from around the world.
Moddi will hand over the stage at three of the biggest gigs on his current European tour to unleash the power of free expression, replacing the support band with the genuinely banned.
In Amsterdam on 1 October, Maryam Al-Khawaja will share her and her family’s story of imprisonment and exile in the struggle for democracy in Bahrain. In London on 3 October, Vanessa Berhe will speak about life in the prison state of Eritrea and her campaign One Day Seyoum fighting to free her journalist uncle Seyoum Tsehaye who has been in jail for 15 years. In Berlin on 6 October, Raqqa Is Being Slaughtered Silently will tell how the Syrian civil war has destroyed the free expression of a generation. Co-founder Abdalaziz Alhamza will share the story of how and why he co-founded it inside IS-controlled territory.
To mark the release of Norwegian musician Moddi’s new album, Unsongs, Index on Censorship is proud to announce a special series of appearances by currently banned voices from around the world.
Moddi will hand over the stage at three of the biggest gigs on his current European tour to unleash the power of free expression, replacing the support band with the genuinely banned.
In Amsterdam on 1 October, Maryam Al-Khawaja will share her and her family’s story of imprisonment and exile in the struggle for democracy in Bahrain. In London on 3 October, Vanessa Berhe will speak about life in the prison state of Eritrea and her campaign One Day Seyoum fighting to free her journalist uncle Seyoum Tsehaye who has been in jail for 15 years. In Berlin on 6 October, Raqqa Is Being Slaughtered Silently will tell how the Syrian civil war has destroyed the free expression of a generation. Co-founder Abdalaziz Alhamza will share the story of how and why he co-founded it inside IS-controlled territory.
“Unsongs is a remarkable collection of songs that have, at one stage, been banned, censored or silenced. The attempts to suppress them were as mild as an airplay ban and as brutal as murder. With great sensitivity and imagination, Norwegian singer-songwriter Moddi has given them new life and created a moving and eye-opening album. Unsongs simultaneously celebrates the censored and exposes the censors.” – Dorian Lynskey
Amsterdam, Jeruzalemkerk, Saturday 1 October, 8:30pm
The Banned: Maryam Al-Khawaja (Bahrain)
London, St. Giles-In-The-Fields, Monday 3 October, 8pm
The Banned: Vanessa Berhe (Eritrea)
Berlin, Silent Green, Thursday 6th October, 8pm
The Banned: Raqqa Is Being Slaughtered Silently (Syria)
The series will be launched with a live Twitter chat with Moddi and Index on Censorship on Thursday 29 September at 3pm. Ask Moddi a question using the hashtag #WithTheBanned.