International Freedom of Expression Exchange: The global network for free expression
Free Expression Spotlight
8 February 2012
Syria
Amid fresh bombing, security forces torture children, says Human Rights Watch
Syria's bloody crackdown on dissent does not discriminate by age: children as young as 13 have been detained and tortured with impunity by Syrian forces fighting opposition protests, documents Human Rights Watch in a new report.
From the Communiqué
8 February 2012
Kazakhstan
Editor's detention exposes regime's crushing of dissent in wake of December violence
Igor Vinyavsky, the editor-in-chief of one of the last remaining independent national newspapers in Kazakhstan, has a long history of being a thorn in the side of the Kazakh government. So IFEX members called his detention last month by Kazakhstan's security services "politically motivated." Adil Soz and 28 other IFEX members are rallying together for his release - and to draw attention to the growing trend of silencing those critical of the government in the wake of violent protests in Zhanaozen last December.
Campaigns and Advocacy
8 February 2012
China
IFJ Press Freedom in China Campaign Bulletin - February 2012
IFJ issues its February 2012 bulletin on the state of press freedom in China.
8 February 2012
Tunisia
Confirmation of court order could lead to return of Internet censorship
As the Tunisian Internet Agency has neither the financial resources nor technical capacity to establish a filtering system, it did not comply with the August 2011 court decision and referred the case to the country’s highest appeal court.
7 February 2012
Joint action - Kazakhstan
Twenty-nine IFEX members call for release of independent newspaper editor
Twenty-nine IFEX members have signed a letter to the Prosecutor General about the detention of editor Igor Vinyavsky, whose detention is believed to be politically motivated, calling for him to be released and for the evidence leading to his arrest to be made public.
6 February 2012
Americas
Civil society organisations call for careful evaluation of OAS Working Group recommendations
The IFEX-ALC and the Regional Alliance for Freedom of Expression and Information call for a careful evaluation of certain recommendations that could impact the mandate of the Special Rapporteur for Freedom of Expression.
31 January 2012
Philippines
CMFR hails UNHRC recommendations
The United Nations Human Rights Committee declared that the provisions of the country’s Revised Penal Code (RPC) penalizing libel as a criminal offense is “incompatible with Article 19, paragraph three of the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights (ICCPR)” to which the Philippines is a signatory.See all IFEX member campaigns
Urgent alerts
SYRIA: Journalist killed in Homs Mazhar Tayyara, a stringer for Agence France-Presse and other international outlets, sustained multiple severe injuries when government forces fired on the city of Homs and died hours later at the hospital.9 February 2012 ECUADOR: Fundamedios condemns million-dollar fines against journalists Calderón and Zurita "We alert the international community to this attempt to silence Ecuadorian journalists. This sentence is no more than a warning of what can happen to those who dare to investigate and denounce cases of corruption during the exercise of power," says Fundamedios.
8 February 2012 IRAN: Blogger sentenced to 14 years' imprisonment, newspaper suspended The Tehran revolutionary court sentenced Mehdi Khazali to 14 years’ imprisonment, 10 years’ internal exile in the south-western city of Borazjan and 70 lashes.
7 February 2012
Take action!
BAHRAIN: Send flowers to the people of Bahrain
On 14 February, post a virtual flower for peace in solidarity with the people of Bahrain as they mark the one-year anniversary of their uprising.
8 February 2012
Alerts
IRAN: Translator and poet arrested, whereabouts unknown 9 February 2012 NIGERIA: Airport officials lock out journalists, hold equipment 9 February 2012 CUBA: Blogger denied travel to Brazil 9 February 2012 BAHRAIN: Authorities urged to grant entry to journalists 9 February 2012 RUSSIA: Journalist detained for questioning after publishing open letter to Putin 9 February 2012 TIBET (CHINA): PEN American Center concerned over "virtual lockdown" on freedom of expression 9 February 2012 MAURITANIA: ANHRI condemns detention of activist 9 February 2012 ECUADOR: Local media team banned from covering referendum vote counting 9 February 2012 EGYPT: Journalists attacked, threatened in Suez protests 9 February 2012 SAUDI ARABIA: Journalist flees country following detention order over tweets 9 February 2012 See all alertsReports
YEMEN: Human Rights Watch reports on use of excessive force against peaceful protesters in Taizz
9 February 2012
SOUTH AMERICA: GALI report reveals public officials are the worst free expression offenders in the Andean region
8 February 2012
TURKEY: BIANET releases media monitoring results for 2011
31 January 2012
See all reports
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