Category Archives: Free Speech

05 Nov 2012

Greek Journalist Kostas Vaxevani after his arrest for exposing alleged tax cheats Athens Stathis Kalligeris | Demotix

The European Union has a duty to speak out against increasing censorship, writes Rohan Jayasekera

It was disappointing to see the European Union reacting so slowly in the days following the arrest of Greek investigative journalist Kostas Vaxevanis. The EU and its executive Commission (EC) frequently steps up to defend free media in Europe and in the neigbourhood states Middle East and East European nations with EU commitments, or membership aspirations.

So Index on Censorship and nine other freedom of expression rights defenders across Europe & the region, all members of the IFEX network, wrote on 5 November to remind the Union that under the Lisbon Treaty, compliance with the EU Charter of Fundamental Rights is legally binding on EU members. This includes the right to receive and impart information and ideas without interference by public authority and regardless of frontiers, and the obligation that that the freedom and pluralism of the media shall be respected.

Even the EU itself says it must be exemplary in enabling its citizens to enjoy the rights enshrined in the Charter and build mutual trust, public confidence and improve credibility of EU external action on human rights. In fact the EC had been relatively forthright when member state Hungary introduced new and restrictive media legislation last year. The ECs reluctance in this case when the Union has more at stake will surprise few and disappoint many.

Vaxevanis walked free from an Athens court last week after naming alleged account holders in an offshore bank that had been protected from tax investigation for two years. He walked free from an Athens court last week after but another journalist, Spiros Karatzaferis, still faces trial on an old, unrelated criminal libel charge after claiming he would publish classified files on Greeces financial bailout.

Appeal to EU Institutions to Defend Free Expression in Greece

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INDEX Q&A: Its not easy being Green for US third party candidateInternet freedom? Not in Azerbaijan

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Greece: Europe must defend free speech

Christine Ritter, Naples

Signs

Once again, someone stole my Mitt Romney/Paul Ryan sign from my front yard.

I thought America was a free country where we had free speech and could fight for the people we believed in. Did we lose this right in the last four years?

We also had freedom of religion and the choice to believe what we wanted. We were a proud country, and the world looked up to us.

I am proud to be an American and believe in the right to free speech and religion. I had the opportunity to come to Naples in 1965 with nothing; and through my own hard work, built a comfortable life.

I want all our grandchildren to have the same right. Be proud to be an American, with the advantages this great country gives.

Please vote to keep American free.

We need change to bring American back to her greatness. No excuses.

Signs in our yards are part of our free speech. Don't steal our signs!

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Letter: Signs

The so-called "fighting season" is over and an Afghan leader's fancy can turn to antagonizing his American patrons for amusement over the cold winter months.

Sure, NATO soldiers, the bulk of them Americans, will be fighting and dying to protect his government in Kabul even as winter embraces Afghanistan, but President Hamid Karzai will probably get even more latitude than normal for airing his views. This is among his favorite times of year to lash out at the Western powers who have given so much so that he can lead Afghanistan. Last October, he said Afghanistan would back Pakistan if the US ever ended up going to war with Afghanistan's neighbor. In April 2010, he sought to blame the UN and the EU for Afghanistan electoral fraud.

This time, Mr. Karzai is unhappy about the International Crisis Group, probably the world's leading think tank when it comes to unbiased, factual reporting on conflict (full disclosure; I briefly worked on contract for ICG 12 years ago helping to write a report on religious wars in eastern Indonesia). The Brussels-based research organization receives much of its funding from the European Union and the US, but has established a reputation for independent analysis in its 17 years of work.

How well do you know Afghanistan? Take our quiz.

Earlier today, a Karzai spokesman said the government was investigating the ICG for possible legal action, complaining that "the ICG reports and activities have been politically motivated" and that "it is detrimental to Afghanistan's national interests and no country will allow such activities by a foreign organisation."

What has so upset Karzai, who returned to power in a fraud-riddled election in 2009 (Afghan elections in general are driven by vote-buying, intimidation, and stuffed ballot boxes)? Well, the ICG had the temerity to suggest in October that Afghanistan is an unstable place that could easily descend into widespread civil war again. As the first sentence of the ICG's executive summary had it: "Plagued by factionalism and corruption, Afghanistan is far from ready to assume responsibility for security when U.S. and NATO forces withdraw in 2014."

That is as uncontroversial a sentence about the current reality of Afghanistan as one could concoct. That the country is one of the most corrupt in the world, enabled by the billions of aid money and reconstruction spending that sloughed through Kabul over the past decade, is not an opinion. It's a fact. That Afghan government security forces have consistently failed at demonstrating they can operate on their own is likewise not open to interpretation; the Afghan National Army's operations rely on a $4 billion annual subsidy from the US, and the US military continues to run logistics for the Afghans.

The ICG also reported that "there are alarming signs Karzai hopes to stack the deck for a favoured proxy" before scheduled 2014 presidential elections, when Karzai will be term-limited out. The Afghan president might not like this being discussed, but fraud and vote-buying are practically the whole point of the Afghan electoral process.

While the State Department and other government-affiliated agencies like to talk about the wonders of Afghan voting, as if there's merit in the simple act itself, voting in the country has been largely drained of any democratic meaning since backroom deals between warlords and fraudulent counts are where the rubber hits the road.

So, the ICG is only telling the truth. But it now faces sanction for truth-telling, by the very man who the US installed as leader of Afghanistan at such great cost in blood and treasure. And that is the broader context.

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Aghanistan's Karzai back to antagonizing the US and attacking free speech

Published: Nov. 6, 2012 at 10:52 AM

GENEVA, Switzerland, Nov. 6 (UPI) -- Freedom of expression is a basic right though national laws must be crafted carefully to prevent incitements to violence, a U.N. official said from Geneva.

Human Rights Watch in recent weeks issued statements condemning Bahrain and Saudi Arabia for prosecuting individuals based on comments made on social media websites. Last week, the organization called on Riyadh to free a citizen held since April for posting statements seen as critical of the Prophet Mohammad.

Frank La Rue, U.N. special envoy on freedom expression, said restrictions on free expression should be enforced only in extreme circumstances.

"States must invest more in the promotion of human rights education and must continuously promote open public debate as the best antidote to combat discriminatory patterns," he said in a statement. "Laws to combat hate speech must be carefully construed and applied by the judiciary so as to avoid excessively curtailing legitimate types of expression."

Similar concerns were expressed in September following the online broadcast of a film clip produced in the United States seen as insulting to Islam. The film sparked widespread violence across much of the Middle East, prompting security alerts from the U.S. government.

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Curbing free speech extreme, U.N. says

Immanuel High School Class of 72 Senior Year
We ponder how we turned out, coming of age during the turbulent late 60s and early 70s. Shaped by the free speech movement, women #39;s rights, Viet Nam war, civil rights marches, the man on the moon. Dressed in Levi #39;s and Converse, mini skirts and the letterman #39;s jacket. To the sound track of the Beatles, Rolling Stones, Barry McGuire, Chicago, Elvis, Johnny Cash and Larry Norman.From:Steve WiestViews:1 0ratingsTime:19:40More inPeople Blogs

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Immanuel High School Class of 72 Senior Year - Video

Same-sex "marriage" vandals DESTROY marriage signs in Maine
http://www.tfpstudentaction.org During a recent tour for traditional marriage in Maine, volunteers with The American Society for the Defense of Tradition, Family and Property (TFP) saw pro-marriage yard signs get unlawfully removed or destroyed by pro-homosexual advocates. Some of the unsettling incidents occurred on Congress Street, downtown Portland, from October 29 mdash;31 and were caught on video. The blue and yellow yard signs read: "Don #39;t redefine marriage. Vote NO on question one. Marriage = 1 man + 1 woman." Same-sex "marriage" advocates ignored state law which protects such signs: "A person who takes, defaces or disturbs a lawfully placed sign bearing political messages relating to a general election, primary election or referendum commits a civil violation for which a forfeiture of up to $250 may be adjudged." (§1917-A. Unlawful removal of political signs) "Free speech is just about dead in some parts of Portland," said TFP Student Action Director John Ritchie. "Every time our volunteers put up yard signs in favor of traditional marriage on Congress Street, pro-homosexual advocates damaged or destroyed them. In less than five minutes, the signs were all vandalized. When new ones went up, those were trashed too," he said. "We found zero tolerance. Zero fairness. Zero free speech." Please "like" the video. Connect with us: http://www.facebook.com twitter.com http://www.tfpstudentaction.orgFrom:tfpstudentactionViews:2178 77ratingsTime:02:22More inNonprofits Activism

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Same-sex "marriage" vandals DESTROY marriage signs in Maine - Video

Revenge Of The Cat Lady
Correction: EllenBeth Wachs is president of the Humanists of Florida, NOT the Atheists of Florida. integralmath #39;s video: http://www.youtube.com Old White Male Humanists at Watson #39;s speech: http://www.youtube.com EllenBeth #39;s Nastygram: You need to learn what free speech is and is not. You also need to get a fucking life. Ooh, I have a "potty" mouth. lolFrom:Walter EgoViews:36 4ratingsTime:09:55More inNonprofits Activism

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Revenge Of The Cat Lady - Video

Opvendetta NOV5 Kim Dotcom
Kim Dotcom - Mr President Get your mask and be out on NOV 5 in your local City to stand up to free speech. Twitter = #opvendetta #NOV5From:Lisa281977Views:1 0ratingsTime:04:01More inNews Politics

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Opvendetta NOV5 Kim Dotcom - Video

Hitchens schools a Muslim on free speech.
I don #39;t just have a go at christians, there #39;s enough to go round for everyone!From:krumbler13Views:0 0ratingsTime:09:16More inEducation

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Hitchens schools a Muslim on free speech. - Video

Stream Leads 09/10/2012
http://www.youtube.com News Video Network Plz Subscrib for Latest World News Maspero anniversary, student throws shoe for free speech, app brings paintings to lifeFrom:NewsVideoNetworkViews:0 0ratingsTime:01:47More inNews Politics

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Stream Leads 09/10/2012 - Video