Press Freedom

Exorcising the Ghosts of Brazil’s Dictatorship

By Clarinha Glock
At 8 a.m. on Oct. 25, 1975, Brazilian journalist Vladimir Herzog voluntarily reported to the São Paulo headquarters of the government's intelligence agency and was never seen alive again.

Reformists Ambivalent about Participation in Iranian Election

By Yasaman Baji
With the June 2013 presidential election drawing closer, Iran’s reformists are debating what they should do in the face of the severe restrictions to which their leaders and political parties have been subject since the popular protests that roiled the country after the last election four years ago.

Egypt Faces ‘Mubarak-Like’ Morsi

By Adam Morrow and Khaled Moussa al-Omrani
Concerns are mounting over Egypt’s future after the outbreaks of violence that marked the second anniversary of Egypt's January 25 Revolution. Massive anti-government rallies led to ongoing clashes between protesters and security forces that have left at least 40 people dead. Cities along Egypt's Suez Canal faced a government-declared state of emergency.

New Revolution Against New Constitution

By Adam Morrow and Khaled Moussa al-Omrani
Hundreds of thousands hit the streets countrywide on and after the second anniversary of Egypt's Tahrir Square uprising Jan. 25 to protest the policies of President Mohamed Morsi and the Muslim Brotherhood from which he hails. A chief demand was the abrogation – or modification at least – of Egypt's newly-approved constitution.
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Q&A: It’s the Beginning of the End for FGM

By Rousbeh Legatis
Journalists can play a crucial role in helping to shift traditional attitudes within societies where the cruel practice of female genital mutilation is an everyday reality.

Criticising the President no Laughing Matter

By Cam McGrath
Egyptians love to have a good laugh. At every opportunity they rattle off jokes and take jabs at themselves, their society, and – where they dare – their ruler.

Challenges Dog Community Radio, Finally on Air in El Salvador

By Edgardo Ayala
For the first time in El Salvador, a community radio is broadcasting under its own licence. The struggle continues, however, for legislative change that will give these kinds of broadcasters more airspace.
The sign above the magazine rack reads: “To read is to know”. Credit: Dvortygirl/CC-BY-SA-2.0

Alternative Media Fights Back in Argentina

By Marcela Valente
Sustained by editors and readers convinced that another kind of communication is possible, independent magazines are growing and strengthening in Argentina, offering a view different from the mainstream media coverage of political, cultural and advocacy issues.

Morphine Kills Pain but its Price Kills Patients

By Busani Bafana
It took Gily Ncube’s daughters two weeks to sell enough chickens to raise the 18 dollars needed to buy the morphine tablets their mother takes every four hours.

Closing Europe’s Borders Becomes Big Business

By Apostolis Fotiadis and Claudia Ciobanu
The European Union is implementing a new border management system with tougher migration control the core aim. Major security and weapons companies are already reaping the benefits.

OP-ED: The Arab Spring at Two: What Lessons Should We Learn?

By Emile Nakhleh
As the Arab Spring enters its third year, new Arab democracies and the international community should reflect on several critical lessons from the past two years.
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Banned Kazakh Opposition Press Vows to Continue Online

By Christopher Pala
Kazakhstan, an oil-rich ex-Soviet nation in Central Asia best known for voluntarily forsaking the world’s fourth-largest nuclear arsenal, is carrying out an unprecedented media crackdown that will leave it virtually without any opposition newspapers for the first time in its 21-year history as an independent nation.

Case to Abolish Gambian Death Penalty Falls on Toothless Court

By Saikou Jammeh
The court of justice for the West African economic community is expected to hear a civil society case calling for the abolition of the death penalty in the Gambia this December, four months after the execution of nine prisoners shocked the world.
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First Muslim Human Rights Commission to Launch End December

By Carey L. Biron
Gathering for the first time here in Washington, representatives of the newly established human rights commission of the Organisation of Islamic Cooperation (OIC) stated Thursday that they plan to start their substantive work by the end of the month.

Haitian Community Radio Reopens After Protests

By Milo Milfort and Jane Regan
A community radio station silenced by Haitian authorities is open again thanks to the mobilisation of other stations as well as organisations and associations both inside and outside of Haiti.

Ethiopia’s Anti-Terrorism Law Squelches Opposition, Activists Say

By Blain Biset
Ethiopia’s Anti-Terrorism Proclamation is once again stirring debate in this Horn of Africa nation as lawyer Temam Ababulga challenges the 2009 law in the highly-publicised "Muslim terrorism" case.

Does a Personality Cult Grow in Astana?

By Joanna Lillis
“One Fatherland, one Fate, one Leader of the Nation” – so says the slogan beside the smiling face of President Nursultan Nazarbayev on giant billboards looming over the streets in Kazakhstan. They are promoting a new holiday on Dec. 1: First President’s Day, when Kazakhstan will fete its longtime leader.

Media Giant Advances on Taiwan

By Dennis Engbarth
Taiwan civic reform, journalist and labour organisations have mobilised against the acquisition of the large Next Media (Taiwan) group by tycoons linked with China. They say this threatens Taiwan’s news freedom and even the survival of its democratic political system.

Ethiopia Throttles Rights Organisations

By Ed McKenna
The world received contradictory signals about Ethiopia’s human rights record when in the same week it was elected to the United Nations Human Rights Council, a major German charity closed its Ethiopian office in protest against a restrictive political environment.

Political Provocateurs Expose Kenya’s “MaVultures”

By Mike Elkin

A new website linking corruption and other scandals to high-ranking Kenyan politicians, created by a team of political provocateurs, has become one of the most-visited web pages in the country.

Can Facebook Become Substitute for Live Azeri Opposition Protests?

By EurasiaNet Correspondents
They’ve battled police in the streets and they’ve challenged authority the courts. Now, faced with staggering increases in fines for unauthorised demonstrations, Azerbaijani opposition activists are turning to Facebook to get their messages out.
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