Friday, 18 July 2014

PRESS RELEASE

Ethiopia: Terrorism charges against Zone 9 Bloggers and journalists must be dropped

The Ethiopian government has charged seven bloggers and three journalists under the seriously flawed Anti-Terrorism Proclamation (652/2009), the latest move aimed at curtailing dissent in the country. Nine of the accused bloggers and journalists have been held at Maekelawi detention centre for 83 days with limited access to legal representation or visits by their family members. Read more >

UPDATE

Myanmar: Video interview as 5 journalists get 10 years hard labour

This week, 5 journalists in Myanmar were sentenced by a court to 10 years each of hard labour. ARTICLE 19 spoke with those involved in the case to find out what happened and what this means more broadly for freedom of expression in the country.

Watch the video here

Myanmar: News Media Law | Read inBurmese

STATEMENT

UN: Human Rights Watchdog Slams Governments’ Mass Surveillance Programmes

Today, the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights, Navi Pillay, published a landmark report on the Right to Privacy in the Digital Age, containing strong recommendations for States to bring their surveillance practices in line with international human rights standards. Read more >

PRESS RELEASE

UK: New Data Retention Bill is a False Emergency

In response to the government’s announcement that emergency legislation will be railroaded through Parliament this week to allow for mass data retention, Thomas Hughes, Executive Director of ARTICLE 19, said: “The CJEU ruled in favour of respect for private life and the protection of personal data by introducing safeguards against the blanket retention of the public’s personal communications data." Read more >

UPDATE

Five years on and still no justice for Natalia

Tuesday marked the fifth anniversary of the murder of Natalia Estemirova. On 15 July 2009, the human rights defender and journalist was kidnapped outside her home in Grozny, Chechnya, and found murdered in the neighbouring republic of Ingushetia. Read more >

BLOG

World Cup fever: Brazil set aside core democratic values

13 July, Rio de Janeiro: While Germany was beating Argentina in the stadium, outside in the streets police were fiercely repressing the hundreds of protesters who were demonstrating against the costly legacy of the “beautiful game”. Read more >