"This report arises out of five years of research and targeted advocacy on behalf of writers and journalists who have been censored or persecuted for their work in the People’s Republic of China. It presents PEN International’s findings, compiled by our international researchers and by our colle
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agues on the ground in China, on the ongoing threats to individual writers and journalists in the country and our assessment of the climate for freedom of expression in the world’s most populous state. These findings and assessments are echoed and amplified throughout the report in ten essays contributed by leading writers from China." (Executive summary)
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"It's time to confront the tide of violence used by governments against journalists, argue two fighters for media freedom." (Abstract)
The following report documents the findings of a delegation comprised of representatives from six international rights groups (three members and three partners of the International Freedom of Expression Exchange, IFEX), which carried out a fact-finding mission between 20-30 November, 2011, in order
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to gain an understanding of the state of free expression and the status of human rights defenders in Bahrain. The 11 recommendations made in this report include calls to end the harassment, imprisonment and prosecution of Bahraini citizens for what essentially amount to persecution of free expression and legitimate human rights work.
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"In the report, we included two chapters. The first describes the media legal environment, namely guarantees and restrictions of the freedom of expression and the second chapter highlights media freedom situation in 2011." (Preface, page 5)
"The human rights situation in Venezuela has become more precarious since 2008, when Human Rights Watch released its last report on Venezuela, A Decade Under Chávez. The pro-Chávez majority in the National Assembly has passed legislation expanding the government’s powers to limit free speech and
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to punish its critics. The Supreme Court—packed with Chávez supporters in 2004 and re-packed in 2010—has openly rejected its role as an independent check on presidential power, while joining with the president in dismissing the authority of the Inter-American system of human rights. The accumulation of power in the executive, the removal of institutional safeguards, and the erosion of human rights guarantees have given the Chávez government free rein to intimidate, censor, and punish Venezuelans who “offend” the president or obstruct his political aims. Tightening the Grip documents the abuses, showing how President Hugo Chávez and his supporters have made ample use of these powers over the past four years in a wide range of cases, with negative consequences for judicial independence, media freedom, and civil and political rights." (Back cover)
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"The article explores the relationship between democratic governance and the free and independent press in The Gambia since the inception of the Gambian First Republic in 1970. It supports the rights-based approach which perceives the issues of democracy, good governance, and a free and independent
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press as related to the concept of human rights and fundamental freedoms. Put differently, a free and independent press is not only a mirror of good governance, but also one of the essential elements of democratic governance. This article represents a modest contribution to the existing literature on the questions of governance, democracy, press freedom and human rights, with particular reference to The Gambia." (Abstract)
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"Ongoing political turmoil produced uneven conditions for press freedom in the Middle East in 2012, with Tunisia and Libya largely retaining their gains from 2011 even as Egypt slid backward into the Not Free category. The region as a whole experienced a net decline for the year, in keeping with a b
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roader global pattern in which the percentage of people world wide who enjoy a free media environment fell to its lowest point in more than a decade. Among the more disturbing developments in 2012 were dramatic declines for Mali, significant deterioration in Greece, and a further tightening of controls on press freedom in Latin America, punctuated by the decline of two countries, Ecuador and Paraguay, from Partly Free to Not Free status." (Introduction)
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"The improvements in the Arab world were the most significant findings of Freedom of the Press 2012: A Global Survey of Media Independence, the latest edition of an annual index published by Freedom House since 1980. The gains came on the heels of eight consecutive years of decline in the global ave
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rage press freedom score, a phenomenon that has affected practically every region in the world. Furthermore, they were accompanied by positive changes in several key countries outside the Middle East and North Africa: Burma, Indonesia, the Philippines, Thailand, and Zambia. Other countries that registered progress include Georgia, Nepal, Niger, Sierra Leone, and Togo. Three of the countries with major gains—Burma, Libya, and Tunisia—had for many years endured media environments that were among the world’s most oppressive. Both Libya and Tunisia made single-year leaps of a size practically unheard of in the 32-year history of the report. At the same time, press freedom continued to face obstacles and reversals in many parts of the world. China, which boasts the world’s most sophisticated system of media repression, stepped up its drive to control both old and new sources of news and information through arrests and censorship. Other authoritarian powers—such as Russia, Iran, and Venezuela—resorted to a variety of techniques to maintain a tight grip on the media, detaining some press critics, closing down media outlets and blogs, and bringing libel or defamation suits against journalists." (Page 1)
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"De Honduras se habla poco, salvo cuando hay huracanes o golpes de Estado. Y de las emisoras populares hondureñas se habla menos, se conoce nada. Por eso, cuando las compañeras y compañeros de Radio Progreso me invitaron a relatar lo que vivieron aquel trágico 28 de junio 2009, no dudé en acept
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ar el desafío. Fui a El Progreso, grabadora en mano, con ganas de escuchar lo vivido cuando los militares, ordenados por el golpista Micheletti, clausuraron la radio. Para mi sorpresa, me contaron de un primer cierre, en 1979, durante los tiempos duros de la Seguridad Nacional. Y me contaron más, de cuando la huelga grande contra las bananeras gringas. Porque Radio Progreso está enclavada en la ciudad que fue el epicentro de esta insurrección sindical que cambió la vida del país. Tenía pocos días y eran muchos los testimonios y las anécdotas. Grabé muchas horas, conversé con casi todos los colegas de la emisora y con algunos antiguos trabajadores. Como siempre pasa, quedaron entrevistas pendientes. Es que la vida nunca cabe en un libro. En el relato hay expresiones muy catrachas que sólo se entenderán en las tierras de Morazán. No hace falta explicarlas. La imaginación es suficiente. Hay diálogos donde no pongo quiénes hablan. Tampoco es necesario. El protagonismo es de todo el equipo de la radio. Radio Progreso lleva cincuenta y cinco años acompañando al pueblo pobre del norte de Honduras, luchando por sus derechos. Cincuenta y cinco años siendo coherente con la revolución del Reino de Dios, la que predicó un tal Jesús de Nazaret, olvidado por tantas iglesias que dicen representarlo. Más de medio siglo. Se dice pronto. Cuando acabé de redactar el testimonio, me vinieron a la mente los versos de Brecht. Me atrevo a glosarlos diciendo que hay emisoras que luchan un día y son buenas. Hay otras que luchan un año y son mejores. Hay las que luchan muchos años y son muy buenas. Pero hay las que luchan toda la vida: ésas son las imprescindibles." (Unas palabras antes, página 3)
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