Posts Tagged ‘ Freedom of Expression ’

Good news from Africa

It’s that time of the year again when news desks review the previous 12 months highlighting what is deemed important and newsworthy.  And, as with much else in a self-obsessed world, it’s usually about what happened in the West with the ‘rest’ relegated to a support role, usually in the negative.

So, it’s worth noting a review from New Yorker staff writer Alexis Okeowo which highlights 10 positive African news stories in 2011.

Of particular interest is story 10 regarding legislation to protect whistle blowers on corruption in Botswana; this stands in sharp contrast to recent moves in South Africa to penalise whistle blowers there (check out the South African newspaper The Mail and Guardian on and while you are there, also check out the Zapiro cartoons on the same issue.

Freedom of SpeechZapiro on freedom of speech and Jacob Zuma for 23rd December, 2011

Human Rights Day 2011, and the rest

It was Human Rights Day on Saturday! Does that mean every other day of the year is a human rights abuse day or, more accurately, a human wrongs day?

In other news, this year saw the adoption of a historic resolution on Human Rights, Sexual Orientation and Gender Identity at the United Nations Human Rights Council in Geneva in June.   This was the first time that a United Nations Resolution explicitly acknowledged human rights protection as covering sexual orientation.

There was also the recognition of access to the internet as a human right in freedom of expression. Syrian and Egyptian  protesters, Chinese villagers, and Turkish youtube’rs are understandably happy about this – not forgetting those concerned about France’s recent attempts at introducing a three strikes rule as an anti-piracy piracy measure (leading to a user being disconnected from the net).

For more information here’s a decent introduction surveying access to the internet and global censorship, by Barney Warf from the University of Kansas:

 

Cartoon source: By Martyn Turner, from The Thin Black Lines Rides Again – Political Cartoons and Development Education