Index on Censorship

India’s information technology law remains riddled with fuzzy definitions, and right now Google, stands indicted for defamation. A ban on Internet pornography would further “queer the pitch” for intermediary liability, thereby delivering another blow to free speech.

While supporters say the National Security Law in South Korea is necessary to protect a fragile peace against the North Korean threat, critics say the threat of North Korean infiltration is exaggerated and the law is really meant to stifle dissent within the country.

Jailed Vietnamese blogger and human rights lawyer Le Quoc Quan has launched a hunger strike to protest the refusal by prison authorities to provide him access to legal counsel, access to legal and religious books, and access to a priest for spiritual guidance, ahead of his appeal trial on 18 February 2014 in Hanoi.

In the midst of a widening crackdown on journalists critical of the military-backed government, Bassem Youssef treads carefully around the mention of Field Marshal Abdel Fattah el-Sisi during his debut appearance on MBC Misr Channel after a three-month absence from the small screen.

In the wake of mass protests sparked by rising transport fares in 2013, Brazil has embraced measures aimed at containing protests. One of the most controversial bans the use of masks during demonstrations.

Religious minorities coming under persecution in Indonesia have learned that sometimes it is better to keep silent and not draw too much public attention to themselves.

On 4 February 2014, Facebook celebrated its 10th anniversary. The social networking giant now has over 1.23 billion users, but there are still political leaders around the world who don’t want their country to have access to the site, or those who have banned it in the past amid fears it could be used to organise political rallies.

On Saturday 1 February, two protests, one from anti-fascists and anarchists, and one from Golden Dawn, were planned at different locations in the centre of Athens. While there was no police intervention at the Golden Dawn rally, riot police dispersed protesters at the anti-fascist rally using stun grenades and tear gas.