The trial of Malaysian cartoonist Zunar was set to begin yesterday, but has once again been delayed while a separate challenge to the country’s Sedition Act is pending. A new start date has been set for March 9. If convicted…
Category: International
“Cartooning Is the Art of Danger”
Exiled Iranian cartoonist Kianoush Ramezani took to the TED stage to not only talk about his work as an activist for free speech, but the explicit dangers cartoonists face when they do choose to speak out. Working in exile in…
Turkish Government Bans Brazilian Cartoonist
Brazilian political cartoonist Carlos Latuff may have become popular amongst the general population of Turkey, but the Turkish government will stop at nothing to still his pen. In a recent interview with Al-Monitor, the cartoonist discusses the implications of his…
For Myanmar Cartoonists, Satire is Both a Right and an Obligation
Since Myanmar’s military junta lost its stranglehold on the government in 2012, political cartoonists old and new have relished their newfound freedom to criticize the powers that be. Following the country’s first democratic elections of the new era late last…
Farghadani Acquitted on “Illegitimate Relations” Charge
Iranian cartoonist Atena Farghadani, currently serving a nearly 13-year prison sentence for caricaturing members of parliament as animals, has been spared even more prison time as she was recently acquitted of “non-adultery illegitimate relations.” That charge was brought after she…
Cartoonists Use Social Media to Show Solidarity with Censored Saudi Cartoonist
When Saudi cartoonist Abdullah Jaber seemingly disappeared for ten days, many feared the worst. Had he been abducted? Was he harmed for a cartoon critical of his government? When Jaber reemerged on Twitter, his message was simple — and disturbing — he…
Snow White Book Banned in Qatar for “Indecent” Illustrations
Qatar’s Supreme Education Council recently ordered a private school to remove a picture-book adaptation of Disney’s Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs from its library collection due to illustrations that one parent said were “inappropriate” and “indecent.” The principal at…
China Bans Its Own History
Even China’s own history isn’t safe from censorship. A collection of essays entitled The Realm of History by late historian Gao Hua, which offers a historical and cultural analysis of mainland China’s contemporary history and the Communist Party, has been…
Five Years Later, Cartoonists Have Faith in Arab Spring
This month marks five years since the regional wave of uprisings known as the Arab Spring began in Tunisia. Both before and after the regime changes in that country, Egypt, and Libya, as well as ongoing civil wars in Syria…
LEGO Changes Bulk Order Policy After Ai Weiwei Protest
Months after news broke that LEGO Group refused to fulfill a bulk order for Ai Weiwei’s current exhibit at Australia’s National Gallery of Victoria, the company reversed course this week and announced that it no longer vets customers’ intentions for…