Nearly a year after the attack on the Paris offices of Charlie Hebdo which killed 12 people including five cartoonists, a manifesto on freedom of expression that editor Stéphane Charbonnier (widely known as Charb) completed shortly before his death will…
Category: International
Author’s Conspiracy Theory Seminar Cancelled By Egyptian Government
Freedom of expression is once again under attack in Egypt. Last week, pressure from authorities forced the shutdown of best-selling Egyptian author Alaa al-Aswany’s monthly seminar “Conspiracy Theory between Reality and Illusion” at Jesuit’s Cultural Center in Alexandria. The move…
Why Banning Extreme Manga Fails To Protect Children
Recent media coverage of UN Special Envoy Maud de Boer-Buquicchio’s recommendations to Japan for combating child sexual abuse emphasized her assertion that the country should, “ban manga of extreme child pornographic content.” This recommendation is a wrong-minded and unfortunate distraction from the…
Lawyer Challenges Egyptian Constitution over Racy Excerpt
This past weekend, Egyptian writer Ahmed Naji went to court to face charges that an excerpt of his novel The Use of Life violates decency laws. Naji is facing a two-year jail sentence and a 10,000 Egyptian pound ($1,245) fine,…
Palestinian Authority Issues Warrant for Cartoonist’s Arrest
Palestinian cartoonist Baha Yassin was caught up in complex internal politics this week, as the Palestinian Authority issued a warrant for his arrest due to his cartoons critical of the Fatah party. Yassin lives outside of Palestinian Authority jurisdiction, but…
Singapore Writers Say No to Governmental Funding of the Arts
Singaporean author Jee Leong Koh and poet Alvin Pang refused to accept funding from the government-linked National Arts Council (NAC) after NAC CEO Kathy Lai and Chairman Professor Chan Heng Chee made comments the writers claim justify and defend governmental…
Indian Newspaper Under Legal Fire For Publishing ISIS Cartoon
A controversial cartoon printed in the Sunday edition of Indian newspaper Marathi Daily has put the owner, editor, and cartoonist in hot water with the Islamic community. Called “blasphemous” and religiously insensitive, the cartoon accompanied an article entitled “ISIS Money”…
New Graphic Novel Challenges Free Speech Limitations
A new graphic novel by the European Youth Press explores the state of free press in Europe as seen through the eyes and pens of young European cartoonists and journalists coming into their craft. Entitled Free Our Media, the graphic…
Chinese Cartoonist Deported from Thailand, Jailed in China
Two Chinese dissidents, including political cartoonist Jiang Yefei, were deported from Thailand back to China last month despite having been granted refugee status by the United Nations. Jiang and fellow pro-democracy activist Dong Guangping were imprisoned upon their return to…
Indian Graphic Novelist Celebrates Artistic Nudes After Facebook Censorship
One of India’s best-known graphic novelists fell afoul of Facebook’s whimsical moderation regarding artistic nudity last week when the social media giant, acting on an anonymous user report, removed his work which showed a woman getting dressed. Orijit Sen and…