March 10th, 2010
by Ritesh J
I’ve always been a strong supporter of censorship, primarily because people don’t understand that with freedom comes responsibility. I have also believed that censorship was created for the good of society.
But when those controlling the content are responsible for societal turmoil, censorship turns into tyranny.
Many nations in the Middle East control Internet content, and in many ways it’s not wrong. But when a YouTube video or a blog post is the cause of deportation, or in Omid Reza’s case, legal murder, a line needs to be drawn.
In 1857, there was an Indian Military Revolt that took place under the British Raj that is widely debated as the first organized revolution against the British government. This resulted in the British government creating laws to curb the freedom of the people in India, which was a catalyst to a chain reaction of Mutiny throughout.
Just like that, if revolution has taken a new form online, it is bound to be shot down over and over again. And just like any revolution in the past, it doesn’t die on punishment. As a matter of fact it escalates.
Those who control content anywhere, be it online, broadcast or print, must know that their primary function is the good of the society. And if they themselves are the biggest problem of the society, they won’t survive for long.
Tags: blog, bloggers, Censorship, free press, Free speech, OR318, right to expression, Tyranny, YouTube
Posted in General | 1 Comment »
March 8th, 2010
I was requested to write these words of some dear friends. Friends I just can’t say no to. So in a way the following is the opposite of what I am about to say, this is about Forced Speech.
Forced…
Posted in General | No Comments »
March 7th, 2010
-Hisham Wyne-
“Over himself, over his own body and mind, the individual is sovereign”
John Stuart Mill, On Liberty, 1859.
But sovereign are we, over our blogs and the contents and comments therein?
We are bloggers. We want freedom. But…
Tags: bloggers, Citizen journalists, citizens, die in prison, Human Rights, individuals, John Stuart Mill, liberty, right to expression
Posted in Detained Bloggers, Free speech, Human Rights, Press | 1 Comment »
March 4th, 2010
Freedom of expression.
A term that weighs different on the scales of every individual. Be it invisible fetters that hold back tears, or physical restraints that gag your right to scream. Be it the dread of a tyrant’s wrath, or…
Posted in Detained Bloggers, Free speech, General, March 18, Movement | No Comments »
March 1st, 2010
A few days ago, a wonderful blogger (Roman) alerted us that he’s supporting the campaign by creating a page peel for websites. A page peel is certainly a nice way to spread awareness about the cause! Below are the wonderful…
Posted in General, Movement | No Comments »
March 1st, 2010
Beneath the rule of men entirely great,
The pen is mightier than the sword. Behold
The arch-enchanters wand! – itself a nothing! -
But taking sorcery from the master-hand
To paralyse the Caesars, and to strike
The loud earth breathless!…
Posted in Event, General | 2 Comments »
February 28th, 2010
On March 18th, we hope to be holding events in as many cities as possible, to show how many people around the world are uniting for free speech. We hope that you will also help us honor all bloggers like…
Posted in Event, Free speech, March 18, Movement | 1 Comment »
February 19th, 2010
The following is a guest post for OR318 by Leyla Haidarian, a Baha’i film maker based in South Africa and co-founder of Double Take TV.
In my son’s children’s prayer book, there is a sentence that has always baffled me:…
Posted in Free speech, Human Rights | No Comments »
February 18th, 2010
This is a wonderful contribution made by Jordan Ess, whose photo submissions for OR318 are featured here. Jordan is a fellow supporter of free speech and the March 18 Movement. We love his spirit and hope that you can follow…
Tags: OR318, YouTube
Posted in March 18, Videos | No Comments »