Thailand's Information and Communications Technology Ministry is working with the Justice and Education ministries to launch Cyber Scout, a project to build a network of volunteers to monitor for inappropriate content on the Internet.

The project will train volunteers to engage with the cyber society and monitor websites that may compromise national security as well as those that criticise the monarchy

Prime Minister Abhisit Vejjajiva said it would also educate people on the appropriate use of technology: The Internet now is a powerful communications channel and a two-edged sword. It is so important to encourage good moral use of technology for people

ICT Minister Chuti Krairiksh said that in the beginning, this project would recruit 200 people from around the country, including students, teachers, government officials and the private sector, who have computers and Internet literacy.

These people will be trained in the proper use of the Internet and then they will become online volunteer scouts to help the government screen websites.

New film censorship guidelines, set to take effect on March 15, have received guarded reception from the local artistic community.

Malaysian Film Producers Association president Ahmad Puad Onah, said: With the new guidelines, the Film Censorship Board is willing to discuss the story and give options to filmmakers on how to change certain scenes that may be deemed offensive.

It is very helpful. Previously, the censorship board only accepted the finished product. So, the filmmakers have to bear the extra cost of omitting whatever needs to be cut and even suffer losses if the film is banned.

He was among those in the local film community who had a chance to view and discuss the new guidelines. Ahmad said: My worries are the verbal and oral instructions given. The minister still can cut out scenes if these are 'deemed' sensitive in relation to current issues, even though these comply with the guidelines.

The four key areas that the filmmaker has to consider is the need to be sensitive towards public order and safety, respecting religious aspects, social culture and moral values.

It will also encourage producers to exercise self-censorship. As filmmakers, we need to heed the negative ramifications of producing provocative and offensive subjects. If we are making a movie for the Malaysian audience, of course we need to abide by the laws of the country.

Film maker Datuk Paduka Shuhaimi Baba said: I think it is a good move as I think the board is trying to be more liberal and they are now breaking a lot of barriers. They now allow us to submit and discuss the script if they feel we have touched on taboo areas, which makes it less stressful for movie makers. The board is more open to discussion and involving related parties like filmmakers in drafting the guidelines reflects this fresh approach.

Update: Moral Censorship

23rd March 2010. Based on article from heraldsun.com.au

Gay men can at long last be depicted in Malaysian films - so long as they repent or even go straight in the end.

Strict censorship rules in the mostly Muslim country mean books and films are routinely banned or scenes deleted that are deemed detrimental to moral values or religious sensitivities.

The new censorship guidelines reverse a ban on scenes featuring homosexuality, Malaysian Film Producers' Association president Ahmad Puad Onah said. But there's a catch: We are now allowed to show these scenes. As long as we portray good triumphing over evil and there is a lesson learnt in the film, such as from a gay (character) who turns into a (straight) man. Previously we are not allowed to show these at all.

The new rules, he insists, will allow greater freedom of expression for film-makers. But kissing, undressing and obscenity scenes will still be banned: We can do almost anything now but we are urged to give due considerations on the film's impact on certain areas like public order, religion, socio-culture elements and moral values.

It is not just homosexuality - subjects such as illegal racing can also be depicted. A report at the weekend said local movie V3 Road Gangster was being shown in the cinemas since the illegal racers either died or were caught by police at the end.

Update: Be moral or you'll be censored

31st March 2010. Based on article from google.com

Malaysia's censorship guidelines — made public on the Home Ministry's Web site this week make the dishonest claim that adults should be free to choose whatever material they wish to watch, as long as the material is legitimate in terms of the law and does not have the potential to cause harm.

...But... the new rules list dozens of elements that might be objectionable, but indicates a movie containing them might not necessarily be prohibited. In another departure from previous guidelines, it notes that curse words might be allowed based on whether they are appropriate in the context of a film.

All profanities and scenes of amorous kisses will be excised if they are overly explicit, such as involving nudity.

Religious sensitivities in this Muslim-majority country take up a chunk of the guidelines, which discourage scenes of Muslims drinking alcohol, gambling and becoming involved in vice....BUT...it would be permissible if the filmmaker wants to depict a person's transformation from being evil to good.

Also, depictions of Muslims who convert to other religions should not highlight the benefits (of the act) without showing its ...BAD... consequences.

Sex scenes, including homosexuality and unnatural sex, remain discouraged, extending to erotic voices and kissing on body parts that could arouse sex, including the neck, chest and ears. Women should not wear bikinis that are too tiny and tight, according to the guidelines.

Passionate hugs between men and women or gay people are also discouraged.

Movies that should be promoted include those highlighting virtues such as respect for God, honesty, courage and environmental preservation.

The New Zealand's film and publication censorship is implemented by the Office of Film and Literature Classification (OFLC), currently headed by Bill Hastings.

Its legal remit is via the Film, Video and Publications Classification Act 1993. This evolved from the Video Recordings Act 1987, which was passed as an urgent response to the video format that emerged in the early to mid-1980s, but was outside the reach of the existing film censorship law, the Films Act 1983.

OFLC Classification Labels:

Film and DVD labels are colour- coded, much the same as traffic lights:

• Green means anyone can view a film.
• Yellow means that anyone can view the film, but the film may contain material, such as violence or sexual themes, which may offend or upset some people. Parental guidance is advised before children view the film.
• Red means that the film is legally restricted and can only be viewed by the audience specified. There are no exceptions to this restriction.

All labels have a rating or classification symbol and usually a note briefly explaining the nature of the film that may be of concern to viewers - for example, whether the film contains violence or sex.

• G - Unrestricted: Anyone can be shown or sold this.
• PG - Unrestricted: Parental guidance may be needed for younger viewers.
• M - Unrestricted: More suitable for viewers over 16 years.
• R13 - Restricted: It is illegal for anyone to show or sell this to someone under 13 years of age.
• R15 - Restricted: It is illegal for anyone to show or sell this to someone under 15 years of age
• R16 - Restricted: It is illegal for anyone to show or sell this to someone under 16 years of age.
• R18 - Restricted: It is illegal to show or sell this to someone under 18 years of age
• R - Restricted: There is a special restriction. Refer to the words on the right of the label for the full conditions.
• RP16 - Restricted: It is illegal to show or sell this to someone under under 16 years of age unless they are accompanied by a parent or guardian.
• RP13 - Restricted: It is illegal to show or sell this to someone under under 13 years of age unless they are accompanied by a parent or guardian.

A guardian is considered to be a responsible adult (18 years and over), for example, a family member or teacher who can provide guidance.

The Labelling Body is a private organisation representative of producers, distributors and exhibitors that exercises statutory functions independently of the Classification Office.

Before issuing a label, the Labelling Body will cross-rate, rate, or refer the DVD to the Classification Office. The Labelling Body will cross-rate any DVD rated G, PG or M in Australia, or U, PG or 12A in the United Kingdom.

The Labelling Body will rate any DVD title not previously rated in Australia or the United Kingdom. Once a DVD title has been rated or classified, a person may supply an unlimited number of identical copies to the public provided each is labelled.

The Labelling Body will refer a DVD to the Classification Office if it has been classified MA15+ or higher in Australia, or 15 or higher in the United Kingdom, or if the Labelling Body is of the view that the DVD has content that would be restricted under New Zealand law.

Fees

The Film, Video and Publications Classification Act 1993 requires any person who wishes to sell, hire, exchange or loan, in the course of any business, any film, video or DVD, to obtain a label for that film, video or DVD from the Film and Video Labelling Body.

Failure to do so is an offence which carries a maximum fine of $3000 for an individual or $10,000 for a company.

• $30.38: The fee for any DVD rated G, PG or M in NZ, G, PG or M in Australia, and  U, PG, 12 or 12A in the UK.
• $236.25: The fee for any DVD over two hours to be rated G, PG, or M.
• $275: The fee for any DVD to be classified by the OFLC waived by 75 per cent.
• $1100: The fee for any DVD to be classified by the OFLC.

An application for the discretionary waiver requires evidence that the DVD is old, has artistic or cultural value or importance, is relatively unavailable and that the supply of the DVD is unlikely to produce commercial gain.

Two films directed by internationally acclaimed Filipino directors Jeffrey Jeturian and Brillante Mendoza for ABS-CBN's short film project, AmBisyon, were banned (rated X) by the Philippines Movie & Television Review & Classification Board (MTRCB).

Jeturian's film Ganito tayo ngayon, Paano na tayo bukas? focused on the state of the economy. His camera follows a newspaper from the time it is delivered to a homeowner to when it is used to wipe feces from a foot of a cart-pushing vendor.

Jeturian uses a newspaper printed with the same controversial advertisement that came out in early January trumpeting the Arroyo administration's economic successes. The film ends with President Arroyo's photo on the crumpled newspaper.

The MTRCB said the film was banned for undermining the faith and confidence of the people in government.

Mendoza's film, Ayos Ka, is a music video whose hopeful soundtrack is a stark contrast against images of poverty, prostitution, drugs and murder.

The MTRCB claimed Mendoza's film is injurious to the prestige of the Republic of the Philippines and its people.

ANC, ABS-CBN's 24-hour news channel, produced the AmBisyon 2010 film series in the name of public interest. It sought to offer a nation on the verge of a critical election the chance to focus on issues, not personalities. In a statement, ANC said it will appeal the ruling.

Update: Ayos Ka unbanned

1st April 2010. See article from abs-cbnnews.com

The MTRCB have relented on their ban of Ayos Ka and instead issued an age restricted R rating

Vietnamese officials 'offended' by a nude statue have asked a French cultural centre in Hanoi to remove the artwork.

The L'Espace centre told sculptor-painter Phuong Vu Manh that six officials, including police and Ministry of Culture representatives, visited the gallery, and were all angered by his work, the artist said.

The sculpture, called A Statue of Phuong Vu Manh depicts him painted green, labelled with diseases and on a drip, to depict, he says, how pollution affects people in modern society.

The statue had been on display for about 10 days. He suspected that the removal of a floral display obscuring the statue's private organs may have triggered officials' disapproval.

Some of Japan's leading anime artists have voiced their opposition to a government proposal to outlaw sex and violence in children's comics and impose an age limit on anyone buying sexually explicit anime.

Headed by such well-known figures in the industry as Fujiko Fujio A, the creator of Hattori the Ninja and the Laughing Salesman, and Tetsuya Chiba, who draws the Tomorrow's Joe manga, the artists told reporters in Tokyo that the law would affect their freedom of expression.

Machiko Satonaka, another manga artist, said that the proposed legislation, created by the Tokyo Metropolitan Government, pertains to freedom of expression and is open to a variety of interpretations. She added that she was horrified that the city government was planning to regulate comic characters because no one is actually being harmed.

The city assembly, which will vote on the proposed law on Friday, wants to restrict comics and animated images that contain sexually provocative depictions of nonexistent minors - an ambiguous concept that is taken to mean characters that people could reasonably assume to be minors, based on their appearances.

The new law would require the manga and animation industry not to sell works that depict sexual situations involving minors while also identifying works that depict rape and other violence as harmful materials and restrict minors' access to such comics.

New Zealand's Department of Internal Affairs (DIA) has started an internet filter which is being used by ISPs Maxnet and Watchdog.

Thomas Beagle, spokesperson for online freedom lobby Tech Liberty says he's very disappointed that the filter is now running, it's a sad day for the New Zealand internet. He told Computerworld the filter went live on February 1 but DIA has delayed announcing that until it held a meeting with its Independent Reference Group. He says he's disappointed the launch was conducted in such a stealthy mode.

The manager of the Department of Internal Affairs' Censorship Compliance Unit, Steve O'Brien, denies any subterfuge in the launch, saying the trial has been going on for two years and that has been communicated to media for quite some time: The Independent Reference Group has met and the filter system processes were demonstrated as set out in the code of practice, that is that the website filtering system prevents access to known websites containing images of child sexual abuse.

Tech Liberty understands that Telstra Clear, Telecom and Vodafone have said they will implement the filter, with Orcon, Slingshot and Natcom saying that they won't.

Reporters Without Borders condemns the censorship and self-censorship which the home affairs ministry has imposed on Malaysia's leading English-language daily, The Star, by issuing it with a warning about an article criticising the caning of three Muslim women under Sharia law.

As one of the country's most widely-read newspapers, The Star should have a free hand to provide its readers with the broadest range of news and views on social issues, Reporters Without Borders said. We urge Prime Minister Abdul Razak to reconsider this decision and to quickly amend the 1984 Publishing and Printing Presses Act, whose licence renewal system denies newspapers the security they need.

In response to the pressure from the government and Muslim groups, the newspaper was forced to publish an apology and withdraw the offending article from its website. Written by managing editor P. Gunasegaram and published in the paper on 19 February, the article, entitled Persuasion, not compulsion, said the sentence of caning passed on 9 February on three Muslim women accused of adultery was disproportionate. It was the first time in years that a Malaysian court has issued such a sentence.

After receiving the home affairs ministry's warning letter, the newspaper refused to publish an article by one of the newspapers contributing columnists, Marina Mahathir , in which she argued that Sharia laws were written by men, not God, and as such were open to debate. She finally posted the column on her blog.

The Jakarta chapter of the Alliance of Independent Journalists have filed a lawsuit against the Indonesian Censorship Institute for its decision to ban the film Balibo.

Hendrayana, executive director of the Legal Aid Center for the Press (LBH Pers), which is representing AJI Jakarta in proceedings at the State Administrative Court, said the ban was a violation of the public's right to information.

In early December, the censorship institute, also know as the LSF, banned the film, which tells the story of five Australian journalists killed when Indonesian troops took over the border town of Balibo in East Timor in October 1975. A sixth journalist died weeks later when Indonesian forces invaded Dili.

Hendrayana said the LSF had no clear reason to ban the film and officials' worries that its screening might hurt bilateral relations between Indonesia and Australia had proved to be unfounded.

Foreign Minister Marty Natalegawa has previously said the restriction was to protect the country's image abroad. Minister of Culture and Tourism Jero Wacik has said the film was not fit to be screened and could damage relations between Indonesia, East Timor and Australia.

Update: Australian media call to put Balibo ban on presidential agenda

10th March 2010. See article from encoremagazine.com.au

Australia's  Media, Entertainment and Arts Alliance has asked Foreign Minister Stephen Smith to raise the banning of Robert Connolly's film Balibo with Indonesian President Susilo Bamban Yudhoyono during his visit to Australia this week.

The fact that the government of Dr Yudhoyono will not even allow the film to be shown to the Indonesian public suggests that this matter is far from resolved, said MEAA's federal secretary Christopher Warren.

As far as this country's community of journalists is concerned, the failure of Indonesian power holders to acknowledge and take appropriate action for what happened in Balibo in 1975 represents an important barrier to the development of full and cordial relations between Australia and Indonesia.

The Aceh office of the Indonesian Broadcasting Commission has proposed a draft of the province's broadcasting qanun , or bylaw, that will be used as a standard to censor films, TV and programs to ensure they adhere to Islamic law.

The draft, however, received strong opposition from the local branch of the Independent Journalists Association (AJI), which objected on the grounds that the proposed measure violated press freedom laws.

Mukhtaruddin Yakob, head of the local branch of the AJI, said the draft had been submitted at the end of January to the governor's office for preliminary review: The proposed qanun is inconsistent with the [national] Press Law and the Broadcasting Law, he told the Jakarta Globe.

Mukhtaruddin said the qanun would require inappropriate censorship of the program content of broadcasters operating in the staunchly Islamic province.

The proposed bylaw would require radio and television stations to broadcast live the obligatory weekly prayer on Fridays and prohibit them from airing crime reconstructions, obscene material and sexual harassment cases.

It also bans broadcasters from airing fund-raising efforts that are not in the Muslims' interests, Mukhtaruddin said.

Under the qanun, movies, television shows (including soap operas and documentaries) and commercials would be subject to censorship by the Aceh Film Censorship Board and Aceh Film Advisory Board (Bapfida).

There are claims the latest law governing filmmaking in Indonesia is stricter than its predecessor dating back almost 30 years.

Director Riri Riza and producer Mira Lesmana say producers and directors had been hoping for more self regulation in the revised regulation.

But Lesmana told Radio Australia's Connect Asia program that the new law hands all power to the government: It puts the government in total control of all the activities of making a film, from permits, from what to say and what not to say, all the way up to penalties. Which for us is just going totally backwards to what we wanted.

She says even self-funded projects have to follow the regulations: We don't have a classification board. What we have is a censor board and there is no film whatsoever that can be shown in the cinema if you don't have censor cards saying that it is suitable.

Riza says one aspect of the new law is that 60% of screen time has to be reserved for Indonesian productions, regardless of quality: That is something that you call government intervention in the industry. It's trying to regulate whatever aims in the film industry, which is dangerous.

He says he wants to remind the Indonesian government that Article 28 in our constitution that protects the freedom of saying whatever you want to say and freedom to access information.

A Cambodian government morality committee will soon begin holding bimonthly meetings to review Web sites featuring racy images of Khmer women, and will consider blocking access to those deemed in conflict with national values.

The committee includes officials from the Post and Telecommunications Ministry as well as the Ministry of Women's Affairs and the Interior Ministry.

Ros Sorakha, an undersecretary of state at the Ministry of Posts and Telecommunications said: As young Cambodians have access to such technologies, they indulge and commit wrongdoings that deviate from our customs and traditions by accessing and replicating erotic and pornographic pictures over Internet sites. She was addressing the annual conference of the National Committee for Upholding Cambodian Social Morality, Women's and Khmer Family Values.

Minister of Women's Affairs Ing Kantha Phavi, who is also president of the morality committee, said the monitoring of objectionable Web sites is entirely consistent with its mission: If we can stop the flow and influence of foreign culture, then we can maintain our own culture and traditions and foster values for our women.

Update: Cambodia to block websites 'against the principle of the government'

28th February 2010. Based on article from phnompenhpost.com

An official for Telecom Cambodia (TC) has indicated that the state-run company would seek to block access to Web sites it deems inappropriate, should it be granted control over the country's domestic and international Internet exchange.

If any Web site attacks the government or any Web site displays inappropriate images or pornography, or it's against the principle of the government, we can block all of them, said Chin Daro, TC's deputy director, during an interview at the company's offices. If TC plays the role of the exchange point, it will benefit Cambodian society because the government has trust in us, and we can control Internet consumption.

Government officials have long been looking to funnel all Internet service providers (ISPs) through a state-run central exchange point, and they have recently indicated that they plan to execute the change as soon as possible, according to industry insiders.

Chin Daro also said during the interview that he believed the Ministry of Posts and Telecommunications was looking to grant the monopoly as soon as the necessary infrastructure was in place.

Tifatul Sembiring, the Indonesian Minister of Information and Communications publicly announced recently an outline of plans to filter content on the internet by using a system like the one Australia has chosen for their censoring efforts.

The proposed plan, by means of a monitoring committee would determine what online content is to be blocked at the internet service provider level. Under the new system, ISPs would be prohibited from distributing, transmitting, or otherwise making accessible content such as pornography and anything else deemed illegal or immoral.

Access to content containing, supposed lies and misleading information will also be banned in Indonesia.

Article 4 in particular looks to target gambling in the country. Websites that have any connection to gambling are prohibited which could change the outlook for online gambling adversely in the nation.

People who use the web feel this is a dangerous plan that spells the end of freedom of expression and the right to information. Opposition to the proposed plan is growing fast with journalists and political reporters leading the charge. The youth of Indonesia also feel their right to free expression will be removed if this law takes effect.

Media activists and the Alliance of Independent Journalists have been very vocal saying that this is a clear violation of political and internet freedom, denouncing the plan as ambiguous and ill-conceived. At least 1400 Facebook members have responded with protest letters. Although the government has said this is just a first draft, the protests continue with growing support.

Update: Rejected

27th February 2010. Based on article from prachatai.com

The Indonesian government rejected a controversial draft regulation on multimedia content which had sparked protests by both journalists and online users, media reports said.

According to KOMPAS.com, Minister for Communication and Information (MCI) Tifatul Sembiring said he will erase it, acknowledging that it threatens freedom of the press in the country.

President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono himself said during a cabinet plenary meeting on 18 February that the draft proved to be a sensitive issue that caused debates among the public. He added that further consideration on the draft should be given.

The Jakarta Globe quoted MCI spokesman Gatot Dewa Broto as saying that the proposed regulation provides for a 30-member multimedia content team that would act on public complaints about disturbing content, and would only order Internet service providers to block Web sites that it felt were displaying material already banned under Indonesian law.

Update: But

1st March 2010. Based on article from thejakartapost.com

Communications and Information Technology Minister Tifatul Sembiring said he would press ahead with a planned bill to monitor Internet content, despite claims it would violate freedom of expression.

The minister, however, said he would only resume the public deliberation of the bill once the protests surrounding it had subsided.

This draft regulation has apparently jangled some nerves in the public, Tifatul told a hearing with the House of Representatives' Commission I on defense, foreign affairs and communications.

I've thus decided to implement a cool-down period while we analyze all the suggestions from the public.

He did not say how long the Communications and Information Technology Ministry would draw out that period.

Once everything has calmed down, we'll meet again with the House *to discuss the draft regulation*, he added.

Tifatul said the bill had been in the works since 2006, three years before he became minister.

Thailand's National Telecommunications Commission had been investigating about 20 community radio stations for allegedly trying to incite violence in the run up to Thaksin's asset forfeiture verdict.

NTC acting secretary-general Thakorn Boonyasith said the stations were accused of violating operating regulations.

Some have been accused of encouraging listeners to cause chaos as the ruling on ousted prime minister Thaksin Shinawatra's 76.6-billion-baht asset seizure trial draws near. Others are alleged to have offended the monarchy.

The NTC says there are about 6,600 registered community radio stations across the country which are granted 300-day permits. They are prohibited from slandering anyone, inciting violence or damaging the institution of the monarchy. Those who do will have their permits revoked for a year. Thakorn said the stations in question had been asked to send their archived broadcasts for the past 30 days to the NTC for examination.

Thakorn said he had sent a letter to all community radio stations last week warning them to comply strictly with the regulations.

China has tightened controls on internet use, requiring anyone who wants to set up a website to meet the censors and produce ID documents.

The technology ministry claimed the measures were designed to tackle online pornography, but internet activists see it as increased government censorship.

A number of websites are now being registered overseas in an attempt to avoid controls.

The Ministry of Industry and Information Technology on Tuesday lifted a freeze introduced in December on registration for new individual websites. But the technology ministry said would-be website operators would now have to submit identity cards and photos of themselves, as well as meeting censors before their sites could be registered.

A new mythical animal is on the prowl on the Chinese internet.

The Yake lizard is the latest creation of China's nimble and imaginative netizens as a way to poke fun at the authorities and their bid to corral online debate and to block access to sites the censors deem inappropriate.

Internet satirists were inspired by the language used by a Uighur artist performing on the Spring Festival Gala show, noted for wholesome family entertainment peppered with propaganda.

When the artist from the restive, mainly Muslim western Xinjiang region performed the song The Party's Policies are yakexi – using the Uighur word for good, Chinese netizens were not convinced. After all, seven months ago angry Uighurs took to the streets, leaving nearly 200 people - mostly Han Chinese- dead after a night of rioting.

Netizens pounced on the word to ridicule the song – and the censors. They soon found a suitable pun, and the Uighur word became Yake lizard. The word xi in Chinese can mean lizard.

China's most popular blogger, the youthful writer and racing driver Han Han, then set up a competition, offering 5,000 yuan (£500) to the creator of the best new lyrics for the Yake Lizard song.

All this has helped to ensure the Yake lizard has become an internet mascot within the confines of the Great Firewall of China. Blogs and chatrooms have created certain characteristics for the legendary lizard. One noted that the creature used to flourish in the Soviet Union but was now virtually extinct there and to be found mainly in mainland China, North Korea and Cuba.

On February 5 an unidentified man was arrested for comments he posted to a webboard. His house was searched, his computer confiscated as evidence, his family frightened, and friends panicked. These are ordinary people who express opinions that the authorities consider dangerous, and the mainstream media never allows. The Internet is their only outlet.

The police released this man on February 6, told him to stop making comments on the webboard, and they will let the case go away quietly. 

How many other cases there are there like this one? It is a perfect method of intimidation and creating fear without having to do the paper work to the end, not having to bother the court, and without public attention. Many Thais now say they will withdraw from the internet exchanges, at least for a long while.

The government announced last month (Jan 2010) that they would set up a committee to oversee the cases to prevent the abuses of the law. During the past year, the convictions in three cases were severe (18, 10 and 7 years of prison).

A dozen more people were arrested, charged for lèse majesté, either by the lèse majesté law or under the Computer Crimes Act 2007 which is a lèse majesté law in disguise. The CCA has not been used against pornography or identity theft but solely for lèse majesté. Four recent arrests were for translating news from Bloomberg about the monarch's health, for spreading so-called inauspicious rumours after the downturn in the Thai stock market.

An unconfirmed source reports there are about 200 lèse majesté cases in court at the moment. We can imagine how widespread the intimidation and fear is.

A blogger, who had allegedly posted doctored images of Kelantan Mentri Besar, Nik Abdul Aziz Nik Mat and Opposition Leader Anwar Ibrahim. The image is reported to have Nik Abdul Aziz having anal intercourse with Anwar.

Kelantan PAS Security Committee, secretary Mohamad Ibrahim, lodged a report after discovering the pictures on the Internet.

According to another news report, the blogger is currently being held under Section 233 of the Communications and Multimedia Act, which relates to improper use of network facilities or network service to comment, request or suggest in a communication which is obscene, false, offensive, or used to abuse, threaten or harass another person.

If convicted, the blogger faces a maximum one year jail term and/or a maximum fine of RM50,000.

Igan D'Bayan's painting titled Gothika Filipina 2 should have been included in the Asian International Art Exhibition (AIAE) held from November 2009 to January 2010. But the curators didn't allow the painting to join the display at the National Art Gallery in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia.

Invited to participate in the prestigious annual exhibit together with nine other prominent Filipino visual artists, D'Bayan was surprised when he was told by Lay Ann Orlina, wife of sculptor Ramon Orlina who chairs the Federation of Asian Artists (FAA)-Philippine Committee, that there was a potential problem with his painting.

D'Bayan was given several options: submit another (presumably less provocative) painting, cover the offending area, or stand by his work and be willing to face the consequences. The flummoxed artist replied that he would stand by what he had painted.

Igan subsequently received an email saying that his painting couldn't be accepted for the exhibit because the secret part of a woman was painted too clearly, and that they hoped the artist could replace it with other works that don't bring any bad interpretation from or to the audiences (sic).

Igan D'Bayan will now hold a one-painting show of Gothika Filipina 2 at The Crucible Gallery at the Art Walk, fourth floor, SM Megamall A, Manila, starting on Tuesday, Feb. 16. The internationally censored painting will be on view until Feb. 28.

The Hollywood film Valentine's Day, starring Julia Roberts, has been banned in Brunei following recent warnings from religious leaders declaring that Valentine's Day is not for Muslims because it encouraged promiscuous activity.

An Indonesian movie Rumah Dara (literally Maiden House) starred Shareefa Danish and Julie Estelle has been banned in Malaysia.

The slasher movie is the first Indonesian film that cannot be seen in the Malaysian theaters.

Member of Information Commission at the House of Representatives (DPR) Tantowi Yahya said Malaysia applies its own mechanism of censorship. Tantowi said he has yet to watch the movie. Prior to being premiered in Indonesia on January 22, the movie had been on the theaters in Singapore, North America and Korea.

Rumah Dara is the first slasher movie directed by Timo Tjahjanto and Kimo Stamboel, who are widely acknowledged as The Mo Brothers.

Update: Slashed by the Indonesian Censor

9th February 2010. See article from thejakartaglobe.com

They're most likely strangers to Indonesian movie fans as their debut feature-length film, Rumah Dara (Dara's House) — the story of a twisted family that kill its guests — was only released in local theaters a couple of days ago.

But prior to its domestic premiere, the movie, originally titled Macabre, was screened at a number of film festivals around the world, and left quite an impression.

In their first feature, the self-styled 'Mo Brothers' show a natural feel for genre rules that makes this fresh meat for gore hounds, proclaimed Derek Elley, in a film review for the Los Angeles-based entertainment magazine Variety.

Writing for The Austin Chronicle, an alternative newsweekly in Texas, Richard Whittaker said the movie may put the Southeast Asian nation on some gore hounds' maps. … This may be the bloodiest film of the [Fantastic Fest Film] festival.

In September last year, a new Indonesian film law was introduced, increasing the amount of government control over the film industry, largely through its censorship agency. The typical violence of a slasher film is still considered taboo and usually prohibited.

Rumah Dara, according to its directors, was subjected to this harsh scrutiny and some of the close-up scenes of violence were cut.

But Kimo reassured horror buffs that the cut scenes were just a very small part of the movie and did not affect the integrity of the film: We thought that it could've been so much worse, he added. We could've been banned.

The film has also faced public criticism for its extreme violence, with one reporter saying after a press screening that the film had no value and was immoral.

In a latest action against the online porn industry, China has reinforced its arsenal of laws now in effect.

The Supreme People's Court and the Supreme People's Procuratorate said that the new rules would target wireless carriers, along with advertisers, advertising agents, third-party payment platforms and websites if they are found to be involved in the porn business for profits.

Measures against porn websites are already in operation but now others involved in the online porn business will have to prove that they were unaware of any porn content on the websites. However, a single complaint from any netizen could foil the attempt, according to the rule's definition of awareness.

The rule also enhances the protection for teenagers younger than 14 by cutting the conviction threshold in half. For instance, as few as 10 video clips verified as porn will carry the sentence of making, copying, publishing, selling and circulating porn articles for making profits, according to the rule.

China has censored this year's nominations for the Academy Awards, blocking out the name of a documentary about the aftermath of the Sichuan earthquake.

China's Unnatural Disaster: The Tears of Sichuan Province, was one of five films nominated for best documentary short.

The movie shows the aftermath of the Sichuan earthquake in May 2008, when over 70,000 people died, including 10,000 children, who were killed as their shoddily-built school buildings collapsed around them.

The 40-minute film shows how the parents are stonewalled and ignored by Communist party officials. It was blocked from being aired in China, and the words unnatural disaster have been censored from the Chinese internet.

When the film garnered its Oscar nomination, Chinese media outlets either removed the film from their reports, or omitted the entire category.

There is also speculation that the Oscar ceremony itself may not be aired live in China because of the potential embarrassment if the movie wins.

A Malaysian court has charged a blogger with posting comments that insulted a late state sultan.

Khairul Nizam Abdul Ghani pleaded not guilty at a court in central Negeri Sembilan state. He was accused of insulting Sultan Iskandar Ismail of southern Johor state, who died Jan. 22, The Star and New Straits Times newspapers reported.

He was charged with improper use of network facilities by transmitting comments deemed obscene, indecent, false, menacing or offensive. The offense carries a maximum penalty of a year in prison and a fine.

It was unclear what Khairul Nizam wrote. It has been removed from his blog and lawyers and court officials could not immediately be reached for comment.

Last year, several people were charged with posting allegedly derogatory comments. One pleaded guilty and was fined 10,000 ringgit ($3,000). The others are on trial.

Reporters Without Borders and the Burma Media Association condemn the 13-year jail sentence passed on journalist Ngwe Soe Lin by a special court inside Rangoon's Insein prison on 27 January. He is the second video reporter for a Burmese exile radio and TV station based in Oslo to be convicted in the space of a month.

The military junta has again expressed its phobia of uncontrolled video reporting by imposing a heavy prison sentence on a Democratic Voice of Burma video journalist, the two organisations said. He should be freed at once, as should Hla Hla Win, the young women reporter who was given a 20-year sentence four weeks ago after providing DVB with video material.

Reporters Without Borders and the Burma Media Association added: As regards media freedom, we believe that none of the conditions are being met for this year's elections to be considered free and democratic. At least 15 journalists and netizens are currently detained in Burma.

Aye Chan Naing, the head of the Oslo-based DVB, confirmed to Reporters Without Borders that Ngwe Soe Lin worked for the station. Referring to the sentence, he said: It is a clear sign of the nature of the threats hanging over those who work as journalists, and on the control that is going to be exerted over the media prior to the elections.

Free speech advocates have been rejoicing after a Malaysian court quashed a government ban on a book about the challenges facing Muslim women.

We were hoping, we were praying that this would mark a good day for all Malaysians, said Professor Norani Othman, the editor of the banned book, Muslim Women and the Challenges of Islamic Extremism, a collection of essays by international scholars. It's a good day for academic freedom.

In July 2008, the Ministry of Home Affairs banned the book, published in 2005 by Sisters in Islam, a Malaysian nongovernmental organization, on the grounds that it was prejudicial to public order and that it could confuse Muslims, particularly Muslim women.

Sisters in Islam filed a judicial review in the Kuala Lumpur High Court in December 2008 on the basis that the ban was unconstitutional because it infringed upon freedom of speech and religion and gender equality.

Justice Mohamad Ariff Yusof said that he had failed to find that the facts of the case supported the decision to ban the book on the grounds that it could disrupt public order: There are just seven pages of text which are objected to out of 215 pages in the book, he said. The book itself was in circulation for over two years in Malaysia before the minister decided to ban it.

He ordered the government to pay court costs incurred by Sisters in Islam.

Noor Hisham Ismail, the senior federal counsel who represented the ministry, said he could not yet say whether the government would appeal the decision.

Professor Norani, the book's editor and a sociologist at the National University of Malaysia, said she was overjoyed by the decision and hoped that it would encourage others to produce books that questioned the politicization of Islam.

Update: 'Obvious Errors'

31st January 2010. Based on article from malaysiakini.com

Muslims have been advised to stay away from book, Muslim Women and The Challenge of Islamic Extremism. It can create doubt and disharmony among the people in the country, according to the Malaysian Islamic Development Department (JAKIM).

Its director general, Wan Mohamad Sheikh Abdul Aziz Wan Mohamad said the contents of the book contravened the Islamic Publication Materials Censorship Guidelines issued by Jakim in 1996.

Several obvious errors were found (in the book), he said in a statement today. He said among others, the book stated that Islamic family laws and Syariah criminal laws were promoting prejudice and discrimination against women.

The book also questioned the fatwa institution and the ban on non-Islamic scholars from discussing Islamic issues. It also promoted the re-interpretation of the verses in the Quran, especially those on gender bias, he said.

A movie rating system cannot be implemented at the present time, a Chinese official has said.

Zang Zengxiang, deputy director of the Beijing municipal bureau of radio, film and television, said the bureau has been researching the feasibility of a movie rating system for several years. He said the research proved clearly that Beijing couldn't carry out a movie rating system for many reasons but he didn't explain any of them.

Audiences in the capital have grown used to spending their money on censored movies. All domestic and foreign movies must be censored in order to receive public viewing licenses from the State Administration of Radio, Film and Television.

Movies that show numerous sexual or violent scenes undergo large-scale deletions, an act that has been fiercely criticized as producing emasculated stories by some film industry insiders.

The fruitless struggle against censorship  started in 2003 with the first movie rating proposal by Wang Xingdong, a member of the Chinese People's Political Consultative Conference.

Li Yu, director of the Berlin Film Festival's nominated film Apple, which went through censorship a total of five times for its sex scenes, told METRO she never believed a rating system could be implemented under the current cultural and economical environment: We refer to censorship as an 'iron' rule, meaning that no one can move or dodge it. She added that the absence of a rating system took away the adult audience's right to watch adult scenes, and made it impossible to prevent younger moviegoers from seeing films with violence and sexual content.

One of Google's Nexus One features is voice-to-text, and apparently is reasonably accurate, accurate to the point of censoring certain spoken words. Apparently if you try using a bit of foul language when voicing a text the censor replaces said swear word with ####, reports an article over on Cnet.

Apparently a group at Reuters discovered the Nexus One censor ability which stops swear words from being placed into a text. A spokesperson for Google had stated the censor is not directed at teaching anyone good manners; they just supposedly want to make sure swear words don't accidentally appear in texts.

The Nexus One no swearing censor seems to have cause somewhat of a stir on forums and the blogosphere with some believing the censorship is justified while others not so, and argue the freedom of speech line.

But do Google have the right to censor words? The problem is, who decides what words are inappropriate, as what is a swear word in one part of the world isn't necessarily a swear word somewhere else. The other question is can the censor be refined or turned off by the user as if not then the big brother line comes into play.

Indonesian authorities will prosecute four exotic dancers arrested at clubs on New Year's Eve for allegedly violating a new anti-pornography law, a police spokesman has said.

The female dancers and two male club managers were detained in the city of Bandung said West Java provincial police spokesman Col. Dade Ahmad. They appeared to have been preparing for a striptease and were wearing sexy clothing, Ahmad said, when the police raided the Bellair Cafe and the Music Lounge after midnight.

Indonesia's 2008 anti-pornography law was pushed through parliament by conservative Muslim parties, but opposed by rights groups that argue it criminalizes traditional dance and art, particularly in far flung provinces where partial nudity is culturally accepted.

Ahmad said that they could be sentenced to prison terms of five to 10 years if convicted. Ahmad said the six will be the first people prosecuted under the law in Bandung.

Bandung Mayor Dada Rosada said he was also considering revoking the cafes' operating permits.

Update: Empty Tables at the Belair Cafe

24th January 2010. Based on article from scotlandonsunday.scotsman.com

The arrest of four women for sexy dancing during a Hogmanay party in Bandung has raised worries this may be the prelude to wider Islamist restrictions in Indonesia. The women, as well as a manager and event organiser, could become the first people charged under a one-year-old anti-pornography law banning public displays of naked flesh.

The law was brought in with the backing of the small but influential Islamist political parties in the country. Critics said the parties' real intention was to use the law to spread fundamentalist Islam to control artistic and cultural expression in a multicultural society. The law, they warned, threatens pre-Islamic cultures, which have long co-existed with moderate Islam.

Hafizh Utsman, leader of the West Java branch of the Indonesian Ulama Council, the leading clerical organisation, is pleased with Islam's growing influence in Bandung, and would like to see a more widespread crackdown: We are trying to eliminate the non-Islamic parts of West Java's traditional culture, to make it more Islamic, Utsman boasted. For example, he said that participants at weddings are urged to celebrate by reciting Koranic verses, not by dancing, as is the custom.

Though a couple of weeks have passed since the arrests, it was still not clear what happened at Belair, which showcased bikini-clad women dancing on a bar counter.

Arman Achdiat, the Bandung police chief of detectives, said the authorities had received complaints, via text messages, that the dancers had gone beyond bikini dancing and offered customers flashes of full nudity. This happened at private table dances, said Achdiat, declining to say whether investigators caught the dancers in the act.

Holding a copy of the anti-pornography law, Achdiat said more questioning of the dancers was needed to determine whether to charge them under the criminal law or the more severe anti-pornography law, which entails punishment of up to 10 years in prison for the dancers and 15 years for the manager and organiser.

Clubs such as Belair came to Saritem in Bandung more than a decade ago, and about 10 now offer what is known here as sexy dancing, often featuring some nudity, said Budi Rajab, a sociologist and expert on Bandung at the local Padjadjaran University.

The crackdown seems to be working and Saritem's business has yet to recover fully. On a recent evening there were few customers in the district's warren of narrow streets, where family-owned brothels employed young women from rural Java. A lot of people think Saritem is still closed, or they're afraid to come, said Rully, whose family has worked in Saritem for four generations.

China said remarks made by U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton criticizing China's censorship of the Internet were unjustified and damaged bilateral ties.

In a speech in Washington, Clinton called on U.S. technology companies to resist censorship of the Internet and said perpetrators of cyber attacks such as those who targeted Google Inc. must face consequences. Clinton also said China's Internet controls could harm the Asian nation's development.

We are firmly opposed to these words and deeds which are against the facts and damage Sino-U.S. relations, Foreign Ministry Spokesman Ma Zhaoxu said in a Chinese-language statement posted on the ministry's Web site. We urge the U.S. side to respect facts and stop using the issue of so-called Internet freedom to make unjustified attacks on China.

Clinton's long-planned address on Internet freedom laid out the Obama administration's view of an uncensored global Internet where everyone has access to the same information, and governments and corporations don't block knowledge or steal intellectual property.

Countries or individuals that engage in cyber attacks should face consequences and international condemnation, Clinton said. In an interconnected world, an attack on one nation's network can be an attack on all.

Clinton compared firewalls that governments in China, Uzbekistan, Tunisia and elsewhere have erected to keep out information to the Berlin Wall and the Iron Curtain that divided the West and the Soviet Union's sphere of influence during the Cold War.

Virtual walls are cropping up in place of visible walls, she said. With the spread of these restrictive practices, a new information curtain is descending across much of the world.

Google issued a statement praising Clinton's remarks. The company said it believes in unfettered access to information and will continue work with governments, human rights organizations and bloggers to promote free expression.

They arrive at a gritty desert crossroads weary from a 13-hour train ride but determined. The promised land lies just across the railway station plaza: a large white sign that says Easy Connection Internet Café.

The visitors are internet refugees from China's western Xinjiang region, whose 20 million people have been without links to the outside world since the government blocked virtually all online access, text messages and international phone calls after ethnic riots in July.

Authorities unplugged Xinjiang in an attempt to prevent a repeat of the ethnic rioting between the Han Chinese majority and the mainly Muslim Uighur minority that the government says left almost 200 dead.

It blamed overseas activists for the riots, saying they stirred up resentment in the Uighur community through websites and e-mails.

It's the largest and longest such blackout in the world, observers say.

Every weekend, dozens of people pile off the train in Liuyuan, a sandswept town on the ancient Silk Road that's the first train stop outside Xinjiang.

We must get online! We must! said Zhao Yan, a businesswoman from Xinjiang's capital, Urumqi. She has rented the same private booth in the internet café every weekend since August in an uphill battle to keep her small trading business going.

Online game operators in Beijing will test a ratings system advising parents on sexual and violent content in their games, ahead of the introduction of government guidelines, state media said.

The move comes amid a massive nationwide government repression of Internet porn and violence—a campaign seen by some critics as a way for the country's censors to reinforce the Great Firewall of China against political dissent.

Over 30 operators have agreed to rate their games according to their suitability for children and adults this month. Gamers will need to provide their identification numbers in order to play, to prove they are old enough to view the content.

The Beijing Animation Game Industry Union's secretary-general, Liu Chungang, said the group's decision was a self-disciplinary, non-governmental act within the industry.

The culture ministry plans to introduce its own ratings system later this year, the newspaper said. Culture Minister Cai Wu was quoted by state media in December as saying his ministry had banned 219 Internet games for carrying lewd, pornographic and violent content.

Chinese web censos banned individual domain registration without a business license in early December But an official from China's Internet Network Information Center (CNNIC) told the English-language newspaper ChinaDaily that the decision may be reversed — so long as measures are in place to verify an applicant's personal information.

The decision appears to be effort to keep citizens from wandering outside China's Great Firewall for easier registration.

Banning domain name registrations for individual applicants will have a negative impact on the industry because the applicants can either turn to foreign registers or apply with false information, Qi Lin, assistant deputy with the CNNIC,said.

ABS-CBN has questioned the decision of the Movie and Television Review and Classification Board (MTRCB) to suspend the airing of the talent program Showtime for 20 days because of supposedly “vulgar” words uttered by its contest juror Rosanna Roces on two episodes last week.

In a statement sent to Inquirer on Tuesday, ABS-CBN said it has decided to remove Roces as the show’s juror in the spirit of self-regulation.

Despite this, MTRCB still imposed a 20-day preventive suspension [on] the program. Thus, the network questions the need for [this] when Roces has already been removed from the program.

The order signed on Monday by MTRCB chair Marissa Laguardia said the 20-day suspension was given to Showtime to prevent further probable violation of pertinent provisions of Section 3c of Presidential Decree No. 1986, which gives the MTRCB the authority to keep segments or scenes that are immoral, indecent, contrary to law and/or good customs, injurious to the prestige of the country or its people, from being aired on television.

The Jan. 4 episode featured another juror, Vice Ganda, telling Roces: After splitting up [with your last boyfriend], you quickly replaced him with a horserace jockey). Roces shot back: You’re shameless, a beast, a demon. Don’t do that … You’re not even beautiful, Vice Ganda is just your name.

In another incident report submitted on Jan. 7, Roces was singled out for her comment to a contestant. She said: Curse your teacher … these teachers are shameless …

Update: Appeals Court temporarily suspends ban

20th January 2010. Based on article from abs-cbnnews.com

ABS-CBN's popular morning program Showtime resumed airing on Tuesday, January 19.

The talent show was back on its regular time slot after a court granted a temporary restraining order (TRO) from the Court of Appeals against the 20-day ban by the Movie and Television Review and Classification Board (MTRCB).

The MTRCB had suspended the show due to controversial remarks made by one of the show's judges, Rosanna Roces. While telling student guests on the show to not limit their learning to textbooks and teacher's lessons, Roces also told them to swear at their teachers.

China is to pull the plug on screenings of Avatar at most cinemas and replace the Golden Globe-winning film with a 'patriotic' biopic on the life of Confucius, according to reports.

Hong Kong's Apple Daily said the state-run China Film Group has ordered cinemas across China to stop showing the 2D version of the film and to show only the 3D edition, amid concerns from China's censors that it could cause unrest. Because there are so few 3D cinemas on the mainland, the order effectively prevents general distribution of the James Cameron blockbuster.

The Central Publicity Department is said to have issued an order to the media prohibiting it from hyping up Avatar, the newspaper said.

The film opened on 4 January to queues across the country, with Imax cinemas said to be booked for weeks ahead. It was due to run until 28 February, including over Chinese new year. Instead, the reports said, the 2D version will close on 23 January.

China has started scanning phone text messages. Customers of China's two largest mobile phone networks, China Mobile and China Unicom, have had text services blocked after sending risqué messages, state media reported.

China Mobile said it was complying with police demands to report illegal texts, which included pornography and violence or promoted fraud, crime, terrorism and gambling. It said any breach meant a mobile phone would be blocked.

Google announced in their Official Google Blog:

Like many other well-known organizations, we face cyber attacks of varying degrees on a regular basis. In mid-December, we detected a highly sophisticated and targeted attack on our corporate infrastructure originating from China that resulted in the theft of intellectual property from Google. However, it soon became clear that what at first appeared to be solely a security incident--albeit a significant one--was something quite different.

First, this attack was not just on Google. As part of our investigation we have discovered that at least twenty other large companies from a wide range of businesses--including the Internet, finance, technology, media and chemical sectors--have been similarly targeted. We are currently in the process of notifying those companies, and we are also working with the relevant U.S. authorities.

Second, we have evidence to suggest that a primary goal of the attackers was accessing the Gmail accounts of Chinese human rights activists. Based on our investigation to date we believe their attack did not achieve that objective. Only two Gmail accounts appear to have been accessed, and that activity was limited to account information (such as the date the account was created) and subject line, rather than the content of emails themselves.

Third, as part of this investigation but independent of the attack on Google, we have discovered that the accounts of dozens of U.S.-, China- and Europe-based Gmail users who are advocates of human rights in China appear to have been routinely accessed by third parties. These accounts have not been accessed through any security breach at Google, but most likely via phishing scams or malware placed on the users' computers.

We have already used information gained from this attack to make infrastructure and architectural improvements that enhance security for Google and for our users. In terms of individual users, we would advise people to deploy reputable anti-virus and anti-spyware programs on their computers, to install patches for their operating systems and to update their web browsers. Always be cautious when clicking on links appearing in instant messages and emails, or when asked to share personal information like passwords online. You can read more here about our cyber-security recommendations. People wanting to learn more about these kinds of attacks can read this U.S. government report (PDF), Nart Villeneuve's blog and this presentation on the GhostNet spying incident.

We have taken the unusual step of sharing information about these attacks with a broad audience not just because of the security and human rights implications of what we have unearthed, but also because this information goes to the heart of a much bigger global debate about freedom of speech. In the last two decades, China's economic reform programs and its citizens' entrepreneurial flair have lifted hundreds of millions of Chinese people out of poverty. Indeed, this great nation is at the heart of much economic progress and development in the world today.

We launched Google.cn in January 2006 in the belief that the benefits of increased access to information for people in China and a more open Internet outweighed our discomfort in agreeing to censor some results. At the time we made clear that we will carefully monitor conditions in China, including new laws and other restrictions on our services. If we determine that we are unable to achieve the objectives outlined we will not hesitate to reconsider our approach to China.

These attacks and the surveillance they have uncovered--combined with the attempts over the past year to further limit free speech on the web--have led us to conclude that we should review the feasibility of our business operations in China. We have decided we are no longer willing to continue censoring our results on Google.cn, and so over the next few weeks we will be discussing with the Chinese government the basis on which we could operate an unfiltered search engine within the law, if at all. We recognize that this may well mean having to shut down Google.cn, and potentially our offices in China.

The decision to review our business operations in China has been incredibly hard, and we know that it will have potentially far-reaching consequences. We want to make clear that this move was driven by our executives in the United States, without the knowledge or involvement of our employees in China who have worked incredibly hard to make Google.cn the success it is today. We are committed to working responsibly to resolve the very difficult issues raised.

Posted by David Drummond, SVP, Corporate Development and Chief Legal Officer

Update: Tank Man finally appears on Chinese Google

17th January 2010. Based on article from canadafreepress.com

Users on Google.cn's image search can now see the iconic picture of Tank Man, among other images from the massacre in the Beijing square in 1989.

Students and intellectuals protested communist rule for seven weeks in the square in 1989 in the face of a brutal security crackdown. Roughly 100,000 people are believed to have taken part in the protests - with up to 3,000 of those killed during the demonstrations.

Tank Man: One of the most iconic images of the Tiananmen Square massacre, that of a man standing alone and defenceless in a face off against four tanks, now appears on Google.cn

Update: Google Censor On

18th February 2010 Based on article from shuttervoice.com

Google will censor pornography and some other objectionable content in China as the search engine continues to try and make head way in the Internet market.

It is claimed that the company's co-founder, Sergey Brin, has admitted that pornography and other objectionable content will be censored.

However, he reportedly confirmed that Google will not politically censor searches in the Asian country.

Indonesian journalists will appeal the country's decision to ban the Australian film Balibo.

Indonesia's Film Censorship Agency banned Robert Connolly's acclaimed film in December due to its political content.

Based on the true story, the film depicts Indonesian soldiers brutally murdering five Australia-based newsmen in the East Timorese border town in 1975, contradicting the official explanation they were killed in crossfire.

Indonesia's Independent Journalist Alliance (AJI) has defied the ban, risking jail terms and heavy fines by staging a series of free public screenings across the country.

AJI has this week decided to go one step further by formally challenging the ban in Indonesia's State Management Court, which deals with complaints against state institutions.

In a democracy, the right to create art should not be forbidden, AJI lawyer Hendrayana, said: And as we've seen from the AJI screenings, this film does not create problems. It shows the ban is just paranoia.

When Hu Shuli abandoned the editorship of China's most influential news magazine, it looked like a victory for the forces of censorship.

Ms Hu, a resourceful and dogged editor often described as China's most formidable journalist, had made her career by testing the limits of what is allowed in China's rigid media environment. Then it suddenly looked as if she had come up hard against those limits. There was widespread speculation that the iron hand of the censor was behind her departure from the hard-hitting business magazine Caijing. Her editing career seemed to be over.

But now the fiery 56-year-old is back. She has taken a job as editor of another magazine, Century Weekly, and the first issue has just hit China's newsstands. Those worried that crusading journalism may have died a death in China need not fear – it looks like Ms Hu is keen to continue her inimitable style at her new publication.

...Read full article

Thailand must halt a backward slide on freedom of expression after a sharp rise in cases of people accused of insulting the revered monarchy, a leading rights group said.

Amnesty International said it welcomed a panel established by Prime Minister Abhisit Vejjajiva in December to scrutinise the enforcement of Thailand's tough lese majeste laws, which carry a jail term of up to 15 years.

But the London-based group said the government should suspend the use of the law until it has scrapped provisions allowing any citizen to report another for alleged violations, and urged Thai authorities to stop censoring websites.

Amnesty International supports the prime minister's new initiative, and encourages the Royal Thai government to amend the lese majeste law so that it complies with international law and standards, an Amnesty statement said.

The group highlighted two cases since April 2009 in which Thai nationals received heavy jail sentences for allegedly defaming the royals and said that hundreds of other cases of alleged lese majeste remained active.

It said many people charged under the law had also been charged under the computer crimes act, leading to a big increase in monitoring of the Internet for any material that allegedly defames the royal family.

Amnesty said it was also concerned that the law had been characterised by the government as a matter of national security, allowing cases to be held behind closed doors.

The group said it acknowledged the nation's considerable progress under 82-year-old King Bhumibol Adulyadej, especially in human rights, but said this made the recent roll-back in freedom of expression of even greater concern.

Access to IMDb.com was blocked in China this week, adding the movie business Internet portal to a fast-growing list of banned Web sites featuring user-generated content, including YouTube, Facebook and Twitter.

The site, fully named the Internet Movie Database, is owned by online bookselling giant Amazon.com, and claims over 57 million monthly visitors.

There's no Chinese-language edition of IMDb and industry insiders here say they can't understand why it's been shut down for since Wednesday.

Typically the government's censorship efforts focus on trying to block China's 338 million Web users from accessing online pornography and violence. The government seldom reacts to queries about blocking foreign Web sites or gives any official notice when such action is taken.

For clues to Beijing's beef with IMDb, a quick scan of the site turned up plenty of information relating to politically sensitive search terms such as Dalai Lama and Rebiya Kadeer — the names of members of two exiled ethnic minorities considered separatists by China's one-party government.

For instance, IMDb lists The Sun Behind the Clouds: Tibet's Struggle for Freedom, a 2009 documentary whose planned screening this week at the Palm Springs International Film Festival caused the state-run China Film Group to pull two of its films from competition in protest.

Likewise, typing Kadeer– persona non-grata for her alleged masterminding of recent violence in western China's Xinjiang region — turns up the IMDb listing for China: Rebirth of an Empire, a 2009 documentary featuring Kadeer and exiled Chinese dissident Wei Jingsheng.

A film-maker has been jailed in China for six years for making a documentary in which ordinary Tibetans praised the Dalai Lama.

The film, Leaving Fear Behind, was shot by Dhondup Wangchen, a Tibetan from a poor farming family in western Qinghai province, and his friend Golog Jigme Gyatso, a monk. The two men had spent several months before the 2008 Beijing Olympics interviewing Tibetans about the upcoming games and their views of the Chinese Government.

The 108 Tibetans spoke with remarkable openness in the interviews and had agreed to show their faces on camera.

The pair had finished shooting the documentary and smuggled the tapes out of Tibet when a riot erupted in the capital, Lhasa, in March 2008. They were arrested a few days later as unrest spread rapidly through Tibetan-populated regions of China.

On December 28 Wangchen, 35, was sentenced to six years in prison by a court in the western city of Xining. The trial received no publicity and his family were not informed. News of his prison term was finally relayed out of the country to friends and relatives who had been campaigning for nearly two years for his release.

Before making the documentary, Wangchen said: The idea of our film is not to get famous or to give entertainment. It is very difficult to go to Beijing and speak out there. So that is why we decided to show the real feelings of Tibetans inside Tibet through this film.

A statement on www.leavingfearbehind.com, where footage can be downloaded, said that Mr Wangchen had not been allowed outside legal aid and that the Government had barred a lawyer hired by his family from representing him. His wife, Lhamo Tso, said: I appeal to the court in Xining to allow my husband to have a legal representative of his own choosing.

Chinese police have said that their crackdown on Internet pornography has brought 5,394 arrests and 4,186 criminal case investigations in 2009 -- a fourfold increase in the number of such cases compared with 2008.

The announcement on the Ministry of Public Security's website (www.mps.gov.cn) said the drive would deepen in 2010.

Police would intensify punishments for Internet operations that violate laws and regulations, said the statement from the ministry's Internet security section. Strengthen monitoring of information, it urged, Press Internet service providers to put in place preventive technology.

The ministry did not say how many of the 5,394 suspects arrested were later charged, released or prosecuted.