#Pakistan: On #IWD2026, the country's prime minister reiterated a "commitment to ensuring a safe, equal and enabling environment for women". But what did the police do? They arrested women peacefully protesting for equal rights. Actions = louder than words.
www.indexoncensorship.org/2026/03/wome...
#UK: The BBC World Service must be defended not defunded. Index and other organisations call on the UK government to provide clarity over public broadcaster's funding at a critical time, as it's set to run out at the end of this month ⬇️
www.indexoncensorship.org/2026/02/the-...
#UK: The government's ambition to break end-to-end encryption will have consequences for all of our privacy. At Index, it will particularly impact dissidents we work with who rely on encryption for their safety.
Read our report to learn more ⬇️
www.indexoncensorship.org/2025/11/new-...
#USA: The government threatening noncitizens with detention and deportation for research it doesn't like isn’t law enforcement, it’s viewpoint suppression.
Now the Knight First Amendment Institute & Protect Democracy are suing the Trump administration to stop it.
knightcolumbia.org/content/tech...
SLAPPs are most commonly associated with attempts to muzzle journalists, but academics increasingly finding themselves on the receiving end of similar threats from companies & wealthy individuals unhappy with critical scholarship.
It's time to #StopSLAPPs.
thecritic.co.uk/its-time-to-...
Indonesia has become the latest country to announce plans to ban social media for the under-16s.
Platforms are flawed but restricting access to them won't deal with their problems. It will just weaken our free speech rights.
More from our CEO below.
www.indexoncensorship.org/2026/02/bann...
With so much happening globally, important stories can slip through the cracks. Our weekly newsletter highlights the key developments and overlooked issues affecting free expression around the world.
Sign up to stay informed ⬇️
www.indexoncensorship.org/subscribe-to...
As war continues to rage across the Middle East, people in the UAE and Iran are being threatened if they take photographs or post images of damaged buildings.
In wartime, accurate information from the ground is vital. Documenting reality should not put people at risk.
Today on International Women’s Day, we stand with the women of #Afghanistan, who are facing devastating attacks on their human rights and freedom of expression. Explore writing by women currently in the country via our Letters from Afghan Women campaign: www.indexoncensorship.org/category/cam...
#UK: Raiding a place of worship to conduct pre-emptive arrests of protesters is deeply troubling. Free speech does not extend to criminal acts such as shoplifting, but the case still raises serious concerns esp. given broader attacks to protest rights www.quaker.org.uk/news-and-eve...
#Belarus: PEN International condemns the authorities’ decision to declare PEN Belarus an ‘extremist formation’, which carries the risk of criminal prosecution. We stand in full solidarity with colleagues in their mission to uphold free expression and cultural rights.
penbelarus.org/en/2026/03/0...
#Afghanistan: "My childhood was still imbued with innocence and play when tragedy struck." In the latest of our Letters from Afghan Women, a young woman talks about how doors of opportunity have been closed in the country.
Read now ⬇️
www.indexoncensorship.org/2026/02/unwr...
"I share this story not to elicit pity, but because the voices of Afghan women deserve to be heard."
A powerful first-person account of resilience in the face of extreme oppression following years now of Taliban rule.
www.indexoncensorship.org/2026/02/unwr...
#Lebanon: Israeli airstrikes across Lebanon targeted the offices of Al-Manar TV and Al-Nour Radio in Beirut, and Sawt Al-Farah Radio in Tyre.
🔴 We condemn these attacks and reiterate that deliberate strikes on media facilities constitute a violation of international law.
#Belarus: We welcome news that 15 political prisoners have been released.
Apparently their freedom came after they admitted "guilt" but for what? Peacefully advocating for democracy & human rights is not a crime.
More than 1,100 remain behind bars, all of whom must be freed.
Hungarians head to the polls next month in an election that may be the biggest test yet for Viktor Orbán. The youth are angry about falling living standards & how their freedom of expression is being curtailed. @viktoriaserdult.bsky.social reports www.indexoncensorship.org/2026/03/hung...
#Iran: The country has now been offline for over 100 hours yet disturbing reports continue including claims of people protesting from their homes & being shot at. Verification is difficult with the shutdown but such accounts are consistent with a regime that's killed thousands in recent weeks.
As events around the world shift rapidly, it’s easy to miss stories or overlook the ones that don’t make the headlines. Index’s newsletter brings you some of the most important (and often underreported) stories shaping free expression today.
Subscribe ⬇️
www.indexoncensorship.org/subscribe-to...
2025 marked the 10th anniversary of the
@coemediafreedom.bsky.social platform to promote the protection of journalism & safety of journalists - but there was nothing to celebrate. The attacks against those in the media rose sharply over the decade. euobserver.com/204824/the-r...
#Iraq: Horrific news. Yanar Mohammed-activist, feminist & founder of the Organisation of Women’s Freedom in Iraq-was murdered yesterday outside her home. She created Iraq’s first women’s shelter & fought tirelessly against violence & oppression.
There must be justice. No impunity for her killers.
#UK: The Booksellers Association is urging lawmakers and policymakers to recognise the growing threat facing booksellers, after recording an average of 1,600 incidents of violence against retail workers each day in 2025 - mostly linked to the books they sell ⬇️
www.thebookseller.com/news/ba-warn...
TODAY: Join us for a special film screening and discussion on #Iran and creative resistance. With speakers Tara Aghdashloo, Malu Halasa and Negin Shiraghaei. Chaired by Index editor-at-large @martinbright.bsky.social.
5:30pm, Phoenix Cinema East Finchley: www.phoenixcinema.co.uk/PhoenixCinem...
Index mourns the death of prominent war photographer Paul Conroy, whose courageous career helped inform the world about conflicts around the world. In honour of his legacy, revisit his interview on the risks journalists now face when covering war ⬇️
journals.sagepub.com/doi/10.1177/...
Today remains just as dangerous. We are hearing troubling reports of people being punished for celebrating his death & of increased threats against political prisoners. There is another internet blackout. We are monitoring closely, & will be reporting attacks to freedom of expression as best we can.
#Iran: For decades, Ali Khamenei presided over a system that crushed free expression and punished dissent. We’ve worked closely with Iranian dissidents over the years and have been continually inspired by their courage, creativity & determination, despite the immense costs imposed by the regime.
This Monday, join us for a timely discussion on #Iran and cultural resistance. Following a screening of Jafar Panahi’s film, journalists, filmmakers and writers will reflect on creating art under repression and the realities facing those in Iran today: www.phoenixcinema.co.uk/PhoenixCinem...
“Deprivation in Afghanistan is not solely economic; it is the denial of knowledge, awareness, and self-agency – a far more insidious form of oppression. I share this story not to elicit pity, but because the voices of Afghan women deserve to be heard.” - Farah, Index on Censorship's Letters from Afghan Women
#Afghanistan 🇦🇫 @indexoncensorship.org shares the story of Farah through its “Letters from Afghan Women” about the situation of young women after the Taliban regained power
🔗 buff.ly/2jCybUR
Join the Index on Censorship newsletter where each week we dive into some of the most important (and often overlooked) free speech issues happening around the world: www.indexoncensorship.org/subscribe-to...
#Ukraine: This week marked four years since Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine. In our latest newsletter, we examine how freedom of expression has become a significant casualty of this devastating war ⬇️
www.indexoncensorship.org/2026/02/free...
Have you got your tickets for Monday’s event?
We’re hosting a panel on Jafar Panahi's new film & creating cinema in Iran, particularly in the context of the current brutal crackdown. The event will be chaired by our CEO @jemimahsteinfeld.bsky.social.
Book: www.phoenixcinema.co.uk/PhoenixCinem...
