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Dear John,
The year 2024 will offer an abundance of elections, with polls due in India, Taiwan, the United Kingdom, the United States, and over 30 other countries.
Freedom House’s research has shown again and again that electoral periods are a flashpoint for digital repression. Freedom on the Net 2023 found that incumbent governments often imposed digital controls to constrain online discourse ahead of, during, and after elections.
To meaningfully participate in the process of choosing their government, voters must be able to express their views without fear of arrest and have access to information without censorship or distortion. Incumbents’ digital controls have made this more difficult, but preparation from companies and support from civil society can bolster efforts for freer and fairer elections in the new year.
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China's Property Crisis is Stirring Protests
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China's property sector, which accounts for more than a quarter of Asia's largest economy, has fallen into an unprecedented crisis. Despite the efforts of the Chinese Communist Party (CCP), Freedom House's China Dissent Monitor project tallied 1,777 demonstrations linked to the property sector between June 2022 and October 2023.
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Free Them All: A Political Prisoners Initiative
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Free Them All: A Political Prisoners Initiative is a Freedom House project intended to help free political prisoners and push back against the jailing of activists as a tool of repression. Located around the globe, the stories of these artists, journalists, and activists illustrate the significant pressures and harms that human rights defenders and pro-democracy activists face in reprisal for their work and why they need our support.
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Election Watch for the Digital Age
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Freedom House’s Election Watch project offers in-depth analysis ahead of key elections around the world, including those in Partly Free and Not Free countries. Each assessment informs technology companies, policymakers, and civil society organizations about the risks of human rights violations and digital interference ahead of an election.
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Freedom on the Net 2023 Country Spotlight
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Turkey is rated Not Free in Freedom on the Net 2023. Internet freedom in Turkey has steadily declined over the past decade. In the run-up to the May 2023 elections, the Disinformation Law was used to silence members of the political opposition as well as critical journalists.
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Freedom House in the News
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Defend Democracy,
Champion Freedom.
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