Plus Index editor-in-chief leaves  

[link removed]
[link removed] Donate ([link removed])
[link removed] Subscribe ([link removed])
Friday, 14 August 2020


** "In Belarus, Lukashenko has used every tool available to a totalitarian leader"
------------------------------------------------------------

Index has been tweeting news from Belarus this week with a call for the rest of the world to not stand by and do nothing.

The sham of an election that saw Alexander Lukashenko ‘re-elected’ in Belarus with 80% of the vote has been dismissed and disputed by election observers ([link removed]) , the European Union and the US State Department.

Lukashenko's opponent Svetlana Tikhanovskaya has had to flee the country to protect her family ([link removed]) . The military have been deployed ([link removed]) against protestors, with public beatings a seemingly normal occurrence. The KGB has been raiding homes overnight arresting anyone considered a threat to the regime. Dozens of journalists have been apprehended ([link removed]) .

Yet there are moments of hope. Earlier this week, women wearing white and carrying flowers marched on Minsk ([link removed]) and formed solidarity chains in numerous other areas – the protest was clear: flowers are better than bullets.

Read the weekly blog post from our CEO Ruth Smeeth ([link removed]) . Also take action and show your solidarity with the Belarusian people by downloading this flyer ([link removed] ([link removed]) ) and posting your own photo tagging it #FreeBelarus a part of a Human Rights House Foundation campaign ([link removed]) .
Donate to Index on Censorship ([link removed])


** Award-winning editor-in-chief
Rachael Jolley to leave Index
------------------------------------------------------------
Index's editor-in-chief and deputy chief executive Rachael Jolley is leaving Index after seven years with the organisation. Under her editorship, Index on Censorship magazine won and was shortlisted for numerous awards, and published important journalism from places around the world when censorship was threatening people's lives and livelihoods. She said: "It has been an honour to be editor of this prestigious magazine for such a long period. During this time, I have been lucky to work with incredible contributing editors and contributors who struggle against the worst types of censorship as well as working with highly acclaimed writers including Ariel Dorfman, Ian Rankin, Katherine Parkinson, Hilary Mantel and Xinran on new pieces of exclusive writing for the magazine. I hope the magazine continues to blaze a trail with its journalism and fiction. At a moment when censorship is increasing all over the world, there's never been a more important time to support freedom of expression.”


** New ways to search our media freedom map
------------------------------------------------------------
[link removed] map of attacks on media freedom ([link removed]) during the pandemic is now easier to explore than ever. We have now verified 240 incidents since the beginning of the crisis in countries from Azerbaijan to Zimbabwe. We have added a comprehensive search facitiy and also made it easier to search the map by the type of incident. You can also read our latest trend report which looks at how cartoonists have come under increasing attack during Covid ([link removed]) .


** Rowan Atkinson joins Index in call for changes to Scotland's planned hate crime bill
------------------------------------------------------------
[link removed]

Artists, writers and activists have joined Index ([link removed]) and other NGOs in calling on the Scottish government to redraft a proposed new bill.

Rowan Atkinson, Mary “Doll” Nesbit actor Elaine C Smith, Peter Tatchell and former Scottish Arts Council director Dame Seona Reid have written a joint letter ([link removed]) to argue that the wording of the proposed Hate Crime and Public Order (Scotland) Bill ([link removed]) , while well meaning, risks “stifling freedom of expression, and the ability to articulate or criticise religious and other beliefs”.
Index on Censorship defends people's freedom to express themselves without fear of harm or persecution. We publish censored writers and artists, monitor and campaign against censorship, and encourage debate.

We rely on donations from readers and supporters. By donating ([link removed]) to Index you help us to protect freedom of expression and to support those who are denied that right.
[link removed] ([link removed])

============================================================
Want to change how you receive these emails?
You can ** update your preferences ([link removed])
or ** unsubscribe from this list ([link removed])

INDEX ON CENSORSHIP © COPYRIGHT 2020
** Privacy and Cookie Policy ([link removed])