· November, 2010

Stories about Legal Threats from November, 2010

Egypt: Facebook Disables Popular Anti-Torture Page

  25 November 2010

Update 1: The deactivated page is back. According to an email received by the page admin, “After reviewing your situation, we have reinstated the page, and you should now be able to see it online.” a facebook representative said. On the evening of 25 November, Facebook.com disabled “We Are All...

Egypt: A Facebook User in A Military Court

  22 November 2010

Many of Egyptian Facebook users are both surprised and outraged by the military trial of one of them; Ahmad Hassan Bassiouny, is one of the 2.4 million Egyptians on Facebook, and because he created a group on this social network, he is charged with disclosing military secrets on the internet,...

Iran: World's Youngest Detained Blogger on Trial

  20 November 2010

The Iranian government is not only world-class when it comes to persecuting bloggers, they have also set numerous records: from the first jailed blogger in history, to the first blogger to die in prison. Unfortunately, a new record can now be added to the list of Iran's repressive achievements: the...

Iran:World’s youngest detained blogger on trial

  18 November 2010

Reporters without Borders (RSF) reports The world’s youngest detained blogger, 18-year-old Navid Mohebbi, is currently being tried behind closed doors before a revolutionary court in the northern city of Amol. His lawyer is not being allowed to attend the trial, which began on 14 November.

China: Activist sentenced to 1 year labour re-education for political satire

  15 November 2010

According to Chinese Human Rights Defenders’ tweet human rights activist Wang Yi, real name Cheng Jianping 程建萍, was sentenced to one year labour re-education for forwarding a political satire post about the anti-Japanese Protest in Twitter. Before the labour re-education determination came out, Wang Yi was detained in a hostel...

Palestinian blogger arrested for criticism of Islam on Facebook

  13 November 2010

Palestinian blogger, Waleed Khalid Hasayin (pen name: Waleed Al-Husseini), a 26-year-old barber from the West Bank city of Qalqilya, has been arrested by the Palestinian authorities for creating a facebook page named “Allah”. According to blogger Marwa Rakha, the page has been reported and shut down, but Waleed has created...

Egypt: Netizen Facing Military Trial for Creating Facebook Page

  13 November 2010

Update 1: On November 30th, 2010, the military court sentenced Ahmed to 6 months imprisonment for broadcasting secrets of defense on Facebook. For the second time in Egypt an internet user is going to face a military trial. Ahmed Hassan Basiouny is facing a military trial this month under case...

Chiapas: Warrantless arrest of Free Software activist

  11 November 2010

Chiapas was a pioneer in the use of digital activism by grassroots social movements. It started in 1994 with the Zapatista movement and it keep growing to become a tool of empowerment beyond the rebels. It provides alternative digital media - newspapers and radio - it helps Chiapanecos develop their own software - they even have hackerspaces in autonomous communities such as Oventik and Tzajala - and their digital communities are growing as you can see in the Chiapatuit, Fedora and Free Software community.

Peru: Blogger Sentenced for Defamation of Former Politician

  4 November 2010

On Friday, October 29th, the court's sentence was handed down for the offensive libel suit brought by the former government minister and parliament member Jorge Mufarech Nemy against the law school graduate and blogger José Alejandro Godoy. The judge's ruling calls for a suspended sentence of three years imprisonment, commuted to a three-year probation as long as Godoy fulfills additional obligations: a payment of 350 thousand soles (approx. $125,000) and 120 days of community service. The reaction from the media and bloggers has been immediate.