Stories about Oceania
Solomon Islands officials order national broadcaster to stop promoting ‘disunity’
"It may well be draconian leaving no room for corruption by ministers and government officials to be brought to public attention."
Pacific media groups rally behind suspended Papua New Guinea journalist
Sincha Dimara was suspended for reporting on court proceedings against Australian hotelier Jamie Pang. MLN has faced criticism before for suspending and silencing journalists.
Journalists call for the release of Cheng Lei who has spent a year in detention in China
"We are concerned about the chilling affect her arrest has on the practice of journalism, which has never been more critical."
Solomon Islands bans Facebook for ‘harmful content’
"Do not go into public life and make laws and decisions for your own good or for your own protection as is seen with the banning of Facebook."
Australian government on collision course with Facebook and Google over news revenue
"The code is justified by a News Corp lie, that Google steals news content and makes billions of dollars from it."
Julian Assange supporters rally to defeat extradition to United States
"The extradition to the US of a publisher and journalist, for engaging in journalistic activities while in Europe, would set a very dangerous precedent."
Another Australian university criticized for censoring voices supporting Hong Kong's human rights
An Australian university was criticized for deleting an article published on its website that urges the international community to put pressure on China for infringements on human rights in Hong Kong.
Fiji general cites need to ‘stifle criticism’ in the fight against the COVID-19 pandemic
"The COVID-19 pandemic is not an excuse for human rights violations. Excessive force and brutality are unacceptable from any of our enforcement or security forces."
Papua New Guinea’s police minister says two journalists who reported on COVID-19 funding ‘can’t be trusted’
"It is not up to a government minister to decide whether journalists should be fired, and especially when it is because of a report he didn’t like."
Groundswell of support to free Julian Assange around February extradition hearing
"Don’t be fooled: Julian Assange is a journalist, not a hacker, and the US wants to make his work—national security journalism—a crime"
Tonga threatens to ban Facebook over anti-monarchy posts
"By trying to impose a ban the government will simply make itself look foolish or ineffective."
Chinese-Australian writer Yang Hengjun still detained by Beijing after six months
"Lawyers for Australian writer #YangHengjun, who has been detained in #China since January, are urging #Canberra to intervene."
Australia’s digital rights advocates and tech sector push back against law undermining encryption
"The new legislation directly targets encryption and basically coerces developers, device manufacturers and service providers to allow the government to spy on people’s encrypted data."
Police raids on major media organisations expose lack of press freedom in Australia
"These continued attacks on press freedoms in Australia should be condemned in the strongest possible terms. Freedom of the Press to scrutinise the Govt is crucial to liberal democracy."
Papua New Guinea PM pushes proposal for social media regulation, citing need to stop ‘fake news’
"The fact is you can't control platforms were information is circulated, attempts to do such undermines the role of democracy and freedom that is enshrined under the constitution."
Samoa arrested blogger ‘King Faipopo’ accused of defaming prime minister
"New legislation, based on old criminal libel laws from colonial times, forces Samoa leaders to look backwards, not forwards."
Is Fiji’s Online Safety Act a ‘Trojan Horse’ for online censorship?
"The Act on the surface professes online ‘Safety’, while its vagueness on responsible free speech leaves the act open to being a Trojan horse for online ‘Regulation’ and censorship."
Censored in 2018: Protest videos, court verdicts, real news — and Peppa Pig
From blocked websites to revoked media licenses to account shutdowns, censorship comes in many forms. Here are a few we saw in 2018.
In Cardinal George Pell's sexual abuse trial, Australian court fails to suppress the ‘nation's worst kept secret’
"The alleged suppression order on #georgepell is allowing fake news and hearsay and speculation take the place of reputable news sources."
Whether or not Papua New Guinea bans Facebook, critics say free speech still under threat
"If the government is serious about protecting its citizens, then creating an environment where they can safely use the internet should be the goal, not blocking parts of it altogether."
