Freemuse Defending Artistic Freedom
Freemuse and SafeMuse will host an event at WOMEX, the World Music Expo, focusing on the artist's role as a change-maker in a harsh world.
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Music
Freemuse calls for protection of Kyrgyz musician receiving death threats over music video
Freemuse calls for Kyrgyz authorities to ensure the safety of singer Zere Asylbek after she received multiple death threats over her music video.
Literature
Palestinian poet Dareen Tatour released from prison
On 20 September, poet Dareen Tatour was released from prison after serving several years in detention and house arrest over one of her poems.
Music
Rapper Valtonyc won’t be sent back to Spain where he was sentenced to jail
A Belgian court ruled there will be no extradition of Spanish rapper Valtonyc, who was sentenced to jail in Spain for ‘glorifying terrorism’.
Visual Arts
Bangladesh: Shahidul Alam refused bail
Renowned photographer and activist Shahidul Alam has been refused bail by a Bangladeshi court, more than a month after his arrest.
Theatre
Russia: Theatre director marks another birthday in home detention
Russian theatre director Kirill Serebrennikov will spend another birthday under house arrest, more than a year after he was charged with embezzlement.
Music
Vietnam: Singer and concertgoers allegedly beaten
Vietnamese singer Nguyen Tin and several concertgoers were allegedly beaten by police officers who shut down a show at a cafe in Ho Chi Minh City.
Take action: PEN International and Freemuse protest the continued detention of Shahidul Alam
PEN International and Freemuse protest the continued detention of award-winning photographer, writer and activist Shahidul Alam.
August 2018: Free Shahidul Alam, two poets jailed, and Freemuse events
Freemuse continues to call for the release of Bangladeshi photographer Shahidul Alam and two poets who were jailed in Israel and Egypt.
Visual Arts
Malaysia: Sedition charges against political cartoonist dropped
Nine charges of sedition against Malaysian political cartoonist Zunar, real name Zulkiflee Anwar Ulhaque, were dropped on 30 July 2018.
Film
Freemuse calls on Russian authorities to release Ukrainian filmmaker Oleg Sentsov
Ukrainian filmmaker Oleg Sentsov has been on hunger strike since 14 May to demand the release of 64 Ukrainians held in Russia on political grounds.
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WOMEX: Canary Islands, 24-28 October 2018
7 September 2018 -
Fundamental Rights Forum: Vienna, 25-27 September 2018
7 September 2018 -
Listen to the Silenced: Brussels, 4 September 2018
4 September 2018 -
European Forum on Music: Oslo, 7-10 June 2018
7 June 2018 -
RightsCon: Toronto, 16-18 May 2018
16 May 2018
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Take action: PEN International and Freemuse protest the continued detention of Shahidul Alam
29 August 2018PEN International and Freemuse protest the continued detention of award-winning photographer, writer and activist Shahidul Alam.
Read More » -
Freemuse and CADAL joint letter to the European Union’s EEAS
4 June 2018 -
New regulations in Cuba to comprehensively control artists and their expression
8 August 2018 -
Equatorial Guinea: Artist, Finally Free, Leaves Country
30 May 2018 -
Freemuse and the Society for Ethnomusicology Announce Agreement in Support of Freedom of Artistic Expression
30 May 2018
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Drop charges against musician Ferhat Tunç in Turkey
4 December 2017Ferhat Tunç is being prosecuted for his peaceful expression … again. For the last 10 years of his over 30-year career as an artist, Ferhat has been the target of numerous government investigations and cases against him because of his music and other peaceful expressions. Ferhat is now having to defend himself in three new cases against him. Together, the charges amount to more than 13 years imprisonment. Your actions are important and can make a difference in Ferhat’s life and the lives of others like him in Turkey. Stand in solidarity with these artists and demand that Turkey drop all the charges against Ferhat Tunç.
Read More » -
Open letter to the President of Equatorial Guinea: Release artist and writer Ramón Esono Ebalé
16 November 2017 -
Let Women Sing
21 July 2017 -
In prison for a year in Iran; artists call for musician’s and filmmaker’s release
1 June 2017 -
Turkey: Seven members of Grup Yorum arrested
3 December 2016
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The State of Artistic Freedom 2018
15 March 2018Freemuse warns of the emergence of a new global culture of silencing others, where artistic expression is being shut down in every corner of the globe, including in the traditionally democratic West.
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Art Under Threat in 2016
8 February 2017 -
INSIGHT publication: Targeting the Arts 2016
10 May 2017 -
Freemuse report on the effects of terror on arts and culture
26 October 2016 -
Pakistan: The war on living arts in Swat
27 June 2016
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August 2018: Free Shahidul Alam, two poets jailed, and Freemuse events
28 August 2018Freemuse continues to call for the release of Bangladeshi photographer Shahidul Alam and two poets who were jailed in Israel and Egypt.
Read More » -
July 2018: Spotlight on Turkey, LGBT, and Freemuse in Brussels
26 July 2018 -
June 2018: Three cases of prosecution in Egypt, Zambia and Turkey
29 June 2018 -
May 2018: Three troubling cases in Spain, Zambia and Egypt
25 May 2018 -
March 2018: Music Freedom Day and The State of Artistic Freedom Report
1 March 2018
Rafiki available in Kenya!
Freemuse is pleased to learn that a judge in #Nairobi has lifted the ban on Wanuri Kahiu’s internationally acclaimed film #Rafiki.
The film features a love story between two women and was banned on 26 April 2018 for "promoting lesbianism" by the Kenya Film Classification Board.
#Kahiu will now be able to submit Rafiki for an Academy Award consideration #Oscars 🏆
"We will create our freedom."
#ZereAsylbek has been the recipient of several death threats over her attire in the music video for her song Kyz.
Watch the video and support Zere! www.youtube.com/watch?v=E8XlFBSR1iE
Эксклюзив! Зере Асылбек - КЫЗ (Эркиндигибиз) | Жаны клип - 2018 | #Kyrgyz Music
www.youtube.com
Zere Asylbek - КЫЗ (Эркиндигибиз) | Жаны клип - 2018 | #Kyrgyz Music"At last I’m free, and I will continue writing. I will not stop. Of course I won’t. The whole case was about a poem” Dareen Tatour told Haaretz.
Freemuse is pleased to learn of Tatour’s release, but remains concerned over the treatment of artists in Israel when they creatively express their opinions that rub authorities the wrong way.
More here: freemuse.org/news/palestinian-poet-dareen-tatour-released-from-prison/
"I am a person, and I have my freedom of speech.
Where is your respect for me?
I’ll respect you. You respect me."
These are just some of the lyrics in #ZereAsylbek's song Kyz, for which she received death threats over her attire in the music video.
Freemuse calls for Kyrgyz authorities to ensure the safety of Asylbek and launch a criminal investigation into the threats.
Watch the video here: www.youtube.com/watch?v=E8XlFBSR1iE
Эксклюзив! Зере Асылбек - КЫЗ (Эркиндигибиз) | Жаны клип - 2018 | #Kyrgyz Music
www.youtube.com
Zere Asylbek - КЫЗ (Эркиндигибиз) | Жаны клип - 2018 | #Kyrgyz MusicFreemuse is pleased to learn about the release of Palestinian poet Dareen Tatour!
"After three years of suffering, imprisonment & house arrest, I finally feel happy.
I have gained my freedom & I will continue to write" - Dareen Tatour
Read more here: ow.ly/pa6K30lU3gr
"The situation in our country and I think in Central Asia in general is not so good in terms of women’s rights and gender equality because every day there are cases of discrimination— cases of double standards. I can tell that almost any girl in our country has had at least one kind of violation or harassment or discrimination. So it seems tragic to me"
Musician Zere Asylbek has received several death threats over her attire in the music video for her song Kyz (Girl), which was written to generate public debate on gender inequality and women’s rights in Kyrgyzstan.
Freemuse calls for Kyrgyz authorities to ensure the safety of Asylbek and launch a criminal investigation into the threats.
ow.ly/46H930lU0kQ
Kyrgyz singer Zere Asylbek has received death threats after releasing a video clip for her debut song ‘Girl’, in which she wears a bra and jacket. The 19-year-old’s lyrics “defends women’s rights to do as they please with their bodies”, according to Global Voices. ow.ly/QakI30lSBz4
Watch her video here 👉 www.youtube.com/watch?v=E8XlFBSR1iE
"The High Court hearing of bail petition of imprisoned internationally acclaimed photographer Shahidul Alam is likely to be held next Sunday.
The bench of Justice Md Rezaul Haque and Justice Abu Tahe...
The bench of Justice Md Rezaul Haque and Justice Abu Tahe...
Next week Freemuse will be in Vienna for European Union Agency for Fundamental Rights #RightsForum18. Check out the full program here: fundamentalrightsforum.eu/en/frf/frf_programme
European Union Agency for Fundamental Rights
How do we make the #EU 🇪🇺 the fair, just & decent society we want❓
👀 Watch #RightsForum18 Chair Michael O'Flaherty's vlog on how the Forum will produce smart, innovative ideas to do things differently & get better results for #fundamentalrights.
Turkish pop singer Mabel Matiz is being investigated over alleged ties to the terrorist organisation accused of organising the 2016 failed coup, after he used US one-dollar bills in a music video clip.
Read more here 👉 ow.ly/m94t30lRAzm
A Belgian court has ruled Spanish rapper Josep Valtonyc won't be sent back to Spain where he was sentenced to three-and-a-half years in jail for ‘glorifying terrorism’ and 'insulting the royal family'.
Read more here 👉 ow.ly/WBTS30lQAfy
A Belgian court has ruled that Spanish rapper Valtonyc should not be sent back to Spain, where he was sentenced to prison accused of writing lyrics that praise terror groups and insult the royal family.
Belgian Court Rules Out Extradition for Spanish Rapper
nytimes.com
A Belgian court has ruled that Spanish rapper Valtonyc should not be sent back to Spain, where he was sentenced to prison accused of writing lyrics that praise terror groups and insult the royal famil...Turkish filmmaker Ali Avci has been convicted of being a member of a terrorist group and jailed for six years and three months over his feature film portraying President Erdogan at gunpoint.
Read more here 👉 ow.ly/2wYu30lOYjn
In that respect, Turkey has become more repressive than Egypt in the mid 2000's, which was starting to have a little bit more art freedom.
A theatre director and theatre manager were detained by Iranian authorities over a video trailer for a production of Shakespeare’s A Midsummer Night’s Dream that showed men and women dancing together, which is banned in Iran.
Read more here 👉 ow.ly/UV3Y30lOZA0
A family discussing artworks at the state-owned Tretyakov Gallery in Moscow has been caught up in the gallery's crack down on illegal guided tours.
Read more here 👉 bit.ly/2x5WwDv
Amnesty International Danmark
SKRIV UNDER: Løslad fotografen Shahidul Alam fra Bangladesh, der risikerer 14 års fængsel for tv-interview 😡
✍️ fal.cn/V0x1
Shahidul dokumenterede studerendes protest og fortalte om sine oplevelser i tv.
Kræv ham løsladt nu.
As US-Turkey relations deteriorate, a Turkish state-run broadcaster has put an end to its decades-long tradtion of showing classic cowboy films on Sunday mornings.
Read more here 👉http://bit.ly/2x4jfzR
Ugandan musician Bebe Cool has decided to stop performing publicly until further notice after he was “pelted with bottles and stones” at a festival in Kampala.
Read more here 👉 ow.ly/SHxK30lLTEq
Violence and threats are never good. But are bottles thrown at Bebe Cool really a concern to Freemuse in comparison with what has happened to Bobi Wine? This seem a little out of touch with what is currently happening in Uganda.
Agree Jacob Crawfurd - very odd, and shows zero knowledge of current context in Uganda. I was looking for additional FM coverage on Bobi Wine but couldn't seem to find any (maybe I missed it?). That's in fact even stranger.
Bangladeshi photographer Shahidul Alam has been refused bail in a Dhaka court. The 63-year-old has been been remanded in custody since he was arrested on 5 August. #freeshahidulalam
Read more here 👉 ow.ly/X6IW30lLTxc
An Israeli radio station has apologised to listeners after playing part of an opera by anti-Semitic German composer Richard Wagner, who was Adolf Hitler's favourite composer.
Read more here 👉 ow.ly/aXdk30lKBxJ
Wanuri Kahiu, the director of internationally acclaimed movie #Rafiki successfully sued the Kenyan authorities for unconstitutionally banning Rafiki for "promoting lesbianism"
Great news from Nairobi!
I am crying. In a french airport. In SUCH Joy! Our constitution is STRONG! Give thanks to freedom of expression!!!! WE DID IT! We will be posting about Nairobi screening soon. Follow @rafikimovie
Great news from Nairobi!
Follow @wanuri and @rafikimovie to show your support for #artisticfreedom and #freedomofexpression in Kenya and around the world!
I am crying. In a french airport. In SUCH Joy! Our constitution is STRONG! Give thanks to freedom of expression!!!! WE DID IT! We will be posting about Nairobi screening soon. Follow @rafikimovie
Rafiki available in Kenya!
We are pleased to learn that a #Nairobi judge has lifted the ban on Wanuri Kahiu’s acclaimed film #Rafiki.
The film features a love story between two women & was banned on 26 April for "promoting lesbianism" by the Kenya Film Classification Board.
MARCH FOR SHAHIDUL ALAM TODAY IN LONDON!
A demonstration will take place at 11:45 today in front of Gloucester Road Station and will end at the Bangladesh High Commission.
Join the Facebook group for more information:
#FreeShahidul #FreeShahidulAlam
"We will create our freedom."
#ZereAsylbek has been the recipient of several death threats over her attire in the music video for her song Kyz.
Watch the video and support Zare!
"At last I’m free, and I will continue writing” Tatour told Haaretz.
We are pleased to learn of Tatour’s release but remain concerned over the treatment of artists in Israel when they creatively express their opinions that rub authorities the wrong way.
https://t.co/GCEsMhgaDC
"I am a person, and I have my freedom of speech"
This is a lyric in #ZereAsylbek's song Kyz for which she received death threats over her attire in the music video.
Freemuse calls for Kyrgyz authorities to ensure the safety of Asylbek.
Watch the video:
#DareenTatour free!
Freemuse is pleased to learn about the release of Palestinian poet Dareen Tatour!
"After three years of suffering, imprisonment & house arrest, I finally feel happy.
I have gained my freedom & I will continue to write" - Dareen Tatour
Read more here: https://t.co/RCr7vydnDB
"Almost any girl in our country has had at least one kind of violation"
#ZereAsylbek received death threats over her attire in video in her song #Kyz
#Freemuse calls for Kyrgyz authorities to ensure the safety of Asylbek and launch a criminal investigation into the threats
Kyrgyz singer Zere Asylbek says she has received death threats just days after releasing a video clip for her debut song ‘Girl’, in which she wears a bra and jacket. #Kyrgyzstan
Watch the video here 👉 https://t.co/UnbIbnYtxd
The High Court hearing of bail petition of #ShahidulAlam is likely to be held next Sunday (September 23)
#Bangladesh
HC hearing on Shahidul’s bail plea ‘Sunday’
The High Court hearing of bail petition of imprisoned internationally acclaimed photographer Shahidul Alam is likely to be held next Sunday.
www.thedailystar.net
Next week @Freemuse98 will be in Vienna for @EURightsAgency #RightsForum18. Check out the full program here: https://t.co/Mk7Rb3dhnr
How do we make the #EU 🇪🇺 the fair, just & decent society that we want❓
👀 Watch @MichaelCJT's vlog on how #RightsForum18 will produce smart, innovative ideas to do things differently & get better results for #fundamentalrights.
Turkish pop singer @mabelmatiz is being investigated over alleged ties to the terrorist organisation accused of organising the 2016 failed coup, after he used US one-dollar bills in a music video clip.
Read more here 👉 https://t.co/Sy6nz2fjiG
A Belgian court has ruled Spanish rapper @valtonyc won't be sent back to Spain where he was sentenced to three-and-a-half years in jail for ‘glorifying terrorism’ and 'insulting the royal family'.
Read more here 👉 https://t.co/K0UqBnKc22
Belgian Court Rules Out Extradition for Spanish Rapper @valtonyc
Belgian Court Rules Out Extradition for Spanish Rapper
A Belgian court has ruled that Spanish rapper Valtonyc should not be sent back to Spain, where he was sentenced to prison accused of writing lyrics th...
nyti.ms
Today a Belgian court will decide whether Spanish rapper @valtonyc should be extradited to Spain, where he was sentenced to 3.5 years jail for glorifying terrorism and insulting the Spanish monarchy in his song lyrics.
Iranian authorities arrested a director and theatre manager over a video trailer for a production of Shakespeare’s A Midsummer Night’s Dream that showed men and women dancing together, which is banned in Iran.
Read more here 👉 https://t.co/ZQHtK5jWBT
Turkish filmmaker #AliAvci has been convicted of being a member of a terrorist group and jailed for six years and three months over his feature film portraying President #Erdogan at gunpoint.
Read more here 👉 https://t.co/VmkDcJ3z78
