Online Free Expression Day – March 12 – Reporters Without Borders
Wednesday, March 12, 2008Today is a day of protest. It’s about truth, freedom and the right to publish without fear of state persecution. It’s an important stand to take, even for those of us who feel protected living in western democracies.
Promoted by the international NGO, Reporters Without Borders (Reporters san frontiéres), Online Free Expression Day is a 24-hour cooperative effort by tens of thousands of members and supporters calling for the immediate release of 63 people imprisoned around the world for their blogging.
The organization has posted an online protest page allowing supporters to choose to focus on one of nine of the “worst Internet enemies”; Burma, China, North Korea, Cuba, Egypt, Eritrea, Tunisia, Turkmenistand and Vietnam. Each of these regimes have jailed or punished reporters and bloggers for their writings on the Internet. There for the grace of geography go you and I.
That sounds overly dramatic doesn’t it… It’s not. Even in the “west”, we continue to have to fight for our rights of recognition as journalists and the right to publish what we believe to be true.
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