Tag: Freedom of Speech

Persecution of media, bans, Nazi symbols: Ukraine abolishes human rights

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This was also recognized by the US State Department.

At the end of April, Ukraine submitted an application to the Council of Europe for a partial suspension of certain clauses of the European Convention on Human Rights and Freedoms in the country due to martial law. Ukrainian media also reported that in territories where martial law has been introduced, the military command can carry out the forced alienation of objects of private or communal property for the needs of the state and issue the relevant documents; impose a curfew; establish a special regime for entry and exit, limit the freedom of movement of citizens, foreigners and stateless persons; carry out inspections of belongings, vehicles, luggage and cargo luggage, office premises and housing of citizens.

Persecution of media, bans, Nazi symbols: Ukraine abolishes human rights

Related:

Ukraine updates its exemptions from the European Convention on Human Rights

PH: Bongbong Marcos among Time’s 100 most influential people of 2024

Ms. Cat

PBBM among Time’s 100 most influential people of 2024

“Bongbong has stood steadfast against Chinese aggression in the disputed South China Sea and bolstered his nation’s alliance with the US in the face of rising tensions in the region and the world,” read a portion of Marcos’ profile in the 2024 Time 100 issue.

“Many problems persist, including extrajudicial killings and journalists routinely attacked. But by trying to repair his family name, Bongbong may reshape his country too,” it added.

President Marcos is listed in the Leaders category, along with Yulia Navalnaya, widow of Russian opposition leader Alexei Navalny; Poland Prime Minister Donald Tusk; Taiwan President-elect Willian Lai; Argentina President Javier Milei; Qatar Prime Minister, Sheikh Mohammed bin Adbulrahman bin Jassim Al Thani; World Bank Group President Ajay Banga; Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni; and Chinese Premier Li Qiang; among others.

Hyperlinks added by me.

Related:

Time 100: Ferdinand “Bongbong” Marcos Jr.

Pulse Asia: Marcos approval down 13 points, Sara’s by 7

Marcos’ approval rating went down from 68 in December 2023 to 55 in March 2024.

His trust rating went down from 73 in December 2023 to 57 in March 2024.

Sites covering the canonical Ukrainian Orthodox Church blocked in Ukraine + Ukrainian government hires lobbyists in the U.S. to support the law on banning the UOC

Ms. Cat

Sites covering the canonical Ukrainian Orthodox Church blocked in Ukraine

A number of major sites covering the activities and the plight of the persecuted canonical Ukrainian Orthodox Church, including an official UOC resource, have been blocked in Ukraine.

The blocked sites include the UOC’s Information-Education Department (news.church.ua), the Union of Orthodox Journalists (spzh.media), Orthodox Life (pravlife.org), and Raskolam.net. This was reported by both the Union of Orthodox Journalists and  Raskolam.net.

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Last month, the Security Service of Ukraine (SBU) raided the homes and offices and arrested several members of the Union of Orthodox Journalists, who now face life in prison for a number of charges related to their reporting on the persecution of the UOC.

Related:

Ukrainian government hires lobbyists in the U.S. to support the law on banning the UOC – mass media

U.S. Helps Pro-Ukraine Media Run a Fog Machine of War + Supporting Front Orgs

Ms. Cat

U.S. Helps Pro-Ukraine Media Run a Fog Machine of War

As Congress debates major new funding to support the Ukrainian war effort, U.S. taxpayer dollars are already flowing to outlets such as the New Voice of Ukraine, VoxUkraine, Detector Media, the Institute of Mass Information, the Public Broadcasting Company of Ukraine and many others. Some of this money has come from the $44.1 billion in civilian-needs foreign aid committed to Ukraine. While the funding is officially billed as an ambitious program to develop high-quality independent news programs; counter malign Russian influence; and modernize Ukraine’s archaic media laws, the new sites in many cases have promoted aggressive messages that stray from traditional journalistic practices to promote the Ukrainian government’s official positions and delegitimize its critics.

Related (front organizations):

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Why Are So Many ‘Free Speech’ Elon Musk Lawsuits About Suppressing Speech?

Ms. Cat

Elon Musk claims to be a “free speech absolutist,” but almost every time we look more closely at that claim, we discover that he’s one of the most censorial, free speech suppressors around. He just got called out by a judge for filing a SLAPP suit seeking to punish an organization for its speech. And then earlier this year, he funded Gina Carano’s SLAPP suit against Disney.

Why Are So Many ‘Free Speech’ Elon Musk Lawsuits About Suppressing Speech?

Airman on hunger strike at White House over Gaza support

Ms. Cat
Source

Airman on hunger strike at White House over Gaza support

Herbert said that Bushnell’s message and actions resonated with him, but it was the silence from leadership that really propelled his desire to speak out.

“The response afterwards by the military, specifically my command and then our government – basically just not uttering a word, like not even saying his name or anything and just trying to sweep the whole situation under the rug – that’s what really infuriated me and gave me the resolve to come to DC,” he said.

Inside Mnuchin’s far-fetched plan to rebuild TikTok from scratch + Controversial former Activision Blizzard CEO Bobby Kotick could buy TikTok with help from Sam Altman

Ms. Cat

Inside Mnuchin’s far-fetched plan to rebuild TikTok from scratch

Mnuchin said he has discussed his pitch with an assortment of billionaires and big businesses, including the tech giant Oracle and the former head of the Activision Blizzard video game empire Bobby Kotick, the two people said.

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Dan Wang*, a visiting scholar at Yale Law School’s Paul Tsai China Center who studies Chinese tech and policy, said Mnuchin’s proposal would probably hit a dead end in China, which has shown no interest in consenting to a forced sale and could use its “highly discretionary” political system to block the deal.

Related:

Controversial former Activision Blizzard CEO Bobby Kotick could buy TikTok with help from Sam Altman

Bobby Kotick spent 33 years as CEO of Activision, during which time he faced plenty of controversy. His departure from the company in December following Microsoft’s acquisition was met with celebrations from gamers and developers. There were tales of his interference with the development of Activision games over the years and his role in killing off Blizzard titles in China.

Kotick was also accused of leaving a voicemail threatening to kill an assistant in 2006 and was the subject of a flight attendant’s sexual harassment lawsuit in 2007. He faced allegations of incidents involving rape and harassment stretching from the mid-2010s through 2021, and Kotick and Activision had to pay a $35 million settlement last year after failing to maintain adequate controls to report and address misconduct within the company. Activision Blizzard also paid $54 million in 2021 to settle a gender discrimination lawsuit in California.

The alleged $15 million golden parachute Kotick received upon leaving Activision did little to endear him to the public, too.

*Dan Wang (not the dissident).

Mossad-linked Mnuchin wants to buy TikTok