IFEX - novi tjedni pregled

23.08.2006.

----¦ IFEX COMMUNIQUÉ VOL 15 NO 33 ¦ 22 AUGUST 2006 ¦ ------

The IFEX Communiqué is the weekly newsletter of the International Freedom of Expression eXchange (IFEX), a global network of 72 organisations working to defend and promote the right to free expression. IFEX is managed by Canadian Journalists for Free Expression (www.cjfe.org).
--------------¦ Visit the IFEX website: http://www.ifex.org  

FREE EXPRESSION SPOTLIGHT:
1. Russia: Artistic Expression Under Threat from Religious Intolerance
           
REGIONAL NEWS:
2. Sri Lanka: Journalist Murdered as Attacks on Media Increase
3. Vietnam: Internet Censorship Growing
4. South Africa: FXI Opens Legal Aid Clinic to Defend Free Expression

REPORTS AND PUBLICATIONS:
5. ARTICLE 19 Surveys Defamation Laws in Belarus, Moldova, Ukraine

JOB NOTICES:
6. AMARC Seeks Asia Pacific Coordinator

"IN OTHER NEWS".
7. Suitcase Radio Brings Women's Voices out of the Margins
8. More Diversity Needed in Armenia's Broadcast Sector: OSCE

AWARDS AND FELLOWSHIPS:
9. Missing Mexican Reporter Awarded IAPA Prize

USEFUL WEBSITES:
10. Journalists: On Courage
11. Human Rights Tools

ALERTS ISSUED BY THE IFEX CLEARING HOUSE LAST WEEK
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FREE EXPRESSION SPOTLIGHT

1. RUSSIA: ARTISTIC EXPRESSION UNDER THREAT FROM RELIGIOUS INTOLERANCE

Artistic expression in Russia is becoming increasingly restricted, fueled by rising nationalism, the increasing influence of the Russian Orthodox Church on national politics and the virtual absence of a free media, warns ARTICLE 19.

In a recently released report, "Art, Religion and Hatred: Religious Intolerance in Russia and its Effect on Art", ARTICLE 19 examines how the abuse of local laws and the government's failure to protect victims of attacks and intimidation are making it increasingly difficult for artists to express their views freely. It focuses, in particular, on the cases of artist Oleg Yanushevski and the Sakharov Museum.

Yanushevski and his family were forced to seek asylum in the United Kingdom in 2004 after he and his wife suffered fierce harassment, their son was attacked, and the artist's work vandalised. Yanushevski's work, which depicts consumer goods and iconic figures in popular culture to represent the absence of spiritual or meaningful values in contemporary society, was labeled "blasphemous" by Russian Orthodox religious groups. Despite Yanushevski's request, the police refused to investigate the attacks on his family.

Ludmila Vasilovskaya and Yuri Samodurov were convicted in March 2005 on charges of incitement to religious and ethnic hatred after mounting an exhibition at the Sakharov Museum called "Caution, Religion!" The exhibition included a piece showing Jesus' face on a red Coca Cola logo next to the words: "This is my blood." Vasilovskaya, the exhibit's curator, and Samodurov, the museum director, were each fined 100,000 Russian roubles (US$3,700).

Vasilovskaya and Samodurov were charged under Article 282 of Russia's Criminal Code, which criminalises the incitement of hatred on religious grounds. ARTICLE 19 says there is little or no connection in the Sakharov Museum case between the expression and the occurrence of any religious hostility. "Although some artistic expression has been offensive, it has never incited religious strife - whether intended or unintended," the group argues.

Other artists and curators have faced attacks on their right to freedom of expression. Marat Guelman, was threatened with prosecution by members of a Russian Orthodox group who attacked his Russia-2 exhibition at the Moscow Biennale in 2005. Avdei Ter-Oganian, a controversial artist who addresses religious themes in his work, was forced to seek refuge in the Czech Republic in 2002 after receiving death threats. Kirill Miller and Igor Bystrov have suffered physical assaults, thought to have been prompted by their outspoken political views, and Oleg Mavromatti has been forced to seek asylum in Bulgaria.

Ironically, Article 282 of the Criminal Code is rarely applied in attacks against religious minorities by ultra-nationalist, neo-Nazi and anti-Semitic groups, notes ARTICLE 19.

The absence of a free press in Russia compounds the challenges facing artistic expression in the country. The country's two nation-wide television channels, which are the main source of information for the majority of citizens, are controlled by the government. With dissenting voices absent from the media, the ruling party can better spread its message of a homogenous Russian society needing a strong centralised state to keep the country together, says ARTICLE 19. This has led to the emergence of more extremist nationalist movements in the country.

At the same time, there is evidence that the Russian Orthodox Church is increasingly assuming the role of ultimate moral arbitrator. The Church has, for example, suggested banning minority faiths and has sought to suppress art that does not portray religion in a positive light.

The Church is also becoming more influential in the political realm. President Vladimir Putin has made no secret of his close relations with the Church and its leaders. Church representatives routinely participate in political events, including election campaigns, and several members of parliament set up a group in 2004 called "In Support of Traditional Spiritual and Ethical Values of Russia." Another group called the Public Committee "For the Moral Revival of the Fatherland" has launched a campaign for harsher measures to eradicate forms of dissent. It enjoys the support of the Orthodox Church and many members of Russia's Duma (House of Parliament).

Read ARTICLE's report here:
http://www.article19.org/pdfs/publications/russia-art-religion-and-hatred.pdf

Visit other links for information on censorship in Russia:
- IFEX: http://www.ifex.org/en/content/view/full/212/
- Center for Journalism in Extreme Situations: http://www.cjes.ru/index-e.php
- Glasnost Defence Foundation: http://www.gdf.ru/
- Human Rights Watch: http://hrw.org/doc?t=europe&c=russia
- Index on Censorship: http://www.indexonline.org/en/news/articles/2005/2/russia-religious-hate-law-silences-artists.shtml
- Committee to Protect Journalists: http://www.cpj.org/attacks05/europe05/russia_05.html
- Freedom House: http://www.freedomhouse.org/template.cfm?page=22&year=2005&country=681

Povratak