Incident on freeDimensional

Mexican photojournalist Ruben Espinosa found murdered along with three women in Mexico City

Mon, 03 Aug 2015 00:00:00 +0000

A photojournalist who was found dead in Mexico City after he fled harassment in his home state appears to have been tortured before he was shot dead, the head of a free press advocacy group said on Sunday.

Ruben Espinosa sustained severe injuries to his face before he was killed, said Dario Ramirez, director of the Article 19 group.

Espinosa was found dead late on Friday in an apartment in Mexico City. Three women who lived in the apartment and their housekeeper also were killed. They appeared to have been tortured and sexually assaulted before being shot, Ramirez said.

Artist Tania Brugera arrested and injured by police in Havana

Fri, 12 Jun 2015 00:00:00 +0000

by Jillian Steinhauer

This weekend artist Tania Bruguera was arrested once again in Cuba, along with dozens of other activists, and was manhandled by the police. As with most information about Bruguera over the past few months, the news — which Hyperallergic has not been able to independently verify — comes via the Facebook page for her project #YoTambienExijo (“I also demand”), which was a planned participatory performance on New Year’s Eve in Havana’s Revolution Square that led to Bruguera being arrested multiple times. Cuban authorities also confiscated her passport and are allegedly pressing charges against her.

fD joins international community in condemning the attacks on Charlie Hebdo

Mon, 12 Jan 2015 00:00:00 +0000

In the wake of the deadly attacks on Charlie Hebdo in Paris last week, we recognize more than ever the need to uphold the fundamental principles of free expression, open communication, and a respect for differing points of view by creating spaces for dialogue and deep reflection. We join our colleagues around the world in condemning the killing of these artists and in supporting their families. - the fD team

ARTSFEX statement on cancellation of Exhibit B at the Barbican Centre

Tue, 30 Sep 2014 00:00:00 +0000

We the undersigned members of Artsfex condemn an alarming worldwide trend in which violent protest silences artistic expression that some groups claim is offensive. People have every right to object to art they find objectionable but no right whatsoever to have that work censored. Free expression, including work that others may find shocking or offensive, is a right that must be defended vigorously.

We call on artists, arts venues, protestors and the police to work together as a matter of urgency, to stand up for artistic free expression and to ensure that the right to protest does not override the right to free expression. This means that every possible step is taken to ensure that the art work remains open for all to see, while protesters voices are heard.

Letter to Moroccan Minister of Justice re: musician Mouad Belghouate

Mon, 07 Jul 2014 00:00:00 +0000

Open Letter to the Moroccan Minister of Justice and Liberties El Mustapha Ramid on the Four-month Sentence Against Musician Mouad Belghouate (aka El Haqed)

7 July 2014
Mr El Mustapha Ramid
Minister of Justice and Liberties
Ministère de la Justice et des libertés Place El Mamounia – BP 1015
Rabat
Morocco
Fax:+212 537 73 47 25
We the undersigned organisations committed to the defence of the rights to freedom of expression, culture and the arts, condemn the four-month sentence served against musician Mouad Belghouate (aka El Haqed) following a trial that fell short of international standards. We are concerned that the sentence has been given in retribution for his involvement in Morocco’s pro-democracy movement, and specifically his condemnation of corruption and police violence through his music.

To send letters of support for Moroccan musician Mouad (El Haqed)

Mon, 07 Jul 2014 00:00:00 +0000

If you would like to send support letters to the Moroccan musician, Mouad Belghouate (aka El Haqed), please note:

- keep messages short with simple message wishing El Haqed well and that he will soon be free.
- no political or religious comment or images ( tourist cards are appreciated….)
- Give return address/email.

Send to:

Mouad Belghouate

Prison local Oukacha

Quartier Oukacha

20 580 Casablanca, Morocco

Show on African homosexuality shut down after fundamentalist attack

Mon, 09 Jun 2014 00:00:00 +0000

Senegal exhibition, part of the Dak’Art Biennale, closed due to pressure from extremist Islamic groups.

By: Anny Shaw

The Senegalese government has shut down one of the first exhibitions in Africa to focus on homosexuality on the continent. The move comes several weeks after an attack on the Dakar gallery by Muslim fundamentalists, says the French-Algerian artist Kader Attia. “Precarious Imaging: Visibility and Media Surrounding African Queerness” opened at Raw Material Company on 11 May, but a day later, the non-profit art centre was vandalised and the building damaged, according to Attia, whose video about the lives of transsexuals in Algiers and Mumbai was included in the show. No one was hurt in the attack.

Salvadorian performance artist faces prison for eating his ballot card : petition launched in his defence

Fri, 28 Mar 2014 00:00:00 +0000

https://secure.avaaz.org/en/petition/El_Salvador_Legal_Authorities_Keep_Victor_Rodriguez_out_of_jail/?fbss

Víctor “Crack” Rodríguez is facing up to six years in prison for a performance piece. After the general election in El Salvador that split the winning left party from the right by a margin of less than 1% percent, tensions in the country are high, especially amongst the nation’s community of artists, who are rallying to defend Rodríguez, one of San Salvador’s celebrated contemporary artists.

On March 9th, 2014 Rodriguez walked in to a ballot station and announced, “this is an artist action,” then proceeded to eat half of his ballot in front of polling station onlookers before casting the remaining half. A video of the artist’s performance went viral. But the situation quickly turned ugly as the Salvadoran legal system reacted, accusing the artist of electoral fraud — a criminal offence punishable by up to six years in prison.

Palestinian poet Mahmoud Darwish’s books removed from Riyadh International Book Fair

Sun, 16 Mar 2014 00:00:00 +0000

Just a few days after all the works by Saudi publisher Arab Network for Research and Publishing were removed from the Riyadh International Book Fair for violating the Kingdom’s laws, the works of globally celebrated Palestinian poet Mahmoud Darwish caused protests and have reportedly been withdrawn from the fair and are not to be sold:

Numerous news sources were reporting the removal of the books, while images and videos circulating on Twitter purported to show the protests against Darwish’s ouevre as well as the packing-up of Darwish’s books.

Indian author shot dead in Afghanistan

Thu, 05 Sep 2013 00:00:00 +0000

Unidentified gunmen have shot dead an Indian author in the eastern Afghan province of Paktika, police say.

Sushmita Banerjee, the writer of a popular book about her dramatic escape from the Taliban in the 1990s, was shot dead on Wednesday night, police announced on Thursday.

“We found her bullet-riddled body near [a religious school] on the outskirts of Sharan city [Paktika’s provincial capital] this morning,” provincial police chief Dawlat Khan Zadran told the AFP news agency.

Ukrainian Museum Director Destroys Critical Painting Ahead Of President's Visit

Fri, 02 Aug 2013 00:00:00 +0000

Natalia Zabolotna’s primary job as director of the Mystetskyi Arsenal art museum in Kyiv was to oversee the pieces under her roof.

But on July 25, the night before a visit by President Viktor Yanukovych and the opening of an exhibit meant to celebrate Ukrainian heritage, she took a can of black paint and doused a piece that she deemed “immoral.”

A day later, the destruction of artist Volodymyr Kuznetsov’s “Koliivschina: Judgment Day” has prompted the resignation of the museum’s deputy, helped fuel a street protest, and triggered alarm within the country’s artistic community.

The Gezi Park Experience

Thu, 20 Jun 2013 00:00:00 +0000

by Pelin Tan

“An event is political if its material is collective, or if the event can only be attributed to a collective multiplicity.” —Alain Badiou

Before the Turkish government brutally invaded Taksim Square and Gezi Park with water cannons and tear gas last Saturday, protesters held forums to discuss sustainable action that would continue the resistance beyond the park’s occupation. The Gezi Park experience is about collaboration, solidarity despite differences, voluntary shared labor, an agonistic democratic platform, and friendship. Whatever form of protest the next demonstrations take, they must contain these core aspects of the “Gezi Park Experience,” with art and its dissemination playing a crucial role.

Zunar vs. the police and Malaysian government

Wed, 12 Jun 2013 00:00:00 +0000

Statement from Malaysia political cartoonist, Zunar. Zunar vs the police and the Malaysian government (Unlawful Detention under The Sedition Act): An appeal at the Appellate Court on the 18th June 2013

The Appellate Court has set 18th of June to hear my appeal on the decision of the Kuala Lumpur High Court’s ruling regarding detention of me under the Sedition Act three years ago.

In his ruling on July last year, the Kuala Lumpur High Court Judge Justice Vazeer Alam Mydin Meera rules that the detention was lawful, even though in the other part of the judgment the court had instructed the police to return all my books and drawing and pay the damages.

Attention! Turkish democracy needs you!

Thu, 06 Jun 2013 00:00:00 +0000

After a series of peaceful demonstrations for preserving a recreational area in Istanbul city centre, which is planned to be demolished for the construction of a shopping mall, Turkish police attacked the protesters at 05:00am on Friday morning violently with tear gas and water cannon, directly targeting their faces and bodies. Dozens of protesters are wounded and are being treated by doctors outside hospitals as they are not welcome there or are not able to reach the Emergency Rooms. Some are even reported dead.

Eight charged with Victor Jara's 1973 murder in Chile

Sun, 30 Dec 2012 00:00:00 +0000

SANTIAGO, Chile — Eight retired army officers were charged on Friday with the murder of a popular songwriter and theater director, Víctor Jara, who was tortured and killed days after the 1973 military coup in a stadium that had been turned into a detention center.

Judge Miguel Vásquez charged two of the former officers, Pedro Barrientos and Hugo Sánchez, with committing the murder and six others as accomplices. Mr. Sánchez, a lieutenant colonel, was second in command at the stadium. Mr. Barrientos, a lieutenant from a Tejas Verdes army unit, currently lives in Deltona, a city southwest of Daytona Beach, Fla., and was interrogated by the F.B.I. earlier this year at the request of a Chilean court. Attempts to reach Mr. Barrientos for comment were unsuccessful; his two listed telephone numbers had been disconnected.

Bolivian journalist Fernando Vidal set alight on air

Wed, 31 Oct 2012 00:00:00 +0000

A Bolivian radio journalist has been attacked while he was conducting a radio show in the southern city of Yacuiba.

Staff at Radio Popular said four masked men broke into the studio, poured petrol over presenter Fernando Vidal and set him alight.

Mr Vidal, 78, and another staff member are being treated for burns.

Relatives said Mr Vidal had been reporting on smuggling in the border area when the attack happened.