Freemuse
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Imagine a smart, cheeky report with a playful visual language. Nothing like the typical output of human-rights groups. But, its harmless-looking cover, belies its contents. Koalisi Seni, an Indonesian advocacy group for artistic freedom, has just released Cerita Lama Berulang Kembali (Same Old, Same Old). Inside: sixty cases of censorship, harassment, intimidation. The highest figure in a decade.
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In Türkiye today, there is deep anxiety. The media is widely distrusted by many, while the political environment grows more oppressive for those who question the government. All of this has been unfolding against the backdrop of a troubled economy – after peaking at 85% in 2022, inflation fell to below 50% by October 2024,
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On Music Freedom Day we remember the long and fraught struggle of Kurdish musicians in Türkiye. For decades, Kurdish artistic expression was systematically suppressed under a national policy that enforced a singular Turkish identity. Music, literature, cinema, and theatre in Kurdish were banned, their existence relegated to underground spaces or exile. It was not until the
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Parvin Ardalan, born in Tehran to a Kurdish family, has spent decades at the forefront of Iran’s feminist movement. A journalist, writer, and activist, she co-founded the One Million Signatures Campaign in 2006, a daring initiative to challenge the country’s discriminatory laws against women. Her advocacy has come at a steep personal price—arrests, trials, and a travel
Musa Igrek 