Google – AFP, 6 February 2014
London —
More than 200 leading international authors including Salman Rushdie, Margaret
Atwood and Jonathan Franzen on Thursday slammed Russia's anti-gay and blasphemy
laws as a "chokehold" on creativity as Sochi prepared for the Winter
Olympics.
In an open
letter published in Britain's Guardian newspaper, the writers said recent
legislation outlawing religious insult and the "propaganda of
non-traditional sexual relations" among minors, along with the
recriminalisation of defamation, "specifically put writers at risk".
They vowed
not to stand by "as we watch our fellow writers and journalists pressed
into silence or risking prosecution and often drastic punishment for the mere
act of communicating their thoughts".
"A
healthy democracy must hear the independent voices of all its citizens; the
global community needs to hear, and be enriched by, the diversity of Russian
opinion," it said.
"We
therefore urge the Russian authorities to repeal these laws that strangle free
speech."
Four Nobel
laureates; Gunter Grass, Wole Soyinka, Elfriede Jelinek and Orhan Pamuk all
signed the letter, along with other well-known authors including Carol Ann
Duffy, Julian Barnes, Ian McEwan and Neil Gaiman.
Rushdie
told the Guardian that the campaign was "incredibly important to Russian
writers, artists and citizens alike".
"The
chokehold that the Russian Federation has placed on freedom of expression is
deeply worrying and needs to be addressed in order to bring about a healthy
democracy in Russia," said the Satanic Verses author.
Russia
paraded the Olympic torch through the Black Sea resort of Sochi for the first
time Wednesday, two days before the opening of the Winter Games.
Russian
President Vladimir Putin has vowed that Russia will ensure hospitable and top
class Games for everyone but the $50 billion project has been overshadowed by
Russia's law outlawing "gay propaganda" to minors.
Gay rights
group All Out organised protests in 19 cities around the world on Wednesday --
including Saint Petersburg in Russia but not Sochi itself -- and urged sponsors
to "break their silence" on the controversial legislation.
Ban Ki-moon
speaks to the IOC's general assembly before the 2014
Winter Olympics in Sochi,
Russia. Photograph: David Goldman/AP
|
Related Article:
No comments:
Post a Comment
Note: Only a member of this blog may post a comment.