Media freedoms appear increasingly under siege around the world, with concerning signs that achieving middle-income status is no guarantee for an independent political watchdog in the form of the press. Farhana Haque Rahman, Director General of global news agency Inter Press Service issues a call to action.
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In an outrageous move, Egyptian security forces stormed the headquarters of the Journalists Syndicate late Sunday night, 1st of May. But what was even more unexpected, perhaps, was the impressive emergency general assembly meeting that was held at the syndicate on Wednesday, May 3rd, with over 3,000 members present. An unexpected victory for the press,amid an unprecedented crackdown by the current administration on press freedoms in Egypt. 
Egyptian journalists continue to face a critical threat to their freedom following the storming of the Journalists Syndicate headquarters by security forces on Sunday, May 1st. 
Samar Hazboun is a Palestinian photographer who has published several projects documenting life under occupation. Her latest project, “Beyond checkpoints,” documents the often forgotten stories of Palestinian women who have given birth at Israeli checkpoints, or been delayed for hours before being able to cross and go to a hospital. (
The crime of forced disappearance has contributed to the emergence of social movements comprised of the wives and mothers of the disappeared in the Arab region, whether victims of civil war or military rule. 
Yesterday, once I heard about the terror attacks in Brussels, the first thing I did was to call a couple of very close friends to make sure that they were all right. In Europe, even someone who is not familiar with that city must know someone else there. One of my friends, passed by Maalbeek Metro Station 5 minutes before the deflagration took place…
The questions Syrian children ask their parents
The death of Giulio Regeni exposes the continuous human rights violations that critical voices, activists, journalists are facing under the government of General Al-Sisi. Foreign diplomats and intelligence officers in Egypt “understand the dirty politics, the abuse, the broken bodies and shattered lives that keep Egypt ‘open for business’… But until now they have not appeared to care” writes Mada Masr.
Through the creation of a fictional Arabic alt-rock band, Khyam Allami composed, arranged and produced a soundtrack that’s as nuanced, lo-fi and punk rock as Leyla Buazid’s award-winning debut movie, A peine j’ouvre les yeux (As I Open My Eyes)
In the aftermath of independence in 1962, Algeria hosted 450 cinemas. Sixty years later, there are less than two dozen left. Minister of Culture Azzedine Mihoubi’s declaration last June that “95% of Algerian cinemas are closed and non-operating” came as a bolt out of the blue. 
Can Dündar, the editorinchief of the Turkish daily Cumhuriyet, and his Ankara bureau chief, Erdem Gül, have been held since the evening of 26 November. 
The ongoing project War-Toys recreates the memories of children affected by war with the toys that are found on site, in Palestine, Israel and Lebanon. Photographer Brian McCarty worked for more than twenty years for the major toys brands. Today, his camera tells a moving story of contemporary wars, while helping children overcome their trauma. 
An art project in a cafe, a Japanese-Egyptian urban laboratory and the annual 2B Continued festival dedicated to performance art in all its forms: in Cairo contemporary art and the spectacle involve the audience in an original way. Three events reviewed by MadaMasr
Story. Between the Egyptian Revolution in 1919 and the beginning of the Lebanon war in 1975, the Middle East goes through a parenthesis of a blessed social and artistic freedom. On the trail of some of the protagonists of this period, in a story based on the latest graphicnovel by Lamia Ziadé, to immerse in a mythical heritage. Is it lost forever? (Ebticar/Le Desk)
Our tears will not dry
Through the festival’s open call this year, Medrar received works of the most diverse genres. A total of 116 artists, filmmakers and groups from 38 countries have been selected to be featured in this edition. - 
The July 21 Association launched an international appeal called #PeccatoCapitale (cardinal sin) to ask the City of Rome for a moratorium on forced evictions of informal settlements in the city. The operations have tripled since Pope Bergoglio announced the Extraordinary Holy Year.
Evelyne Pommerat receives you the Médiathèque Mateo Maximoff with precious attention. Responsible for an extensive archive devoted to Gypsies and travellers (gent du voyage), this veteran documentalist turned this place into an open window to the present, thanks to a vibrant cultural program.
He is immersed in Gypsy imagination but refuses to identify himself as an artist through the prism of a "specific Roma culture". His painting is a political act like a sharp sword ready to sever all forms of humiliation and discrimination inflicted on Gypsies. An interview
A look at how much the 12 countries committed to the Decade of Roma Inclusion deliver on their promises of closing the gaps between Roma and the rest of the society, as the decade comes to an end.
In an effort to help Romanes survive and flourish, 20 Roma were taught Romanes and in turn will teach it to others across Turkey. A dictionary of Romanes is on the way too.
Is it possible to talk about a universal, all-inclusive Gypsy culture? What are the distinctive characteristics of different Gypsy groups and how are they transmitted through generations in a community without a written culture? An interview with Turkish professor of music ethnography ?brahim Yavuz Yükselsin and a portrait of Turkish-Gypsy director Elmas Arus.
Is it possible to talk about Romani arts? If so, what cultural models inspire its standards of beauty? And what is meant by romanipé? Interviews and testimonials on the reality in Italy by creators, academics and researchers.
From flamenco to rumba, through the literary productions passed down orally from generation to generation, to the young creators who today reinterpret the tradition with contemporary language. The reportage by Babelmed on artistic expressions of Romany communities in Barcelona and Andalusia.
A short film by Franca Marini, was filmed in December 2014-January 2015 in the Gaza Strip, approximately four months after the Israeli military offensive Operation Protective Edge, the third the civilian population have been subjected since the end of 2008
Are known for their fresh take on hip-hop, reggae, dub, rock and Bosnian folklore. Initially, the concept of the band came through an urgent need to voice the problematic issues in Bosnian society, while also showing the rest of the world that life in the Balkans exists outside of the familiar and overused media stereotypes. 
Some young activists are calling on Egyptians to boycott the parliamentary elections in honor of the martyrs of the revolution and imprisoned political dissidents. But given the boycott's limited outreach and a general political apathy, some dismiss the campaign as an elitist folly. 
50 percent of the approximately 180 thousand Roma and Sinti in Italy have Italian citizenship, 4 out of 5 live in normal houses and many work in regular jobs.40 thousand live in poor housing conditions. The investigation of Babelmed in Rome, where about 9 thousand people live in inadequate housing according to the international standards of safety, peace and dignity.
Refugees and migrants face increasing arrests in Egypt for attempting to cross the MediterraneanEnd of content
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