From November 15 to 17, more than 250 participants gathered for Bread&Net 2019 in the heart of Beirut. With the ongoing Lebanese revolution, this was a special year for our regional digital rights unconference. The political situation was a major focus, from a topic of discussion during various panels to[...]
SMEX is thrilled to announce the return of Bread&Net, the annual Arabic-language unconference to strengthen and defend human rights in digitally networked spaces in the MENA region. Join us from 15 to 17 November 2019 at Antwork in Beirut! We took your comments and feedback from last year’s inaugural Bread&Net[...]
On Wednesday, February 27, SMEX officially launched its online freedom of expression (FoE) case database, Muhal (muhal.org), at its Masaha space in Beirut. Muhal is SMEX’s ongoing, evidence-based campaign to document detentions and arrests related to online freedom of speech in Lebanon. SMEX Executive Director Mohamad Najem presented attendees with[...]
Join us at 6 PM on Wednesday, February 27 for the launch of Muhal, an open database that documents online freedom of expression violations. We have collected data, including the charges, the punishment, and a description of each case, from local news articles and independent sources. By aggregating and publishing[...]
On November 20 and 21, around 200 people from over 20 countries gathered together in Beirut for 35 panels, talks, and workshops at Bread&Net, the region’s digital rights unconference. Hosted by SMEX and organized collaboratively with supporters and partners, Bread&Net created an offline space for discussion about technology and society, in[...]
Feature image via SMEX: Who controls what we see online? Who controls what we see online? SMEX screened the documentary “The Cleaners” and hosted a discussion yesterday, Sunday 18 November, before the start of regional unconference Bread&Net. “The Cleaners” sheds light on the hidden world of content moderators – thousands of[...]
Feature image via the cleaners: Who is controlling what we see… and what we think? The Web that was once created to be public, free, and open is not the same anymore. Almost everything we do online these days is controlled by private companies; whether we are sending an email (through[...]
Feature image October 26, 2017: The Great Departed playing in Zurich. On May 11, SMEX and Lebanese band Al-Rahel Al-Kabir (The Great Departed) launched a petition demanding that iTunes Middle East release a public explanation for its refusal to upload five of the band’s songs, which mock religious fundamentalism, political[...]
Feature image via SMEX,Geneva, December 19, 2017: SMEX Executive Co-Director Jessica Dheere welcomes participants to our interactive workshop on data, digital rights and law co-hosted with HURIDOCS. The relationships between digital technologies and networks, and their national and regional legal frameworks, are rapidly evolving. Poorly drafted and arbitrarily applied legislation[...]
