Brick by brick

This issue of the magazine includes a special report with reports from a range of countries formerly behind the Berlin Wall about whether the expected level of freedoms have exceeded or not met expectations. As the Russian bear paws at the borders of Ukraine, the optimistic future that many felt was just around the corner has not always been delivered. In Azerbaijan and Belarus, for instance, the population struggles with high levels of censorship. For some it may feel like the revolution didn't really happen. In other countries there has been a rise in a nasty nationalism that stokes up hatred against minority groups. The debate about the future of journalism and free speech continues when we talk to Generation Wall, young people who were born just after the Wall fell about how they feel about freedom for their generation. In other sections of the magazine, we publish two brand new short stories written for Index on Censorship magazine, one by novelist Christie Watson, the other by novelist and journalist Kaya Genc. And a LA graffiti artist writes about informal art in an urban environment; and illustrates his thoughts with photos of his work. Actor Janet Suzman looks back at the role that theatre played during the apartheid years in South Africa, and India lawyer Saurav Datta writes an essay on India's colonial laws and asks why they haven't been rewritten in the past 60 years.