Censorship ... continued

FREEDOM OF SPEECH AND PUBLICATION

These freedoms too are subject to certain laws. Some things must not be published but if they are they will carry punishments. Such prohibitions are stipulated in the law of libel and slander. They involve a form of censorship or "censure-ship".

Libel is the offence of uttering false, defamatory statements about a person or persons in writing or other permanent form or broadcast; while slander is the offence of uttering defamatory statements in a spoken or other transient form. Both libel and slander come under the category of Defamation.

Censorship is a procedure whereby an article, film or play is examined prior to it being made public. If it does not meet required criteria it may be banned or subjected to amendment.

Totalitarian states heavily censor their publications, particularly where they may express any opposition to the government. Censorship features in fundamentalist Islamic countries where politics and religion are virtually united. There was a time when the Roman Catholic Church maintained an Index of books that the faithful were forbidden to read to save them from heresy etc.