Charlie Hebdo and Freedom of Expression

AuthorRhoda Howard-Hassmann
PositionCanada Research Chair in International Human Rights. Wilfrid Laurier University, Canada
Pages467-480
e Indonesian Journal of International & Comparative Law
ISSN: 2338-7602; E-ISSN: 2338-770X
http://www.ijil.org
© 2015 e Institute for Migrant Rights Press
467
Note. I am most grateful to the faculty and students of the Human Rights and Human
Diversity Program, Wilfrid Laurier University, Brantford campus, for their comments
on a lecture I delivered based on this article on March 11, 2015. I am particularly
grateful to Dr. Andrew Robinson for his discussion of my argument.
THE CHARLIE HEBDO MURDERS AND FREEDOM
OF SPEECH
RHODA E. HOWARD-HASSMANN
Canada Research Chair in International Human Rights
Wilfrid Laurier University, Canada
E-mail: hassmann@wlu.ca
I. BACKGROUND
e murders of twelve people at the site of the French satiric publication,
Charlie Hebdo, are the latest in a series of incidents that have rocked the
Western liberal faith in the importance of freedom of speech.
e rst incident was the Salman Rushdie aair in 1988-89. Rushdie,
a novelist and British citizen of Indian Muslim background, had already
written several well-known novels, among them Midnight’s Children,1 set
in India and Shame,2 set in Pakistan, both based on real political characters
and events. In 1988 he published e Satanic Verses.3 Some Muslims
1. S R, M’ C (1981).
2. S R, S (1983).
3. S R, T S V (1988).

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