MAY 3 was World Press Freedom Day, the 20th annual celebration of this most essential of human rights. But you would be forgiven for wondering what there is to cheer about. 今年5月3日是第20个世界新闻自由日，新闻自由是最基本的一项人权。但如果你不知道有什么值得庆祝的，也属情有可原。

The previous day, Freedom House, an American non-governmental organisation, produced research suggesting global freedom of expression is at its lowest ebb for a decade. It charts the many countries whose record had deteriorated during 2012, from out-and-out dictatorships and more “modern” authoritarian regimes to self-proclaimed democracies. 就在前一天，美国非政府组织“自由之家”(Freedom House)发布了一项调查，该调查显示，目前全球言论自由权正处于十年来的最低谷。该组织标出了2012年言论自由恶化的很多国家，包括从彻头彻尾的独裁国家、更加“现代”的独裁政权到自诩为民主政体的国家。

Some of the worst performances, in countries such as Mali, were the result of political turmoil and civil war. Russia and China continued on their grim ways, armed with a combination of legislation, thuggery and increasing technical nous. State-dominated media hampered free elections from Venezuela to Ukraine. New laws prevent effective investigative journalism in South Africa. Ecuador is going downhill; Thailand, too. The list goes on. 在表现最糟糕的一些国家，比如说马里，言论自由恶化是政治动荡和内战的结果。俄罗斯和中国依然表现糟糕——依法治理、手段粗暴与技术理性增强同时并存。从委内瑞拉到乌克兰，政府主导的媒体阻碍了自由选举。厄瓜多尔正在走下坡路，泰国也是。这份名单很长，此处不再一一列举。

There are several rays of hope. As it emerges from decades of military rule, Myanmar is relaxing curbs. In Africa, improvements were noted in Ivory Coast, Senegal, Liberia and Mauritania. 但也露出几线希望。结束了几十年军事统治之后，缅甸正在放松控制。非洲的科特迪瓦、塞内加尔、利比里亚和毛里塔尼亚都有所改善。

Economic crisis, instead of leading to more transparency, has galvanised the rich and powerful to censor. In Greece, a journalist was arrested for publishing information about senior public officials who had evaded tax by shipping their money into secret Swiss bank accounts. Kostas Vaxevanis was charged with violating privacy laws, acquitted, but on appeal by the state faces retrial next month. 经济危机并没有带来更多的透明，反而促使有钱有势的人去进行审查。在希腊，一名记者由于发布了高官将资金存入瑞士银行秘密账户以逃税的消息而遭逮捕。科斯塔斯•范克斯埃文尼斯(Kostas Vaxevanis)被控违反隐私法，虽被无罪释放，但因政府方面上诉，下个月将面临着重审。

Legitimate concerns over privacy, child protection and copyright are prompting governments to introduce laws for a different aim – to silence dissent and stop corruption investigations. 对隐私、儿童保护、版权的合法担忧促使政府出台了一些出于不同目的的法律：让持不同意见的人沉默，停止腐败调查。

Perhaps the most crucial countries to monitor in coming years are India and Brazil, which are seen as examples for others to follow. A series of laws in India has led to pretty much anything considered “disparaging” or “hurting religious sentiments”, or damaging the reputation of the country or its allies, being deemed an offence. Internet service providers are being required to respond to all “takedown” requests within 36 hours. 或许未来几年最值得监督的国家就是印度和巴西，它们被其他国家视为可以效仿的榜样。印度的一系列法律已经导致太多事情被认为“毁谤”和“伤害了宗教情感”，或者破坏了该国及其盟国的声誉——这些都被认为是一种冒犯。互联网服务提供商被要求在36小时之内执行“删帖”命令。

Brazil, too, has clamped down, particularly on internet freedom. According to Google’s latest twice-yearly Transparency Report, the authorities made more demands for online “takedowns” than any other country. Reporters are routinely harassed, sometimes killed. The Committee to Protect Journalists, which is looking at the issue of impunity, says the murders of nine Brazilian journalists are unsolved. 巴西也有施压行为，特别是在互联网自由方面。谷歌最近发布的“透明度报告”（每年发布两次）显示，巴西当局的网上“删帖”命令比任何国家都要多。记者经常被骚扰，有时候甚至被杀害。关注记者“不受惩罚”问题的“保护记者委员会”(CPJ)表示，9名巴西记者被谋杀的事件还未解决。

Worldwide, according to the CPJ, 70 journalists were killed in 2012 – among the highest totals in 20 years. “保护记者委员会”统计显示，2012年全世界有70名记者遇害，为20年来最多的年份之一。

With citizens better connected than ever, such reports might seem surprising. More than 1bn people have access to the internet. At current growth rates, 5bn – 70 per cent of the world’s population – will be connected in five years’ time, mainly through their phones. 由于民众的联系更加紧密，这类报告似乎非常令人吃惊。目前全球有十亿多网民。以目前的增长速度来看，五年之后，50亿人（占全球总人口的70%）主要将通过手机联系起来。

The more technology allows us to communicate the more governments are frightened. Indeed, many are appropriating it to track down dissenters. 技术让人们交流的程度越深，政府就越害怕。实际上，很多政府也在利用技术来追踪异见人士。

If the worst abusers get their way, the more prescriptive approach to the internet could be enshrined in international governance. Last December, at the International Telecommunication Union – a previously obscure branch of the UN – 89 countries supported plans to give the body oversight of the web. Some 55 nations, including the US and most European countries, opposed the proposal. Matters are likely to come to a head at a further meeting in Geneva on May 14-16. 如果最坏的施虐者为所欲为，那么可以在国际治理中对互联网采取更为规范的做法。去年12月，在此前鲜为人知的联合国分支机构——国际电信联盟(ITU)举办的大会上，89个国家对赋予该机构监管网络权力的提议表示了支持。包括美国和大多数欧洲国家在内的55个国家反对该提议。在5月14日到16日将于日内瓦召开的会议上，这些问题可能会成为各方争锋的焦点。

Democracies play a vital role in preventing the global takeover of the internet by governments – they must lead by example, which they often fail to do. The Obama administration’s record – notably with respect to its security legislation – has been poor. 在避免互联网在全球范围内被政府接管方面，民主国家发挥着关键的作用。民主国家必须率先垂范，而它们往往却没有做到这点。奥巴马(Obama)政府一直表现欠佳，特别是在安全立法方面。

In Britain, the government has toyed with plans to introduce a bill allowing public bodies access to all citizens’ electronic communications for a year. This has been shelved. But the damage such moves make is incalculable, giving the green light for authoritarian states to follow, smiling and shrugging their shoulders as they do. 英国政府曾经稍加考虑过引入一项法案的计划，允许公共机构查看所有民众的电子通讯内容，期限为一年。这一计划已被搁置。但这类行动带来的破坏确是无法计算的，相当于为威权国家发放通行证，在看到后者这么做时只能一笑置之。