Freedom of speech

The Melbourne Writers Festival brings together some great writers to discuss the process of storytelling, but not this year to answer questions. The usual end of Q&A sessions have been banned keeping the “Safety and comfort of all artists and audiences in mind”.

There has been a recent spate of protests, sometimes violent and usually disruptive, concerning the conflict between Israel and Palestine and this has often included police involvement. It was feared there could be conflicts at the Writers Festival from attendees there for other purposes.

The question that can be asked is should there a limit to the right to free speech? Recent outbursts in the US by one individual have certainly tested this freedom.

On the side of caution there have been numerous journalists and writers imprisoned and too many killed including Nobel Prize winner, writer Aleksandr Solzhenitsyn and recently Australian journalist Peter Greste. Still there are individuals brave enough to speak up.

The simple message is that people have the right to speak and ask questions and one event banning questions will only damage their credibility and will not silence anyone.

Dennis Fitzgerald,

Melbourne, Australia