By Elena Polivtseva

Drawing on the resourcefulness at the heart of our community, this panel discussion and Q&A explored how to counter tactics of censorship and restriction. The global degradation of artistic freedom is an issue that affects all of us in the cultural sector, regardless of our roles or organisations, and it impacts society at large. Populist politicians are using the arts as a testing ground to weaken democratic structures by creating a climate of fear and fragmentation. 

At the IETM Berlin Plenary Meeting 2025, three cultural workers from Poland, Germany and Uganda shared their perspectives on the status of freedom of expression within the arts. Jakub Depczyński is a curator and cultural worker who co-organised the anti-fascist year in Poland 2019-20. Mey Seifan is a Syrian artist based in Germany and focussed on trauma in her performative practice and was involved in actions in response to Berlin’s anti-discrimination clause. Gerald Odil is a queer arts producer and part of the Kampala-based artists collective Anti-Mass and spoke about how Uganda’s Anti-Homosexuality Act has affected their work and forced them to leave Uganda.