Chile

New York, October 31, 2008--The Chilean Supreme Court found journalist Víctor Gutiérrez guilty of criminal defamation on October 28, and sentenced him to a suspended prison sentence. 

New York, May 23, 2008—Chilean photographer Víctor Salas suffered a serious eye injury on Wednesday when he was struck by a police officer as he was covering a protest outside parliament in the southwestern city of Valparaíso. The Committee to Protect Journalists condemned the assault and called on Chilean authorities to hold the officer accountable.

New York, May 31, 2006—The Committee to Protect Journalists condemns Tuesday’s attacks by local police against six Chilean reporters covering clashes between security forces and high school students during a massive strike demanding reforms in Chile’s education laws.

Nearly 600,000 high school students protested in Chile’s capital, Santiago, calling for a reduction in public transportation fares and government intervention to reduce inequities between rich and poor schools, the local press reported.

CPJ Update Committee to Protect Journalists February 17, 2006

CPJ's Attacks on the Press released in four cities worldwide

SNAPSHOTS

Links to countries:

Bolivia, Chile, Costa Rica, Guatemala, Honduras, Nicaragua, Paraguay, Uruguay

New York, May 11, 2005—The Committee to Protect Journalists said today it was alarmed by reports that Chilean radio reporter Paola Briceño Verdina was beaten and improperly detained by national police agents after covering a student protest in Santiago last week. CPJ called on Chilean officials to investigate the attack and take action against those responsible.

Local press reports said a large number of university students gathered in Santiago on May 4 to protest a bill that would give private banks a role in the financing of higher education. The demonstration was peaceful at first, but students later clashed with police. Officers responded by firing tear gas and water canons to disperse the crowd.