Attacks on the Press
The cases of press freedom violations described on this website were investigated and verified by CPJ's research staff, according to CPJ strict criteria.
Argentina
Year in Review: 1995
In May 1995, the Argentine government withdrew a set of libel laws that would have
required all newspapers to buy expensive libel insurance policies and would have
instituted harsh prison sentences for journalists accused of defamation. The law
proposal had been introduced before the Argentine Congress in December 1994, unleashing a fierce
domestic and international debate, which ultimately forced the bill's removal. Under
the proposed law, journalists charged with defamation would face stringent prison
terms of up to six years and fines of US$200,000--harsher terms than those handed down
to offenders charged with manslaughter.
In August, members of the senate circulated a draft of a bill that would give the
state extensive powers to define what is a violation of national security. The bill
as proposed would also force journalists to reveal sources on controversial stories,
or face prison terms of up to six years. It was introduced shortly after the publication
of shocking revelations from military officers who committed human rights violations
during the "Dirty War." Reports on the draft leaked to the press and, after visceral
opposition from all sectors of the media, it was abandoned.
Among other setbacks for press freedom during the year, a tabloid journalist was shot
and seriously wounded in Buenos Aires; reporters in remote provinces were beaten
and harassed; and judges dispensed harsh penalties in various libel lawsuits around
the country, often lecturing the reporters on ethics and the moral responsibility of the
media.
Send inquiries to CPJ's Americas Program.
Argentina
February 22, 1995
Joaquín Morales Solá, La Nación and Telefé LEGAL, ACTION
Morales Solá, a columnist for the daily La Nación and a commentator for the television
channel Telefé, was given a three-month suspended prison sentence and fined US$30,000
for defamation. He was also ordered to publish a story on the verdict in the dailies La Nación and Clarín. Morales Solá was sued by Dante Giadone, a special secretary
to the country's former President Raúl Alfonsín, for his description of an alleged
conversation that took place between Giadone and Alfonsín. The passage originally
appeared in Clarín, where Morales Solá previously worked, but he was sued for its appearance
in his 1990 book Asalto a la Ilusión. In the first trial, in October 1994, the court
dismissed all charges against him, citing lack of evidence. But Giadone appealed
the dismissal, and the case was presented before a criminal tribunal that revoked the
lower court's decision. Morales Solá was declared guilty, despite arguments showing
the book did not violate the privacy of the government official. Morales Solá has
appealed the sentence to the Supreme Court.
Send inquiries to CPJ's Americas Program.
Argentina
April 2, 1995
Eduardo Aliverti, Página/12 LEGAL, ACTION
Aliverti, a columnist of the daily Página/12, was found guilty of defamation and sentenced
by a federal court to pay US$20,000 in moral damages to Juan José Ramos, a former
government official. The case dates back eight years, when Aliverti, then working
for the radio station Radio Belgrano, read over the air a news story printed in the
magazine El Porteño that accused Ramos of corrupt practices. The official maintained
that he lost his job because of the article and radio broadcast. In his ruling, the
federal judge, who is known for his anti-press sentiments, said that if classified advertisements
for prostitution services were any indication, the press has not made any contribution
to democracy. Paradoxically, the magazine writers were found innocent of defamation by another civil judge. Aliverti has appealed the verdict.
Send inquiries to CPJ's Americas Program.
Argentina
May 22, 1995
All media LEGAL, ACTION
President Carlos Menem withdrew two law proposals that would have severely curtailed
press freedom. Introduced before Congress in December 1994, the proposals would have
increased the penalties for libel and imposed costly requirements for libel insurance. Under proposal 598-94, journalists convicted of libel would be sentenced to prison
terms equal to that for manslaughter, and journalists could be held liable for "soiling
the good name of the dead." The courts would apply penalties regardless of whether malice was intended or not. Under proposal 599-94, newspapers would be required to
purchase US$200,000 of libel insurance. In a letter to Menem, CPJ strongly criticized
the measures and alerted U.S. correspondents in Argentina to the impending harm the
proposals would inflict if passed into law. On Feb. 23, a day after the New York Times
strongly condemned the proposals in an editorial, the government announced it was
suspending the bills pending further internal consideration.
Send inquiries to CPJ's Americas Program.
Argentina
May 30, 1995
Horacio Daniel Rodríguez, La Prensa LEGAL, ACTION
The Supreme Court upheld an 18-month suspended prison sentence and a US$20,000 fine
that had been handed down to La Prensa reporter Rodríguez by a lower court, which
found him guilty of defamation even though actual malice was not proved. The libel
suit was brought by a former Public Health Ministry official who said Rodríguez defamed
him by printing erroneous information about corruption in the ministry, which Rodríguez
had gotten from unidentified sources who worked there. Rodríguez had attempted to
interview the official himself, but he refused to cooperate.
Send inquiries to CPJ's Americas Program.
Argentina
June 12, 1995
Guillermo Cherasny, Radio Libertad and El Informador Público ATTACKED
Cherasny, a producer with Radio Libertad and a contributor to the weekly newspaper
El Informador Público, was shot twice in the back by unknown assailants as he walked
to the radio station to do his morning program. Known for controversial and combative
reporting on government corruption, Cherasny has faced a string of libel and defamation
lawsuits. In May, he received an 18-month suspended prison sentence after the court
ruled that he accused, without grounds, the former head of the Argentine intelligence agency, Facundo Suarez, of embezzling state funds. In a letter to President Carlos
Menem, CPJ called for a full investigation of the case.
Send inquiries to CPJ's Americas Program.
Argentina
July 26, 1995
Gustavo Martínez, Canal 8 ATTACKED
José España, Canal 8 ATTACKED
Norma Riveros, Radio Universidad ATTACKED
Luis Alberto Amín, Radio Universidad ATTACKED
Eduardo Feminis, Free-lancer ATTACKED
Jorge Reynoso, Radio Acuarela ATTACKED
Enzo Valentín Manzini, El Viñatero ATTACKED
Marcelo Yacante, Canal 8 ATTACKED
Gustavo Pavese, Canal 8 ATTACKED
Nine journalists--four television reporters or cameramen, three radio reporters and
two print journalists--were roughed up by police in the province of San Juan while
they were covering street demonstrations by state employees who were demanding to
be paid. Several were wounded by rubber bullets, and one was beaten with the butt of a gun
by a policeman.
Send inquiries to CPJ's Americas Program.
Argentina
August 22, 1995
All media LEGAL, ACTION
After heavy protests by media organizations, Peronist Sen. Eduardo Vaca, the president
of the Senate Defense Commission, announced that he would not proceed with a draft
bill on state secrets. The bill would have given the government the authority to
determine what information should be considered state secrets and would have obliged media
outlets and journalists to reveal their sources on "sensitive" information to the
judiciary or else face from two to six years in prison.
Send inquiries to CPJ's Americas Program.
Argentina
August 31, 1995
Tomás Sanz, Humor LEGAL, ACTION
Sanz, editor in chief of the magazine Humor, received a 30-day suspended sentence
for defaming Eduardo Menem, a leading senator and a brother of President Carlos Menem.
In 1990, Humor published an article alleging that the senator had a secret bank account in a Uruguayan bank with up to US$1.7 million in deposits. The report was based
on an article that first appeared in the Uruguayan weekly Brecha. Sen. Menem and
bank officials denied the original story. Sanz was convicted even though he cited
Brecha as the source for the article. Sanz is appealing the verdict, on the basis that a court
acquitted reporters from El Porteño magazine of similar charges in 1993 on the grounds
that Sen. Menem is a public official and is subject to closer public scrutiny.
Send inquiries to CPJ's Americas Program.
Argentina
September 11, 1995
El Nuevo Diario LEGAL, ACTION
Judge Luis María Argañaraz took administrative and editorial control of the main opposition
newspaper, El Nuevo Diario, in the northern province of Santiago del Estero. Twenty
uniformed and plainclothes policemen raided the paper's offices and prevented the personnel from leaving for more than two hours. The judge also fired the editor
of the paper and appointed a replacement. He ordered these unusual measures in relation
to a libel suit brought against the newspaper by a lawyer. El Nuevo Diario's attorney argued that juridically, interventions of this nature can be ordered only "when
they involve a business where one partner decides there are administrative irregularities
and a court needs to intervene, but it is not a legal provision to be used by a third party." Local journalists suspect that members of the provincial government who
were often criticized by the newspaper were influential in Judge Argañaraz's decision.
Forty-eight hours after he seized control of the paper, however, the judge reversed
his decision.
Send inquiries to CPJ's Americas Program.
Argentina
September 12, 1995
La Nación LEGAL, ACTION
Crónica LEGAL, ACTION
La Capital LEGAL, ACTION
The Fourth Chamber of the National Criminal Court of Appeals ordered a search of the
Buenos Aires daily La Nación. The offices of the paper were searched for files identifying
the sources and author of a column that appeared in the daily two years earlier. The column in question reported on a lawyer alleged to have practiced illegally.
On Sept. 13, federal Judge Angela Braidot upheld the Fourth Chamber's decision. She
also ordered a search of the Buenos Aires offices of the daily Crónica and the Mar
del Plata daily La Capital in connection with the same story despite the fact that Article
43 of the constitution guarantees journalists the right not to reveal their news
sources.
Send inquiries to CPJ's Americas Program.
Argentina
September 25, 1995
Eduardo Gabriel Kimel, Free-lancer LEGAL, ACTION
The journalist Kimel was found guilty of insulting Judge Guillermo Rivarola in his
1989 book, St. Patrick's Massacre, about the murders of five Pallotine priests during
the military dictatorship in the 1970s. Federal Judge Angela Braidot dismissed the
original charge of libel but sentenced Kimel instead to a suspended prison term of one
year for insult and ordered him to pay US$20,000 in compensation to Rivarola, who
had investigated the murders. When Braidot handed down her decision, she said that
Kimel did not limit himself to informing his readers but expressed his opinion "excessively"
about the events in general and about the actions of Rivarola in particular. "And
in this excess," she said, "you find the crime." Kimel is appealing the sentence.
Send inquiries to CPJ's Americas Program.
Argentina
October 25, 1995
Florencio Monzón, DYN and La Razón LEGAL, ACTION
Virginia Messi, Clarín LEGAL, ACTION
Monzón, a reporter for the Argentine news agency DYN and a contributor to the daily
La Razón, and Messi, a reporter for the daily newspaper Clarín, were ordered by Federal
Judge Angela Braidot to reveal their sources for a story they were both investigating on corruption in the car company AutoLatina. They defied Braidot's order on the
grounds that Article 43 of the constitution guarantees journalists the right not
to reveal their news sources.
Send inquiries to CPJ's Americas Program.
Argentina
December 22, 1995
Noticias ATTACKED
A bomb exploded outside the weekly newsmagazine Noticias early in the morning, shattering
windows but injuring no one. Interior Minister Carlos Corach offered police protection
to the editor of the magazine, Hector D'Amico, who said he had no idea who might have been responsible for the attack. Noticias, which specializes in sensational
exposés of celebrities and public figures, has a stormy relationship with President
Carlos Menem, whose family is featured regularly in its pages. Before the bombing,
the magazine had recently reported that both the president and his late son had fathered
children out of wedlock.
Send inquiries to CPJ's Americas Program.
Bolivia
Year in Review: 1995
In April, 14 journalists covering a meeting of Bolivia's largest trade union, the
Bolivian Workers Union (CUT), were detained and then forcibly banished from the capital
of La Paz to military barracks along the Chilean border. Such harsh treatment was
permitted under state-of-emergency measures that were introduced on the same day the
journalists were first detained. The emergency powers remained in effect through
October.
Army-press relations worsened in August after the armed forces commander in chief,
Gen. Reynaldo Cáceres Quiroga, ordered the surveillance of journalists as a way to
prevent national security breaches. After strong protests from press organizations,
the army issued a statement explaining that the order was directed at people who pose as
journalists to gain access to military installations. This incident capped a period
of strained relations between the army and the press, which had followed media investigations into the involvement of military officers in drug trafficking and corruption.
During the year, the legislature also attempted to curtail press freedom. The Bolivian
Congress introduced two bills, each with restrictive provisions for the media. The
Banking Law would have mandated prison sentences for journalists charged with writing negative stories about the national economy. While the law passed, the anti-press
provision was voted down after media protests. The second bill, the Telecommunications
Law, did not pass, but a congressional commission was created to modify it after
journalists protested some of its provisions, including one that would authorize the tapping
of journalists' telephones.
Send inquiries to CPJ's Americas Program.
Bolivia
April 18, 1995
Vladimir Ledezma, Ultima Hora IMPRISONED, ATTACKED, , HARASSED, LEGAL, ACTION
Julio Sullcata, Radio Cruz del Sur IMPRISONED, ATTACKED, , HARASSED, LEGAL, ACTION
Ximena Lazcano, PUEBLO IMPRISONED, ATTACKED, , HARASSED, LEGAL, ACTION
Malena Flores, PUEBLO IMPRISONED, ATTACKED, , HARASSED, LEGAL, ACTION
Gregori Beltrán, Radio Metropolitana IMPRISONED, ATTACKED, , HARASSED, LEGAL, ACTION
María Teresa Aramayo, Radio San José Alberto López Coca, Siglo XX-TV IMPRISONED,
ATTACKED, , HARASSED, LEGAL, ACTION
Hilarión Pérez, Siglo XX-TV IMPRISONED, ATTACKED, , HARASSED, LEGAL, ACTION
Max Feraude, Radio Kollasuyo IMPRISONED, ATTACKED, , HARASSED, LEGAL, ACTION
Filiberto Huachalla, Radio Chaca IMPRISONED, ATTACKED, , HARASSED, LEGAL, ACTION
Ernesto Huanca, Radio Chaca IMPRISONED, ATTACKED, , HARASSED, LEGAL, ACTION
Lucio Contreras, Radio Nacional Huanuni IMPRISONED, ATTACKED, , HARASSED, LEGAL,
ACTION
Gabriel Vilcaez, Radio Nacional Huanuni IMPRISONED, ATTACKED, , HARASSED, LEGAL,
ACTION
Wilfredo Vásquez, Radio journalist IMPRISONED, ATTACKED, , HARASSED, LEGAL, ACTION
Fourteen print and broadcast journalists were arrested and sent to remote parts of
Bolivia where they were held in military quarters in the cities of Potosí, Puerto
Rico and Apolo. The journalists were arrested while they were reporting on a meeting
in La Paz of the Bolivian Workers Union (CUT), the country's largest union federation.
Masked policemen stormed the gathering, shooting rubber bullets and hitting some
of the attendants. Some of the reporters suffered broken bones. The demonstrators
were rejecting recent government proposals to address the social unrest that had erupted in
March. Some of the journalists were detained for as many as three weeks, during which
time no one in the media was allowed to interview them. The "banishment" of the journalists was legal under the temporary regulations of a state of emergency that the government
declared the same day that the reporters were first detained.
Send inquiries to CPJ's Americas Program.
Bolivia
August 25, 1995
All journalists HARASSED
Surveillance of all reporters was ordered by Gen. Reynaldo Cáceres Quiroga, the commander
in chief of the armed forces. In a secret military order leaked to the press, the
general said that he was ordering the "surveillance of elements opposed to the armed forces . . . especially journalists and others who are considered strangers to the
institution, to prevent any boycott and/or other activity that might jeopardize the
security of the armed forces." After strong protests by journalists' organizations,
the armed forces acknowledged the order was a mistake but said it was directed at people
who pose as journalists in order to gain entry to military installations. Local journalists,
however, said the order was intended to intimidate them from reporting on cases of military personnel involved in drug trafficking and corruption.
Send inquiries to CPJ's Americas Program.
Brazil
Year in Review: 1995
Brazil's journalism community was shaken by the murders of four journalists between
March and August. The assassinations, all carried out in connection with the journalists
reports on local government corruption and environmental abuses, highlight the hazards confronting members of the press in remote and provincial areas of Brazil. So,
too, did the bombing of a newspaper after it published articles on unsolved bombing
attacks in the city, including an explosion in front of the offices of the regional
journalists union, Sindicato de Jornalistas Profesionales de Minas Gerais.
Nationwide, the press continued to face unduly harsh legal decisions in cases of libel,
largely because of a press law that was imposed by a military dictatorship in the
1960s. At this writing, the Congress is studying proposed revisions to the law, such
as transferring libel trials from the jurisdiction of criminal courts to civil courts,
and allowing journalists sued by a government official or government entity to argue
that the information was reported with honest intent, not malice. The revisions,
however, would preserve the right to reply for citizens who feel wronged by a news report--a
decision that has been challenged by media groups.
Send inquiries to CPJ's Americas Program.
Brazil
January 12, 1995
Alaor Filho, Jornal do Brasil ATTACKED
Nelson Carlos, Jornal do Brasil ATTACKED
Carlos Alberto Silva Nascimento, Jornal do Brasil ATTACKED
José Luis Vilhemena, O Globo ATTACKED
Ten masked police officers pulled Jornal do Brasil photographer Filho from his car,
beat him, and confiscated his film and equipment after Filho and the other journalists
filmed and reported on an anti-drug raid in the neighborhood of Alamo, a shantytown
in Rio de Janeiro. Carlos, a reporter with Jornal do Brasil; Vilhemena, a reporter
with O Globo; and Silva Nascimento, Carlos and Filho's driver, were assaulted when
they attempted to help Filho.
Send inquiries to CPJ's Americas Program.
Brazil
March 18, 1995
O Estado de Minas ATTACKED
Sindicato de Jornalistas Profesionales de Minas Gerais ATTACKED
A car bomb exploded in front of the offices of O Estado de Minas in Belo Horizonte,
damaging the building. The attack occurred after the paper published articles about
similar attacks in the city, including an explosion earlier in March in front of
the offices of the local journalists' union, Sindicato de Jornalistas Profesionales de Minas
Gerais.
Send inquiries to CPJ's Americas Program.
Brazil
March 21, 1995
Zaqueu de Oliveira, Gazeta de Barroso KILLED
De Oliveira, editor of the monthly publication Gazeta de Barroso in Minas Gerais,
was shot and killed by a local merchant, José Carlos de Souza. The murder apparently
stemmed from a dispute about articles the journalist had written concerning de Souza's
wife. De Oliveira's mother was also shot and wounded in the attack against her son.
De Souza, who remains free while awaiting trial, claimed that he killed de Oliveira
in self-defense. De Oliveira's mother, however, claims that she and her family continue
to receive death threats from people close to de Souza. CPJ urged President Henrique
Fernando Cardoso to order a thorough investigation into the murder.
Send inquiries to CPJ's Americas Program.
Brazil
April 19, 1995
A Crítica LEGAL, ACTION, CENSORED
The governor of Amazonas State, Amazonino Mendes, issued an order denying A Crítica
journalists access to information about the public sector, and he forbade his subordinates
from giving interviews to anyone from the opposition daily. The order was prompted by the newspaper's publication of a statement made by a member of the state legislature
regarding corruption in the administration of state-controlled enterprises.
Send inquiries to CPJ's Americas Program.
Brazil
May 1, 1995
Marcos Borges Ribeiro, O Independente KILLED
Borges, owner of the monthly publication O Independente, was murdered by a policeman
in Rio Verde, Goias. He was shot four times at point-blank range at his home and
died from his wounds on the way to the hospital. According to his wife, who witnessed
the murder, he had received death threats after his new and controversial paper reported
on alleged human rights abuses committed by city officials, including the local police.
The policeman, Gláucio dos Reis Santana, confessed to the killing, claimed it was in self-defense and surrendered to the police a few days after the crime. Local sources
told CPJ that when dos Reis murdered Borges, he was accompanied by the wife of the
regional police chief. In the last edition of his paper, Borges had denounced the
regional police chief, who is a close friend of dos Reis. At year's end, dos Reis and
the police chief's wife were free on bail, awaiting trial. But the chief has not
been charged in connection with the murder. Instead he and several other policemen
who had been criticized in Borges' articles were transferred to another city.
Send inquiries to CPJ's Americas Program.
Brazil
May 10, 1995
Correa Neto, Folha do Amapá LEGAL, ACTION
Neto, a journalist with the weekly Folha do Amapá, in Macapá, Amapá, was sentenced
to 16 months under house arrest for articles he had written in which he criticized
then head of the Justice Tribunal, Judge Homildo Amaral de Melo Castro. The judge
sued him for slander, libel and defamation. As a condition of his house arrest, he is not
allowed to leave Macapá without judicial permission and has to present himself once
a month before a judicial commission.
Send inquiries to CPJ's Americas Program.
Brazil
May 12, 1995
Aristeu Guida da Silva, A Gazeta de São Fidélis KILLED
Guida da Silva, owner of the weekly A Gazeta de São Fidélis in the city of São Fidélis,
located northwest of Rio de Janeiro, was shot dead in front of his house by two hooded
men riding a motorbike. Guida da Silva, his father has reported, received death threats for articles he had written accusing the local municipal council president
of corruption. No one has been apprehended.
Send inquiries to CPJ's Americas Program.
Brazil
August 29, 1995
Reinaldo Coutinho da Silva, Cachoeiras Jornal KILLED
Coutinho da Silva, owner of the weekly Cachoeiras Jornal in the village of Cachoeiras
de Macacu, Rio de Janeiro, was killed by unknown assassins. The assailants fired
14 shots at close range while the journalist sat in his car at a stoplight in the
neighboring town of São Gonçalo. A police investigation has revealed several possible motives
for the killing, all linked to Coutinho da Silva's work, in particular his investigation
of police corruption, which led to the arrest of a group of police officers who have been detained since Aug. 7, and his investigation of a local politician's involvement
in an environmental scandal, which he was planning to publish at the time of his
murder.
Send inquiries to CPJ's Americas Program.
Brazil
October 6, 1995
Fabiana Santos, Jornal de Brasília ATTACKED, , THREATENED, HARASSED
Tony Winston, Jornal de Brasília ATTACKED, , THREATENED, HARASSED
Vicente de Paulo Silva, Jornal de Brasília ATTACKED, , THREATENED, HARASSED
Santos, a reporter for the daily Jornal de Brasília; Winston, a photographer for the
paper; and de Paulo Silva, the newspaper's driver, were threatened and hit by federal
military police officers near the Brazilian vice president's residence, where they
had been covering the occupation of government property by homeless people. Sgt. José
Ribamar Rocha and Capt. Ricardo da Fonseca Martins, who were brandishing their weapons,
forced the three to lie on the ground and threatened to kill them. The journalists filed charges against the officers, who denied having hit them even though the reporters
underwent a physical exam to prove their claim.
Send inquiries to CPJ's Americas Program.
Brazil
October 13, 1995
Pedro Newton, Folha de Currais Novos ATTACKED, , HARASSED
Newton, an editor with the monthly tabloid Folha de Currais Novos, in Rio Grande do
Norte, was assaulted by Eugénio Lins, a public official. The assault occurred after
Newton published the paper's fourth edition. According to Newton, Lins came to the
office to protest the publication of an interview in which an ex-prefect accused his successor,
who is Lins' father, of being a liar. Newton filed charges against the public official.
Send inquiries to CPJ's Americas Program.
Brazil
October 27, 1995
José Altino Machado, Jornal do Brasil ATTACKED, , THREATENED
Francisco Araújo, O Estado de São Paulo ATTACKED, , THREATENED
Early in the morning unidentified assailants shot at the house of Altino, a correspondent
for the daily Jornal do Brasil in Rio Branco, Acre. Before the attack, he and Araújo,
a correspondent with the daily O Estado de São Paulo, received anonymous phone calls threatening them with death after both published documents proving that the
governor of Acre had two false identification cards and that there was no official
investigation into the matter.
Send inquiries to CPJ's Americas Program.
Brazil
November 13, 1995
Diário da Amazônia ATTACKED
The offices of the daily Diário da Amazônia, in Rio Branco, Acre, were partially destroyed
by unknown burglars. Local journalists suspect that the attack was linked to a series
of articles the daily had published on allegations that the governor of Acre had false identification cards.
Send inquiries to CPJ's Americas Program.
Chile
Year in Review: 1995
A bill under consideration by the Chilean Congress that is aimed at reforming restrictive
legislation from the days of the military junta cast a shadow on press freedom at
the end of 1995. While some of its proposals are seen as positive--it recommends transferring jurisdiction on libel cases from military courts to civilian courts, for
example--the bill also includes several amendments that have been criticized by the
media, such as the proposal that newspapers give preferential hiring treatment to
journalists graduated from Chilean universities. The bill was revised from an earlier, more
restrictive draft that would have granted the right to reply to citizens who felt
wronged by a news report.
Send inquiries to CPJ's Americas Program.
Colombia
Year in Review: 1995
As they have been for decades, Colombian journalists were frequent targets of drug
traffickers, leftist guerrillas and paramilitary groups in 1995. In the worst cases,
three journalists were assassinated. Their names have been added to a long list of
their colleagues--more than 100 who have been killed in the last 20 years, many under suspicious
circumstances. Few of the cases have been solved, and even fewer of the suspected
killers have been tried and convicted.
Violent attacks from drug gangs decreased, although some reporters were harassed and
threatened by drug traffickers as a result of the showdown between the Cali cartel
and the government. The press also came under intense government pressure because
of the editorial positions many news outlets took on the subject of President Ernesto Samper
and allegations that he received money from the Cali cartel.
In November, after an unknown gunmen killed Alvaro Gómez Hurtado, a three-time presidential
candidate and outspoken critic of Samper, the government declared a state of emergency,
further limiting press freedom. According to the new measures, which are still in effect at this writing, the media may not carry any statements made by leftist
guerrillas, drug traffickers and common criminals. Such sweeping anti-press measures
had not been instituted in Colombia since the height of the drug war in the late
1980s, when the Medellín cartel launched a terrorist wave, killing more than 1,000 people
by car bombs and assassinations. To enforce its hard-line position, in December,
the government also issued penalties for broadcast media that defy the censorship
orders. Radio and television stations could face suspension of their broadcast licenses
for up to six months as well as fines of up to US$230,000.
The Colombian media interpreted the government's decision as a thinly disguised attempt
to punish them for the important role they played in uncovering evidence on the close
relations between corrupt government officials and Cali cartel leaders.
Another assault on the media took the form of a bill passed by the senate that prohibited
reports on ongoing investigations against public officials accused of criminal activities.
At the time of the bill's passage, several senators were under investigation for having suspected ties to drug traffickers. The attorney general later ruled
the law unconstitutional.
In an attempt to end the cycle of killing and intimidation that has plagued the Colombian
news media, a group of Colombian journalists decided to create a press defense committee
to protect their rights. The committee was conceived in March at a meeting co-hosted by Nobel laureate Gabriel García Márquez and the Committee to Protect Journalists.
Since the conference, the Colombian organizing committee has been raising operating
funds to set up an office with a full-time staff member. Once established, the group's first major task, in addition to monitoring ongoing abuses, will be to investigate
several of the unsolved murders of journalists.
Send inquiries to CPJ's Americas Program.
Colombia
April 5, 1995
Lolita Acosta Maestre, El Diario Vallenato ATTACKED
Acosta, publisher of the daily El Diario Vallenato in Valledupar, managed to escape
unharmed from a hail of gunfire by running away from the hit man. CPJ called for
a prompt investigation into the matter in a letter to President Ernesto Samper, asking
him to issue a public statement condemning any attacks or threats made against journalists.
As a result of the attack, Acosta decided a few months later to stop publication
of her newspaper and move to Spain.
Send inquiries to CPJ's Americas Program.
Colombia
April 6, 1995
Richard Freddy Muñoz, "QAP" THREATENED
Diego Balanta, "QAP" THREATENED
Gregorio Pérez, "TV Hoy" THREATENED
Humberto Briñez, CMI THREATENED
Embert Charam, CMI THREATENED
Miguel Angel Arango, El Caleño THREATENED
Muñoz, a local correspondent in the city of Cali for the national television news
program "QAP," and his cameraman Balanta left for Bogotá after alleged members of
the Cali drug cartel drove up to Muñoz's home one night, just as the correspondent
was receiving a telephone threat in which the caller warned him to leave the city within three
days. Pérez, who works for the news program "TV Hoy," and Briñez and Charam, both
of the TV network CMI, also left with Muñoz because they had received similar threats, as had Arango, editor of the daily El Caleño in Cali, who resigned from his job as
a result. Muñoz and the other correspondents had been reporting on recent anti-drug
sweeps in the city. Some of the journalists said they received menacing beeper messages from alleged members of the Cali drug cartel. The drug barons complained about the
police raids and threatened the reporters. Some of the messages were from Cali drug
leaders Helmer "Pacho" Herrera and José Santacruz Londoño, and some were from Victor
Patiño, a drug lord in the coastal city of Buenaventura. CPJ urged the Colombian government
to protect reporters from threats made by the cartels.
Send inquiries to CPJ's Americas Program.
Colombia
May 8, 1995
Alvaro Miguel Mina, Radio Caracol ATTACKED
Humberto Briñez, CMI ATTACKED
Miguel Plata, Telepacífico ATTACKED
Mina, a journalist with Radio Caracol; Briñez, a journalist for the TV network CMI;
and Plata, a reporter with Telepacífico television, were kidnapped with four local
officials by the Jaime Bateman Front, a small dissident leftist group. The rebels
took the seven people to a remote mountain camp near the town of Corinto, 175 miles from
Bogotá, to discuss the release of some hostages that the rebels were holding. The
three journalists and the officials were released a day later with a message for
local sugarcane growers to invest more of their money in fighting regional poverty. In Colombia,
journalists are prohibited from interviewing leftist guerrillas.
Send inquiries to CPJ's Americas Program.
Colombia
May 30, 1995
All media LEGAL, ACTION
The Colombian Senate approved the Anti-Corruption Statute, a law that forbids the
press from reporting on investigations of public officials accused of criminal activity.
The law was passed as several government officials faced charges of cooperating with local drug-trafficking gangs. Two months later, the attorney general's office ruled
the measure unconstitutional.
Send inquiries to CPJ's Americas Program.
Colombia
August 17, 1995
Ivan Darío Pelayo, Llanorámica KILLED
Pelayo, manager of the radio station Llanorámica in Puerto Rondón, Arauca, was killed
by members of the National Liberation Army (ELN), a guerrilla group that has been
leading an insurgency against the government for the past two decades. The guerrillas
broke into the station's studio and shot Pelayo as he was broadcasting a program. They
left behind leaflets that accused him of being an enemy of the people and a member
of paramilitary groups.
Send inquiries to CPJ's Americas Program.
Colombia
November 11, 1995
Gabriel Cruz Díaz, El Heraldo KILLED
Cruz Díaz, a correspondent for El Heraldo in the department of Córdoba and a member
of the Colombian Academy of History, was stabbed to death in Chinu by unknown assailants.
He was working on a book about the military's role in Córdoba, where the Colombian government has been battling leftist insurgents.
Send inquiries to CPJ's Americas Program.
Colombia
December 1, 1995
All broadcast media CENSORED
The Colombian government announced stiff penalties for broadcast media that violate
censorship measures imposed under a limited form of emergency rule that went into
effect in November. Radio or television stations that defy government censors and
air interviews or statements issued by leftist guerrilla groups or "criminal organizations
linked to subversion or terrorism" would face the suspension of their broadcast licenses
for up to six months and fines of up to US$230,000. Critics claim that the measures could be used to limit public knowledge about some of the most important news events
in the country, including investigations into charges that President Ernesto Samper's
1994 election campaign was financed partly by Cali cartel drug lords. In a letter
to Samper, CPJ urged him to remove the restrictions.
Send inquiries to CPJ's Americas Program.
Colombia
December 12, 1995
Ernesto Acero Cadena, Informador Socioeconómico KILLED
Acero, director of the weekly economics bulletin Informador Socioeconómico and a veteran
reporter in Armenia, Quindío, was killed on the street by an unknown assailant who
shot him three times and then fled. No one has been apprehended. Acero's colleagues believe that his murder may be related to his outspoken stance against corruption
and his decade-long career as a journalist. Acero was the former regional director
for Armenia of the national radio network Radio Caracol and a former reporter for
Radio Cadena Nacional.
Send inquiries to CPJ's Americas Program.
Costa Rica
Year in Review: 1995
On May 12, the Costa Rican Supreme Court declared unconstitutional the licensing of
journalists. The court decision struck a blow against the Colegio de Periodistas
of Costa Rica, which for the last 30 years has ruled that only journalists with a
degree from a Costa Rican university and members of the Colegio could work legally in the
country. The policy had been challenged before the Supreme Court by Costa Rican journalist
Roger Ajún Blanco, who was given a suspended jail sentence of six months and fined US$600 in 1989 for working without an approved journalism degree. The requirement
had also been challenged by an American journalist, who took his case to the Inter-American
Human Rights Court, which ruled in 1985 that licensing was a violation of the right to freedom of expression.
The Supreme Court took into consideration that ruling. Its decision eroded the Colegio's
standing as an ethical barometer for journalists. The Colegio had traditionally taken
it upon itself to investigate the ethics of local journalists. In one major decision last year, it censured a television reporter who was accused of reporting negative
stories on President-elect José Figueres.
The Supreme Court ruling also eliminated other privileges the Colegio had enjoyed.
For instance, it cut the portion of the organization's funding that came from a special
excise tax paid by all advertisers.
The Colegio is appealing the ban on licensing, arguing that it should be allowed by
the constitution, but most journalists expect the Supreme Court ruling to stand.
Send inquiries to CPJ's Americas Program.
Cuba
Year in Review: 1995
Independent journalism in Cuba flourished in 1995, despite attacks from the government.
The cause of press freedom benefited from the release of Yndamiro Restano, a former
radio reporter and political activist who helped launch the Bureau of Independent
Press of Cuba, an association of several dissident journalists that markets news stories
about Cuba to the United States and Europe [see Special Report: Cuba, p. 83]. Two
other groups, Cuba Press and Havana Press, also attempted to foster independent journalism by filing stories to foreign news outlets abroad. But the government made several
efforts to control the dissident press by issuing travel bans against individual
reporters and threatening others with imprisonment under charges of "dangerousness"
or "vagrancy." At year's end, many of the independent press groups were in flux because
of membership and financial problems.
In another development, after a two-year campaign by CPJ and others in the U.S. news
media, President Clinton lifted the 26-year-old ban on Cuban news bureaus in the
United States and removed restrictions on U.S. journalists operating out of Cuba.
CPJ strongly urged President Fidel Castro to reciprocate and grant permission to U.S. news
organizations to open permanent offices in Havana.
Send inquiries to CPJ's Americas Program.
Cuba
July 8, 1995
Orestes Fandevila, Independent Press Agency of Cuba (APIC) HARASSED, LEGAL, ACTION,
CENSORED
Luís López Prendes, APIC HARASSED, LEGAL, ACTION, CENSORED
Lázaro Lazo, APIC HARASSED, LEGAL, ACTION, CENSORED
APIC reporters Fandevila, López Prendes and Lazo were detained by Cuban state security
and interrogated about a July 3 APIC news report that was transmitted by the U.S.-funded
Radio Martí. The report dealt with the open display of dissatisfaction against the government by a retired military officer who lived near one of the APIC members.
Fandevila and Lazo were released July 9, and López Prendes on the morning of July
10. The three reporters said state security officers told them during their detention
that the government would permit dissident journalists to work in Cuba, but that certain
stories would not be allowed to be reported. CPJ wrote a letter to President Fidel
Castro urging him to ensure that state authorities respect the rights of independent
journalists to report freely.
Send inquiries to CPJ's Americas Program.
Cuba
July 11, 1995
Nestor Baguer, Independent Press Agency of Cuba (APIC) HARASSED, LEGAL, ACTION
Police raided the home of dissident journalist and APIC director Baguer. During the
search, authorities confiscated his fax and cut off his telephone line, disabling
APIC's operations, which Baguer ran from his home. The attack occurred a day after
Baguer called CPJ to report the temporary detentions of three APIC reporters. On July 19,
Baguer filed a complaint with the local municipal tribunal in the neighborhood of
Plaza, asking for the return of the fax machine. The tribunal's secretary refused
to hear the complaint, saying that the demand had no legal grounds. CPJ wrote a letter to
President Fidel Castro protesting the search and confiscation as measures taken in
retaliation for Baguer's contacting CPJ.
Send inquiries to CPJ's Americas Program.
Cuba
July 12, 1995
Rafael Solano, Havana Press THREATENED, HARASSED
Members of state security arrested Solano, director of the newly founded Havana Press,
which sends stories and news reports to radio stations and newspapers in the United
States and Europe. He was illegally held for five hours at the police station located in the municipality of San Miguel del Padrón. He was told he was detained for distributing
propaganda and was threatened with 10 years in jail if he continued to transmit news
stories to "subversive" radio stations and "counterrevolutionary newspapers." The following day, he was again detained temporarily, and state security threatened
to search his house. CPJ wrote a letter to President Fidel Castro protesting the
search and the illegal confiscations, and noting that they were part of a broader
crackdown on independent media in Cuba.
Send inquiries to CPJ's Americas Program.
Cuba
July 12, 1995
José Rivero García, Circle of Journalists of Havana THREATENED, HARASSED
State security authorities searched the home of Rivero, director of the independent
journalists group Circle of Journalists of Havana, and confiscated his fax, tape
recorder and video camera. The next day, state security agents visited him again
and warned that he would face prosecution if he continued his press work. CPJ wrote a letter
to President Fidel Castro protesting the search and the illegal confiscations, and
noting that they were part of a broader crackdown on independent media in Cuba.
Send inquiries to CPJ's Americas Program.
Cuba
September 15, 1995
Rafael Solano, Havana Press THREATENED, HARASSED
Yndamiro Restano, Bureau of Independent Press of Cuba (BPIC) THREATENED, HARASSED
Solano and Restano, both independent journalists, were interrogated individually by
state security. Their telephone lines were interrupted and their relatives were told
that the journalists would be detained if they continued their independent reporting.
Their families were also told that the state would not be responsible for any violent
actions that might be taken against Solano and Restano because of their illegal press
activities.
Send inquiries to CPJ's Americas Program.
Cuba
October 3, 1995
Hector Peraza Linares, Havana Press THREATENED, HARASSED
Peraza, a Havana Press reporter in Quivicam, Havana Province, was temporarily detained
by authorities and warned against working as an independent journalist. He is a former
reporter for the official newspaper Trabajadores. At year's end, he was under police orders not to leave his province.
Send inquiries to CPJ's Americas Program.
Cuba
October 3, 1995
Roxana Valdivia, Bureau of Independent Press of Cuba (BPIC) THREATENED, HARASSED
Valdivia, a reporter with BPIC, was detained by state security, held for 28 hours
with her husband at the Malecón prison in Havana and then forced aboard a train that
took her to her home in Ciego de Avila. Valdivia was warned that if she returned
to Havana and resumed contact with BPIC she would be jailed again. At the time of her detention,
her equipment and documents were confiscated, and after her release, her telephone
line kept getting cut off intermittently. At year's end, Valdivia was under police orders not to leave her province.
Send inquiries to CPJ's Americas Program.
Cuba
October 10, 1995
Hector Peraza Linares, Havana Press HARASSED
Peraza, an independent journalist with Havana Press, was summoned by police in the
town of Quivicam, 20 miles south of the capital of Havana. Lt. Omar Morejon of the
local state police forced Peraza to sign a warning notice that gave him 10 days to
find a job or else be tried for "vagrancy" under the "dangerousness" provision of the penal
code. He was told to leave independent journalism because his work with Havana Press
was not considered a proper job. Peraza is a former reporter with the official newspaper Trabajadores.
Send inquiries to CPJ's Americas Program.
Cuba
October 12, 1995
María de los Angeles Gonzales, Bureau of Independent Press of Cuba (BPIC) THREATENED,
HARASSED
Gonzales, an accountant with BPIC, was summoned by Havana state police who cautioned
her about her work for the independent press agency. She had also been detained on
Oct. 4 for four hours by state security who warned her to quit her job and offered
to find her work with a state entity.
Send inquiries to CPJ's Americas Program.
Cuba
October 19, 1995
Olance Nogueras Roce, Bureau of Independent Press of Cuba (BPIC) HARASSED
Police threw out BPIC reporter Nogueras from a weekly press briefing at the Cuban
Foreign Ministry in Havana after he requested that independent Cuban journalists
be allowed to participate in the briefings, which are open only to the foreign press
corps.
Send inquiries to CPJ's Americas Program.
Cuba
October 20, 1995
Olance Nogueras Roce, Bureau of Independent Press of Cuba (BPIC) IMPRISONED, LEGAL,
ACTION
BPIC reporter Nogueras was detained for a total of 11 days in the state security center
in Cienfuegos Province. His arrest was the culmination of a harassment campaign by
police in which they confiscated his identification documents, without which he could not travel around Cuba, ordered him to stop his work as an independent journalist,
and seized his notes, tape recorder and files. At various times during his ordeal,
Nogueras was accused of "dangerousness," "usurping the role of a journalist" and
"spreading false news that threatens international peace." According to fellow journalists,
Cuban authorities ordered Nogueras to leave Cuba by Nov. 7 or be sentenced to four
years in jail for "distributing enemy propaganda." After initially being released
on Oct. 25, he was rearrested the same day for ignoring police orders not to travel to
Havana, where BPIC headquarters is located. He was then held until Oct. 31, at which
point police placed him under house arrest. CPJ wrote to President Fidel Castro,
urging him to order the unconditional release of Nogueras because he was arrested for his
legitimate work as a journalist. Nogueras' problems began after he wrote a critical
article for BPIC on the Juragua nuclear power plant in Cienfuegos. In the article,
which was distributed in the United States and Europe, Nogueras cited unnamed sources
at the plant who complained that the pressure release system in the nuclear plant
was unsafe and inadequate, and that a nuclear spill was possible. At year's end,
according to his colleagues, Nogueras was prohibited from leaving his province and had not yet
had his travel documents returned to him.
Send inquiries to CPJ's Americas Program.
Dominican Republic
Year in Review: 1995
Relations between the media and the Dominican Republic's national police soured in
1995, after the press criticized police handling of street disturbances, demonstrations
and other incidents. One journalist was killed by an off-duty policeman after he
attempted to report on a traffic dispute, and several journalists were harassed by police
in Santo Domingo and other major cities for reporting on public protests and police
brutality.
In other matters, a local magistrate challenged President Joaquín Balaguer to reveal
who was responsible for the fatal shooting of journalist Orlando Martínez on March
17, 1975. In his 1987 autobiography, Balaguer, who served his first term as president
in the 1970s, wrote that he knew who killed the journalist but left a blank page in
his book where the information would have gone with the promise that he would order
the killer's identity to be revealed within 20 years after Balaguer's death. A fierce
critic of the president, Martínez was editor of the opposition magazine Ahora, and a
member of the Dominican Communist Party. Relatives and party members have always
claimed that government officials and high-ranking army members were responsible
for Martínez's death, but no one was ever arrested in the case. An investigation into the journalist's
murder was reopened during the year.
Send inquiries to CPJ's Americas Program.
Dominican Republic
July 2, 1995
Juan Carlos Vásquez, Ultima Hora KILLED, ATTACKED
Victor Abreu Peña, Ultima Hora ATTACKED
Unidentified TV cameraman ATTACKED
Vásquez, a sports reporter with the afternoon daily Ultima Hora, was shot and killed
by an off-duty policeman after a dispute over a hit-and-run accident. Vásquez, Ultima
Hora photographer Abreu Peña and an unidentified cameraman were on their way back
from Santo Domingo, where they had covered a jet-ski competition, when their jeep collided
with a public minibus. According to witnesses, the three journalists then followed
the minibus, which had driven away from the scene of the accident. When the minibus finally stopped, Vásquez began talking with the bus driver and a man got off, identified
himself as a police officer and drew his gun. After Vásquez allegedly asked the policeman
to explain why the accident occurred and told the cameraman to film the officer wielding his gun, the policeman shot Vásquez twice without warning. He also shot
and wounded Abreu Peña, who was trying to help the fallen Vásquez. The officer then
tried to shoot the cameraman who was filming the exchange. The three journalists
had been traveling in a jeep belonging to a television station, and the vehicle was clearly
marked with the station's logo. The policeman, who was subsequently dismissed from
his job, was arrested and at year's end was in prison awaiting trial on charges of
murder.
Send inquiries to CPJ's Americas Program.
Dominican Republic
July 14, 1995
Donald Troncoso, Radio Popular and El Nacional THREATENED, HARASSED
Troncoso, a correspondent for Radio Popular and the Santo Domingo daily El Nacional
in Los Alcarrizos, was detained and held in prison for 24 hours, during which time
the police threatened him with death. Prior to his detention, he had reported on
police raids on private homes and the death of a young man who was shot and killed by policemen
during a demonstration.
Send inquiries to CPJ's Americas Program.
Dominican Republic
July 20, 1995
Alberto Quiroz, Radio Móvil THREATENED
Quiroz, a journalist with Radio Móvil, was threatened by policemen after he filed
stories on police brutality, which included police raids on private homes that were
conducted without judicial authorization.
Send inquiries to CPJ's Americas Program.
Dominican Republic
July 27, 1995
Robert Vargas, Power 103.7 ATTACKED
Vargas, a reporter and press director of the radio station Power 103.7, was shot in
the foot while covering confrontations between police and demonstrators.
Send inquiries to CPJ's Americas Program.
Dominican Republic
August 8, 1995
Bethania Apolinar, El Caribe ATTACKED
Veri Canderlario, Teleantillas ATTACKED
Apolinar, a reporter with the daily El Caribe, and Canderlario, a reporter with the
television station Teleantillas, were assaulted by a group of students from the Universidad
Autónoma de Santo Domingo while covering a student demonstration. The students hit their cars and assaulted Apolinar verbally for allegedly blocking their path.
Send inquiries to CPJ's Americas Program.
Ecuador
Year in Review: 1995
Peruvian reporters covering the border conflict between Ecuador and Peru in early
1995 reported being attacked and harassed by men whom they suspected were affiliated
with the Ecuadoran armed forces. In one incident, men "dressed in camouflage and
military boots" assaulted a group of Peruvian television reporters outside the headquarters
of EMETEL, the Ecuadoran telecommunications company, after the journalists sent their
daily television reports to Peru via satellite. In a letter to both Presidents Sixto Durán Ballén of Ecuador and Alberto Fujimori of Peru, CPJ urged that reporters be
respected as noncombatants while they reported on the conflict.
Send inquiries to CPJ's Americas Program.
Ecuador
January 31, 1995
José Llaja Santillan, Panamericana ATTACKED, , HARASSED
Llaja, a cameraman with the Peruvian television network Panamericana who was covering
the border conflict between Peru and Ecuador, fought off men identifying themselves
as members of the Ecuadoran military who attempted to seize his camera equipment.
After the incident, he was followed by an Ecuadoran military officer as he made his way
back to the hotel. As a result of the intimidation, Llaja left Ecuador the same day.
Send inquiries to CPJ's Americas Program.
Ecuador
February 7, 1995
José Marino, Panamericana ATTACKED, , HARASSED
Carlos Mauriola, Panamericana ATTACKED, , HARASSED
Marino, a reporter for the Peruvian television network Panamericana, and Mauriola,
a cameraman for the network, were physically assaulted in Quito by men who they said
were dressed in camouflage and military boots and appeared to be members of the Ecuadoran military. The attack reportedly occurred as the journalists left the building of
the Ecuadoran telecommunications company EMETEL, after sending their daily report
on the border conflict to Peru via satellite. The attackers seized the journalists'
material and notes. Both reporters returned to Lima immediately. The Ecuadoran Foreign
Ministry denounced the attack and promised an investigation. In a letter, CPJ deplored
the incident and urged both Ecuadoran President Sixto Durán Ballén and Peruvian President Alberto Fujimori to respect journalists as noncombatants.
Send inquiries to CPJ's Americas Program.
Ecuador
February 8, 1995
Jesús Quiroz, Canal 4 THREATENED, HARASSED
Juan Zacarias, Canal 4 THREATENED, HARASSED
Miguel Silvestre, Canal 2 THREATENED, HARASSED
Jaime Tang, Canal 2 THREATENED, HARASSED
Reporters Quiroz and Zacarias of Peru's Canal 4 television and reporters Silvestre
and Tang of Peru's Canal 2 television received anonymous telephone threats regarding
their reports on the border conflict between Peru and Ecuador. The journalists also
complained of other forms of harassment, including insults, physical intimidation and
the confiscation of their equipment by thugs who they suspected had ties to the Ecuadoran
military. All four journalists left the country on Feb. 8.
Send inquiries to CPJ's Americas Program.
Ecuador
September 21, 1995
Beto Ortiz, Panamericana THREATENED, HARASSED
Alfredo Bonilla, Panamericana THREATENED, HARASSED
Government security personnel detained Ortiz, a reporter for the Peruvian television
network Panamericana, and his cameraman, Bonilla, for three hours. According to Ortiz,
he and Bonilla were stopped by security officers as they were leaving the Ministry
of Defense building in Quito after finishing an uneventful and cordial interview with
the defense minister. The officers accused the journalists of taking "unauthorized
pictures" of the building and then grabbed them, seized their footage and erased
tapes of all the interviews the journalists had conducted in Ecuador. Ortiz and Bonilla
were there to investigate allegations that the government bribed certain Ecuadoran
journalists to cover events in the border conflict with Peru in a manner favorable
to Ecuador. Ortiz said that he and his colleague were working in Ecuador openly and legally.
The incident occurred as both Peru and Ecuador worked to finalize implementation
of the Itamaraty Peace Agreement, which ended the 32-day conflict on Feb. 28. The
defense minister later denied the incident: "All we know," he said, "is that security guards
for a television network had words with the journalists." Ecuador's army chief charged
that part of the Peruvian media had become "the true enemy of the peace process" and cited Ortiz as one of the "conflictive elements" obstructing that process.
Send inquiries to CPJ's Americas Program.
El Salvador
Year in Review: 1995
The Salvadoran news media faced new challenges in 1995 as the country strengthened
its democratic institutions. Most newspapers remained timid about reporting on corruption
and on El Salvador's growing role as a transshipment point for drugs en route to
the United States.
Salvadoran journalists were also concerned about the impact a proposed penal code
reform would have on press freedom. Some reporters felt the law would further curtail
access to court proceedings. Gaining access to judicial records and court proceedings
is already difficult given that individual judges or court officers decide arbitrarily
who gets to see them.
Primera Plana, an experimental daily that had challenged the dominance of conservative
dailies, folded under financial pressures after failing to build a sufficient circulation.
The newspaper had attempted to take on reporting taboos, focusing on corruption and even making some rudimentary attempts at investigative reporting.
Send inquiries to CPJ's Americas Program.
El Salvador
December 4, 1995
Segundo Montes CENSORED
Izcanal CENSORED
Ulua CENSORED
Cooperativa CENSORED
Victoria CENSORED
Suchitlan CENSORED
Excel CENSORED
Teo-Radio CENSORED
Nejapa CENSORED
Radio Sumpul CENSORED
The Salvadoran National Civil Police (PNC) closed 10 community radio stations and
confiscated their equipment. According to PNC, the operation was carried out at the
request of the president of ANTEL, the state agency charged with regulating broadcasting
and telecommunications. Most of the stations operated with low-power transmitters
and could be heard only in the immediate vicinity. They were the most important source
of local and regional news for their communities. Some of them have been operating
since 1990, and almost all have been on the air for at least two years. All of the stations
were owned either by their municipalities, by associations of local residents or
agricultural workers, or by nongovernmental organizations. Each of the stations has
repeatedly applied for but not received broadcast licenses from ANTEL. According to
radio spokesmen, the community stations did not interfere with the frequencies of
existing licensed stations.
Send inquiries to CPJ's Americas Program.
Guatemala
Year in Review: 1995
The press in Guatemala experienced another difficult and turbulent year. Attacks and
threats against journalists continued throughout 1995, with most incidents remaining
unsolved. Government intimidation of journalists ceased, but several reporters were
killed, physically assaulted or harassed by gunmen tied to paramilitary or violent
right-wing groups. Some of these attacks have been written off by authorities as
common crimes. A case in point is the assassination of Alberto Antoniotti Monge,
a columnist for El Gráfico, who was shot to death in January by unidentified gunmen. The police
initially claimed the motive was robbery. But further investigation by independent
human rights groups and Monge's colleagues point to political reasons as the probable
motive.
The culture of impunity that has taken root in the country has affected even the most
prominent Guatemalans, such as Jorge Carpio, the publisher of the daily El Gráfico
who was shot to death in 1993. His family, who soon after Carpio's death accused
top military officers of ordering his murder and called for a thorough investigation into
the case, continued to be harassed throughout 1995 by members of the military. To
date, the case remains unsolved.
The highly publicized campaign of American lawyer Jennifer Harbury to find those responsible
for the disappearance of her husband, the guerrilla leader Efraín Bámaca, brought
attention to the 1985 murders of American journalists Nick Blake and Griffin Davis, both killed by Guatemalan paramilitary forces. To this day, the government will
not admit officially who ordered the executions or why the journalists were killed.
Nobody involved in the murders or the cover-up has been charged so far. Meanwhile,
the FBI has launched a criminal investigation into allegations that U.S. intelligence
agencies shredded records to conceal knowledge of the reporters' deaths.
The muckraking Siglo Veintiuno provided Guatemalan reporters with an encouraging role
model of how they could effect change. Led by Editor in Chief José Rubén Zamora Marroquín,
who was awarded CPJ's 1995 International Press Freedom Award, the leading independent daily continued to break ground in reporting on corruption and human rights
violations despite ongoing attacks and threats against its reporters. The paper's
continued financial success also proved to its competitors and other Central American
newspapers that good and bold journalism can be good business, too.
Send inquiries to CPJ's Americas Program.
Guatemala
January 29, 1995
Alberto Antoniotti Monge, El Gráfico KILLED
Monge, a columnist for the daily El Gráfico and president of the Broadcasters Association,
was gunned down by five unknown men in front of his home, located to the north of
Guatemala City. At the time of his death, Monge was also serving as a press attaché for Public Prosecutor Ramses Cuestas Gómez, who was investigating top military officials
for alleged corruption and criminal activity. CPJ wrote to President Ramiro de León
Carpio, urging a thorough investigation of the case. Two weeks after the murder, police detained two men as suspects, and investigators argued that a motive for the
murder was car theft, but Monge's colleagues doubt that explanation. On Sept. 23,
the two men accused of killing Monge were freed from jail due to lack of evidence.
The court agreed to stay the case provisionally at the request of the Public Ministry.
The only witness to the crime is the victim's daughter, Ivana Antoniotti. She has
not cooperated with the judges, however, and while it is not known why she has refused
to help, it is believed that she was threatened. The case remains under investigation
by CPJ.
Send inquiries to CPJ's Americas Program.
Guatemala
February 13, 1995
José Rubén Zamora Marroquín, Siglo Veintiuno THREATENED
Zamora, editor of the leading independent newspaper Siglo Veintiuno, was followed
in his car by two people who drove him off the road and threatened to kill him. They
were driving a pickup truck that belonged to an army officer, although the officer
denied any connection to the incident. The death threat was just one of several that Zamora
and his reporters had received in the previous six months. Siglo Veintiuno, which
is known for its investigative reporting on government corruption, recently had published allegations made by a former guerrilla member that leading army officers had forged
links to organized crime.
Send inquiries to CPJ's Americas Program.
Guatemala
February 15, 1995
Tamazulapa Radio ATTACKED
Arsonists attempted to set fire to the offices of Tamazulapa Radio in Jutiapa, a city
located 70 miles east of Guatemala City. No one on staff was hurt, and only the doors
of the station's building were scorched. Alberto Sándoval, director of the station, said that he suspected the fire was connected to the radio station's reports on local
municipal corruption. He also said that in a previous incident everyone on staff
was named in a death list that was circulated around town. Those on the list were
allegedly involved in drug trafficking.
Send inquiries to CPJ's Americas Program.
Guatemala
February 21, 1995
Oneida Najarro, Siglo Veintiuno THREATENED
Edgar Aragón, La Hora THREATENED
Martín Juarez, El Debate THREATENED
Vinicio Pacheco, Radio Sonora THREATENED
Julieta Cardenas, Patrullaje Informativa THREATENED
Gerson López, La República THREATENED
Hector Solis, Teleprensa THREATENED
Nery Morales, Telesiete THREATENED
Edwin Palacios, El Gráfico THREATENED
All of the journalists, who had been assigned to report on Guatemala's judicial system,
were named in a death list signed by a shady group known as "Liberation Action Command."
Send inquiries to CPJ's Americas Program.
Guatemala
February 22, 1995
Antonio Chilel García, Tinamit KILLED, ATTACKED, , THREATENED
Tinamit KILLED, ATTACKED, , THREATENED
García, a night watchman at the printing installations of the opposition newsweekly
Tinamit, was beaten and fatally shot by intruders who broke into the building, which
is located 45 miles west of Guatemala City. His attackers left without stealing any
of the printing equipment or other goods. Tinamit's publisher, Otto Morán, said an employee
received a telephone death threat the morning after the attack, in which the caller
warned, "This time we failed. Next time we won't." Tinamit has been shot at and bombed before. It is considered partisan to the Christian left and critical of the
Guatemalan government and army. A recent report by former guerrilla and columnist
Danilo Rodríguez named army officials who allegedly are involved in organized crime.
CPJ urged the government to investigate García's murder.
Send inquiries to CPJ's Americas Program.
Guatemala
April 5, 1995
Jorge Mazariegos de León, Prensa Libre THREATENED
The home of Mazariegos, a journalist with the daily Prensa Libre, was ransacked and
robbed while he and his family slept. Mazariegos considers the robbery an act of
intimidation because the intruders took a picture of his older son, a briefcase with
personal documents, a telephone book and several notebooks. The day before the robbery,
after leaving the office of a human rights leader, Mazariegos was followed home by
an unidentified vehicle. He believes recent stories he wrote on the connections between
the Guatemalan army and the U.S. Central Intelligence Agency may have prompted the
break-in.
Send inquiries to CPJ's Americas Program.
Guatemala
April 25, 1995
Juan Emilio Colmenares, Radio Mopán THREATENED, HARASSED
Colmenares, director of the radio station Radio Mopán in El Petén, reported receiving
threats from members of the army and police. He blamed the harassment on Judge Carlos
Humberto Cheguen, a local justice who was angry at the station for its reports on
local corruption. After such broadcasts, the station has often received threatening
telephone calls from anonymous callers.
Send inquiries to CPJ's Americas Program.
Guatemala
May 7, 1995
Siglo Veintiuno THREATENED
Several of the reporters for the leading independent daily Siglo Veintiuno received
threatening phone calls between May 4 and May 7. The callers warned the newspaper
to stop investigating issues that are "none of its business." They also threatened
to place bombs under the cars of unidentified reporters.
Send inquiries to CPJ's Americas Program.
Guatemala
July 7, 1995
Daniel Robert ("Sky") Callahan ATTACKED, , THREATENED, HARASSED
Callahan, an independent U.S. filmmaker and journalist, was kidnapped and severely
beaten by plainclothes police officers as he left a Chinese restaurant in Guatemala
City. Callahan and Western diplomats suspect that the attack was connected to Callahan's July 4 film interviews with peasants who had occupied the Central Plaza to publicly
demand a solution to land problems. At that time, he was slightly beaten and harassed
by soldiers assigned to the National Palace's security unit. CPJ wrote a letter to
President Ramiro de Léon Carpio calling for an investigation into the attack and noting
that it was the latest in a series of threats and attacks against journalists investigating
corruption and human rights in Guatemala.
Send inquiries to CPJ's Americas Program.
Guatemala
July 25, 1995
CERIGUA LEGAL, ACTION
The attorney general announced he would begin legal proceedings against the CERIGUA
press agency for its alleged links to the rebel guerrilla group Guatemalan National
Revolutionary Unity (URNG). An article of the country's constitution allows the government to deport journalists who are considered "agitators." Although CERIGUA was expelled
from Guatemala a few years earlier and now has its headquarters in Mexico City, there
are about 30 journalists working for the agency in Guatemala, including foreign journalists. In a letter to President Ramiro de Léon Carpio, CPJ said the attorney
general's decision violates freedom of the press and the spirit of reconciliation
linked to the country's peace process.
Send inquiries to CPJ's Americas Program.
Guatemala
August 10, 1995
Rony Iván Veliz, El Gráfico ATTACKED, , THREATENED
Two unidentified men in a vehicle with darkly tinted windows tried to abduct Veliz,
a reporter for the daily El Gráfico, a few blocks from the newspaper's offices. Previously,
he had received threats from members of the Civil Patrols (PACs), local army-trained civilian police forces, following his coverage of the exhumation of bodies at
the Dos Erres hamlet in La Libertad, Petén. The bodies apparently belonged to victims
killed by PAC members during the Guatemalan civil war.
Send inquiries to CPJ's Americas Program.
Guatemala
September 3, 1995
CERIGUA ATTACKED
Unidentified men broke into the office of the CERIGUA press agency in Guatemala City
and stole computer equipment containing a database of information on human rights
violations, guerrilla activities, the peace process and the military. CERIGUA, which
has been linked to Guatemalan guerrilla groups, accused the military and right-wing groups
of carrying out the burglary because the intruders ignored money and other valuables
in the office.
Send inquiries to CPJ's Americas Program.
Guatemala
November
Siglo Veintiuno HARASSED
Staff members at the leading independent daily Siglo Veintiuno noticed that they were
not receiving many of their faxes, especially those from human rights groups. They
hired a Colombian firm with the technical equipment to trace where the faxes were
being sent. The firm reported that the faxes were going to a fax machine that belonged
to a presidential staff member. The interior minister denied that the president's
office had received any faxes addressed to the daily and claimed that a technical
error made by the Colombian company had caused the misunderstanding. An official investigation
into the matter was under way at year's end.
Send inquiries to CPJ's Americas Program.
Haiti
Year in Review: 1995
The initial increase in press freedom after the return of President Jean-Bertrand
Aristide in late 1994 quickly dissipated as members of the new government began enforcing
their own brand of press restrictions. Government controls over the state-funded
media became especially onerous. Aristide and his aides demanded special treatment from
the National Television of Haiti. At the expense of serious, independent journalism,
they attacked any news stories that were critical of the president and insisted on
being given more airtime to further governmental policies. And during the legislative
and local elections, only those candidates in Aristide's Lavalas Party were given
airtime on the network, even though by law state television is required to provide
equal amounts of free airtime to all candidates.
At the end of November, in a move welcomed by Haitian journalists, Aristide dismissed
the information minister, blaming him indirectly for all past abuses of the state
media.
Although several independent radio stations were founded in the last few months of
the year, the government continued to display little tolerance for criticism. Many
radio and television stations were temporarily shut down after government officials
accused the station owners of inciting violence through their programming.
Send inquiries to CPJ's Americas Program.
Haiti
February 7, 1995
Charles Ames, Free-lancer IMPRISONED, ATTACKED
Marc Harry Elysée, Free-lancer IMPRISONED, ATTACKED
Ames, a free-lance journalist who works as a translator and researcher for foreign
journalists, and Elysée, a free-lance photographer, were arrested by Haitian police
in front of the National Palace. The incident occurred when Elysée attempted to photograph a local Haitian policeman beating a civilian. An Argentine member of the international
police, who was supervising the Haitians and whose last name is reportedly Monzón,
grabbed Elysée's camera, ripped out the film and arrested him. Ames was also arrested after he intervened on Elysée's behalf. According to Ames and the testimony of
two witnesses, the Argentine policeman hit Ames in the throat and ordered the Haitian
police to arrest and handcuff him. Both journalists have press credentials and were
at the palace to report on the third anniversary of President Aristide's swearing in.
They were held in jail for three days on verbal aggression charges. Both were released
and the charges against them were dropped after Aristide intervened on their behalf. None of the officers involved were reprimanded for their conduct.
Send inquiries to CPJ's Americas Program.
Haiti
March 22, 1995
Dorvil Kénol, Radio Signal FM ATTACKED, , HARASSED
Destin Weaver, Radio Magik Stéréo ATTACKED, , HARASSED
Kiner Boursiquot, Haitian Television Network (HTN) ATTACKED, , HARASSED
Jean-Claude Juste, HTN ATTACKED, , HARASSED
Kénol, a reporter with Radio Signal FM; Weaver, a journalist with Radio Magik Stéréo;
Boursiquot, a reporter for the private HTN; and Juste, his cameraman, were assaulted
by presidential palace security guards after Juste attempted to film the guards beating a civilian. Juste was struck on the head, and the guards confiscated his television
camera and videotape. All journalists were expelled from the palace. A few days later,
after Haitian journalists threatened not to cover presidential activities, the president's office issued a public apology for the attack and announced sanctions against
the palace guards. Juste's camera and videotape were also returned.
Send inquiries to CPJ's Americas Program.
Haiti
July 27, 1995
L'Unión CENSORED
Information Minister Henry Claude Menard confiscated 1,500 copies of the official
newspaper L'Unión in retaliation for an editorial criticizing the Ministry of Information
for not providing the newspaper with a sufficient budget.
Send inquiries to CPJ's Americas Program.
Haiti
November 13, 1995
Carry Celestin, Radio Cap-Haitien (4VKB) THREATENED, HARASSED
Gerard Martineau, 4VKB THREATENED, HARASSED
Jean Robert Lalanne, 4VKB THREATENED, HARASSED
Lalanne, a chief editor of the radio station 4VKB in Cap-Haitien, was harassed at
his home by protestors who threatened him with necklacing and accused him of being
a "macoute" (a supporter of the former Duvalier dictatorship). Celestin, also a chief
editor with 4VKB, and Martineau, a reporter at the station, were also threatened and went
into hiding temporarily. The threats against the station and the journalists reportedly
stemmed from questions Lalanne asked Prime Minister Claudette Werleigh about the
participation of government supporters in the violence that had gripped Cap-Haitien
since Nov. 8. One day after the threats against Lalanne, 4VKB decided to suspend
broadcasting for a brief period.
Send inquiries to CPJ's Americas Program.
Haiti
November 13, 1995
Radio Voix de L'Ave Maria ATTACKED
Approximately 50 protestors vandalized the antenna equipment of Radio Voix de l'Ave
Maria, a Catholic regional station that broadcasts out of the offices of the Cap-Haitien
Archdiocese. The protestors, who claimed to have been looking for firearms, destroyed some of the station's equipment before they were stopped by police. The attack
occurred soon after President Aristide, at a funeral ceremony for a slain cousin,
delivered an angry speech in which he ordered the complete disarming of the paramilitary
and neo-Duvalierist groups. The speech incited street protests around the country.
Send inquiries to CPJ's Americas Program.
Haiti
November 15, 1995
Evelyne Toussaint, Radio Cap-Haitien (4VKB) ATTACKED, , THREATENED
Angry protestors attacked Toussaint, director of the radio station 4VKB, in Cap Haitien.
She was in her car with her two children when demonstrators threw stones at the car
and forced her and her family out of the vehicle. Radio station officials said Toussaint had received threats after her station broadcast the names of three supporters
of President Aristide who were implicated in an attack on a Catholic radio station
two days earlier.
Send inquiries to CPJ's Americas Program.
Haiti
November 22, 1995
Yvon Chéry, Radio Télédifusion Cayenne (RTC) ATTACKED, , THREATENED
Orélien Rémy, RTC ATTACKED, , THREATENED
Chéry, director of the television and radio station RTC in the city of Les Cayes,
and Rémy, a reporter at the station, were attacked while driving near the town of
Laborde. Two people in a car threw rocks at them and damaged the journalists' automobile.
Chéry also reported receiving several anonymous telephone death threats after the Nov.
7 assassination of legislator Jean Hubert Feuille.
Send inquiries to CPJ's Americas Program.
Mexico
Year in Review: 1995
Press freedom problems in Mexico are deeply rooted in the symbiotic historic relationship
between most major media organizations and the single-party government that has reigned
for seven decades. Television network news still usually functions as a self-appointed propaganda service for the president and other top officials. Pro-government
self-censorship continues to characterize much of the printed press, especially in
the provinces.
These problems are exacerbated by endemic corruption (and incompetence) in the country's
criminal justice system. Violent assaults against journalists, including homicides,
are rarely thoroughly investigated. In some cases, this failure to enforce the law is clearly due to fears that a serious prosecutorial effort would collide with entrenched
local interests.
Drug trafficking, as in much of the rest of Latin America, now constitutes the most
serious physical threat to journalists in Mexico. In border cities such as Matamoros
and Tijuana, and in drug-trafficking centers in the interior such as Sinaloa and
Guerrero, narcotics cartels operate with impunity. Journalists who attempt to cover their
activities face violent reprisals. Only rarely will the state or federal government
offer protection to threatened journalists or aggressively investigate assaults or
even murders of journalists.
Despite these systemic problems, the Mexican news media are changing. It can no longer
be said that Mexico has the least independent press on the American mainland. The
best Mexican newspapers and radio news services today are more professional and openly critical than all but a handful of major news outlets elsewhere in Latin America.
Institutional coercion and intimidation of the press have unquestionably abated.
President Ernesto Zedillo has promised a new era of openness and fairness in official
dealings with the news media (it is perhaps a sign of how far Mexico has to go that one
of his initiatives is to hold an annual press conference with national reporters
on Press Freedom Day). Many journalists report that there is a new mood of independence
in the local news media, though many attribute this more to the perceived political weakness
of the government than to a new official respect for press freedom. Leading newspapers
are increasingly aggressive in their reporting and critical in their opinion pages of high officials and the ruling party.
Still, as the following cases illustrate, journalists are routinely harassed by public
authorities and by private citizens who appear to enjoy the protection of local politicians
and police. Despite the Zedillo government's promise to reform the criminal justice system and to probe further into political assassinations, the unsolved 1994
murders of three journalists in the state of Morelos have not yet prompted a serious
federal investigative effort.
In its negotiations with opposition parties over election reforms, the Zedillo administration
tacitly acknowledged that television coverage has been skewed in the ruling party's
favor. The government pledged to help ensure greater and fairer coverage of antigovernment candidates in television news, an offer welcomed by opposition politicians
but criticized by many news professionals as a potential formula for further state
intervention in private news gathering.
Send inquiries to CPJ's Americas Program.
Mexico
February 5, 1995
Ruperto Armenta Gerardo, El Regional KILLED
Armenta, editor of the Guasave-based weekly El Regional in the state of Sinaloa, was
beaten to death by the lawyer Felipe de Jesús Lizárraga. His body was dumped in a
canal near Guasave. CPJ wrote to the Mexican president and local authorities, urging
a thorough investigation. Lizárraga, who was an acquaintance of Armenta and was driving
with him in the car that was found at the scene, originally claimed that they were
attacked by police agents. But because of contradictions in his statement and other
circumstantial evidence, the lawyer was charged with the murder and detained. Soon after,
however, Lizárraga, then the president of the Lawyer's Guild of Sinaloa, was freed,
setting off demonstrations by journalists who believe Lizárraga killed Armenta after a fight about articles the journalist had written about him. As a result of the demonstrations,
Lizárraga was rearrested and put on trial. On Nov. 18, he was convicted and sentenced
to 13 years and three months in prison and fined 11,000 nuevos pesos. Lizárraga has appealed the sentence.
Send inquiries to CPJ's Americas Program.
Mexico
February
All media HARASSED
The Mexican and foreign press had difficulty getting access to areas of conflict in
Chiapas after the Feb. 9 Mexican army offensive. Both the government and the rebel
Zapatista National Liberation Army (EZLN) restricted access. During the first three
days of the offensive, journalists could enter only some of the areas under government
control and then only in groups guided by the Mexican army. The EZLN allowed access
to areas it controlled only to those journalists from publications it deemed friendly
to its cause, such as La Jornada, El Financiero, Proceso and Tiempo.
Send inquiries to CPJ's Americas Program.
Mexico
March 23, 1995
Radio Huayacocotla HARASSED, CENSORED
The Secretariat for Communications and Transports (SCT) ordered Radio Huayacocotla,
a shortwave radio station that serves indigenous communities in the Northern Sierra
of Veracruz, to suspend transmission. Government officials said they ordered the
closure after they found serious technical violations during a state evaluation. But according
to station staff, the evaluation was conducted under questionable circumstances and
the extent of the violations was exaggerated. The inspection was carried out when
the director and technician were absent and only nontechnical radio staff were present.
The station has transmitted in shortwave for the last 30 years and has repeatedly
but unsuccessfully applied for an AM license since 1978. Its programming includes
social, educational and news shows produced by local indigenous correspondents who report
from remote villages in the area. The station's problems began in February 1994,
when the director was summoned several times before state government officials and
the Justice Ministry. The station was accused by authorities of broadcasting "coded messages"
and promoting violence among indigenous communities through its broadcasts. Official
harassment intensified after that, with threatening phone calls made to the station staff and its directors. CPJ appealed to President Ernesto Zedillo and the governor
of Veracruz, Patricio Chirinos Calero, to investigate the reasons for the station's
closure and requested that the government give the station the chance to operate
again, allowing for a grace period to correct the alleged violations. On July 12, the
director of SCT's Diffusion Systems met with representatives of Radio Huayacocotla
and agreed to allow the station to resume its shortwave radio transmissions.
Send inquiries to CPJ's Americas Program.
Mexico
June 22, 1995
Tomás Pérez Medrano, El Ciudadano THREATENED
Pérez, a reporter for the now-defunct newspaper El Ciudadano, of San Luis Potosí,
filed a legal complaint that he received a death threat from Federal Judicial Police
Assistant Deputy Oscar Benjamín García Dávila while Pérez was interviewing him about
conflicts between different police agencies.
Send inquiries to CPJ's Americas Program.
Mexico
July 1, 1995
Gerardo Torres Rentería, Televisa Acapulco ATTACKED, , THREATENED
José Luis Bautista Bazán, Televisa Acapulco ATTACKED, , THREATENED
Guerrero state police assaulted Torres and Bautista, two cameramen for the television
news program "Hoy," and threatened them with death. The cameramen, whose news program
is aired on Televisa Acapulco, were filming when they heard shooting nearby. They
drove to the scene of the shooting, where they saw drunken uniformed officers firing
their guns in the air. The policemen pointed their weapons at Torres and Bautista,
and forced them to get out of their car. Then they started beating them with their
weapons and threatened to shoot them. They also took their cameras, tapes, bags and pants.
The police commander and two officers were dismissed because of the incident.
Send inquiries to CPJ's Americas Program.
Mexico
July 24, 1995
Dante Salvador Cortez, El Mexicano and AMI ATTACKED, , THREATENED, HARASSED
Cortez, a veteran police reporter for the daily El Mexicano and a national correspondent
for the news agency AMI, was shot and seriously wounded on his way to a news conference
that he had organized to denounce police inaction in the investigation of his son's murder and to publicly disclose the names of his suspected killers, whom police
have said are linked to drug traffickers. The attack against the elder Cortez occurred
as he and another son, Galileo, were leaving their house at about 10:45 a.m. Three gunmen shot at them, hitting Cortez twice in the face. His son, who returned fire
with a pistol he was carrying, was shot in the abdomen. Both victims were carrying
guns because their lives had been threatened, according to police and fellow journalists. For weeks, Cortez had been criticizing the state judicial police, and he had expressed
fear for his life in an article he wrote for El Mexicano three days prior to the
attack. He also said that he had been receiving telephone death threats, and that
youths were watching his house and firing guns in the air. Nobody has been charged or
detained, although the victims reportedly recognized the gunmen as the same men suspected
of killing Cortez's son.
Send inquiries to CPJ's Americas Program.
Mexico
August 1, 1995
Leandro Dzib Reyes, La Tribuna ATTACKED, , HARASSED
Unnamed reporter, La Jornada ATTACKED, , HARASSED
Dzib, a reporter with the daily La Tribuna and an unnamed reporter from the daily
La Jornada were attacked by bodyguards of Campeche Gov. Jorge Salomón Azar García
when they tried to interview a peasant leader who was accompanying the governor.
The four bodyguards also took Dzib's tape recorder after beating him up.
Send inquiries to CPJ's Americas Program.
Mexico
August 8, 1995
Yolanda López Ordaz, Agencia Estatal de Información (AEI) and La Jornada THREATENED,
HARASSED
López, a reporter with the news agency Agencia Estatal de Información and a correspondent
for the daily La Jornada in Tapachula, Chiapas, was threatened with death repeatedly
by members of a kidnapping gang. Two days after she had published a story on the detention of the alleged head of the gang, she began receiving threatening phone
calls in which she was told that she would "pay for what she had written." Gang members
went to her editorial offices twice to look for her, but each time she was not there. The threats continued for a month, and although López filed a complaint, by year's
end no one had been charged.
Send inquiries to CPJ's Americas Program.
Mexico
September
José Luis Deanda Yancey, El Mañana de Reynosa HARASSED
Miguel Angel Domínguez Zamora, El Mañana de Reynosa HARASSED
Arturo Solís Gómez, La Jornada HARASSED
Deándar, a columnist for the Tamaulipas daily El Mañana de Reynosa; Domínguez, a reporter
with the same daily; and Solís, a correspondent for the daily La Jornada, were summoned
by State Attorney General César Cevallos Blanco to the capital of Tamaulipas to report about their articles on a Public Ministry employee and his involvement in
corruption and drug trafficking. The journalists said that the information they were
asked for was available in official files. On Sept. 7, the National Correspondents
Association of Reynosa sent a letter to the governor of Tamaulipas demanding respect
for freedom of expression, and a week later the state attorney withdrew the summons.
Send inquiries to CPJ's Americas Program.
Mexico
September 14, 1995
Benjamín Flores, La Prensa LEGAL, ACTION
Flores, an editor of the daily La Prensa in San Luis Río Colorado, Sonora, was sentenced
to six months in prison or a fine of $US200, for slandering José Cruz Bedolla, a
public official who, according to several documents published by Flores, was involved in corruption. Flores appealed the sentence, and on Sept. 28, a superior court ordered
a retrial at a court in the state of Sonora. Flores' sentence came a year after a
judge had ordered him detained for slandering Cruz Bedolla. At the time he spent
two days in prison and was released only after paying US$7,000 in bail. According to Flores,
the judge who detained him bore a personal grudge against him because of several
unflattering stories he had written about the judge's decision to release a reputed
drug trafficker from jail.
Send inquiries to CPJ's Americas Program.
Mexico
October 5, 1995
Pablo Pineda Gaucin, PM del Bravo ATTACKED, , THREATENED, HARASSED
Pineda, a reporter with the daily PM del Bravo in Matamoros, Tamaulipas, was attacked
by Margarito Castro, a reputed drug trafficker known as "The Magician" and an alleged
boss of a gang of car thieves. The attack occurred when Pineda went to a police station to report his stolen car. In front of the station, he encountered Castro, who
harassed him and told him that it was he who had ordered Pineda's car stolen. Then
Castro assaulted Pineda, destroyed his camera and glasses, and threatened to kill
him if he did not stop writing about him. Pineda filed charges against Castro, who was arrested
but released soon after on a US$100 bail. Since then Pineda has continued to receive
threats from people close to Castro, pressuri
Send inquiries to CPJ's Americas Program.
Panama
Year in Review: 1995
The Panamanian journalistic community was shaken in March by revelations that the
president of the Legislative Assembly, Balbino Herrera, had a secret payroll for
journalists who covered the legislative body. The ensuing controversy revealed some
basic differences among journalists in Panama. The Panamanian Journalism Colegio said it did
not oppose the existence of the payroll because it "is traditional to work two jobs
when there is no conflict of interest." The newspaper La Prensa, however, took the
higher ground, indicating in editorials that it is unethical for a journalist to receive
money from sources.
In other matters, the journalism community attempted to change restrictive press laws
and penal provisions dating from the 1970s. Some of the old laws and provisions allow
the government the right to close media outlets; others enforce the licensing of
journalists; and yet another one, known as the "crimes against honor provision," gives
government officials who feel slandered by unflattering press accounts the right
to sue for libel.
Send inquiries to CPJ's Americas Program.
Panama
November 2, 1995
María Cristina Ozores, La Estrella de Panama LEGAL, ACTION
Ozores, the assistant director of the daily newspaper La Estrella de Panama, was sued
for "injury" by President Ernesto Pérez Balladares. The president filed the complaint
with the attorney general's office in response to remarks Ozores made in an Oct.
31 editorial. On Nov. 29, the president withdrew the charges, saying that he decided
to do so for "the sake of maintaining the climate of tolerance, consensus and reconciliation."
La Estrella de Panama is currently fighting to regain its independence after two-and-a-half decades as the ruling party's official organ.
Send inquiries to CPJ's Americas Program.
Paraguay
Year in Review: 1995
Journalists faced increased threats and harassment from drug traffickers and corrupt
politicians in 1995. Most of these incidents occurred in provinces bordering Brazil
and Argentina that are known drug-trafficking transshipment zones. In one of the
cases, two journalists working in Pedro Juan Caballero received death threats for their
reporting on the growth of the Brazilian drug cartel in the border region. In 1991,
the owner of Radio Mburucuyá, Santiago Leguizamón, was murdered in the same town
after receiving death threats for his reporting on local corruption.
Former Paraguayan President Andrés Rodríguez won a court injunction against the Asunción-based
Radio Ñanduti forbidding the station from airing reports about him. Rodríguez, a
retired general, took the station to court after it aired allegations by two citizens accusing him of appropriating a hacienda located in western Paraguay.
Send inquiries to CPJ's Americas Program.
Paraguay
January 11, 1995
Pablo Dario Davalos, Radio Guaira and Hoy THREATENED
Davalos, a reporter for Radio Guaira in Villarrica and the daily Hoy, was threatened
by an unidentified gunman who surprised the reporter in his office. The motive for
the threat is unknown.
Send inquiries to CPJ's Americas Program.
Paraguay
January 19, 1995
Miguel Angel Colman, Crónica ATTACKED
Federico Anibal Emery, Crónica ATTACKED
Jorge Luis Torales, Crónica ATTACKED
Colman and Emery, both reporters with the weekly newspaper Crónica, and Torales, a
photographer with the paper, were shot at by unidentified men as they attempted to
take pictures of a brothel. Their assailants then followed them until they reached
the local police precinct. All three escaped unharmed.
Send inquiries to CPJ's Americas Program.
Paraguay
January 28, 1995
Victor Ibáñez, Noticias THREATENED
Ibáñez, a correspondent in Caaguazú for the Asunción-based daily Noticias, reported
receiving several telephone threats. He believes the threats were tied to his articles
on local municipal corruption.
Send inquiries to CPJ's Americas Program.
Paraguay
February 23, 1995
César Palacios, ABC Color ATTACKED
Eduardo Franco, ABC Color ATTACKED
Anibal Ortiz, ABC Color ATTACKED
Palacios, Franco and Ortiz, all correspondents in Ciudad del Este for the Asunción-based
daily ABC Color, were attacked by a group of taxi drivers who were staging a demonstration.
The reporters were covering the event for their paper.
Send inquiries to CPJ's Americas Program.
Paraguay
July 24, 1995
Juan Britos, Noticias ATTACKED
Mario Díaz, Noticias ATTACKED
Carlos Benítez, La Nación ATTACKED
Marcos Cáceres, ABC Color ATTACKED
Ivan Herrera, Cable Visión Comunicaciones (CVC) ATTACKED
Britos and Díaz, photographers with the daily Noticias; Benítez, a photographer with
the daily La Nación; Cáceres, a journalist with the daily ABC Color; and Herrera,
a camera assistant with the cable channel CVC, were beaten by policemen while reporting
on street demonstrations. The demonstrations were held in response to a police crackdown
on other demonstrators who had gathered a few days earlier to protest the construction
of a controversial military-owned sports complex in Asunción. Protestors accused high-ranking military officials of misappropriating public funds to pay for the
complex.
Send inquiries to CPJ's Americas Program.
Paraguay
July 27, 1995
Radio Ñanduti LEGAL, ACTION
Humberto Rubín, Radio Ñanduti LEGAL, ACTION
Radio Ñanduti received a court order suspending the program "Encounter with the Truth."
The program was scheduled to have a call-in segment about the validity of a press
investigation into the affairs of former President Andrés Rodríguez, who was involved in an ownership dispute over a large hacienda in western Paraguay. Rodríguez filed
a petition of amparo, similar to a motion for a temporary restraining order, to prevent
"Encounter with the Truth" from airing, arguing that his rights to privacy as well
as his name and reputation would be affected. A criminal judge in the Lower Court
issued a ruling in Rodríguez's favor and ordered Radio Ñanduti's owner, Rubín, to
refrain from mentioning Rodríguez on the air. However, on Aug. 10, a judge rejected
the former president's petition for an injunction, citing Paraguay's constitutional guarantees
of free speech and press freedom. The judge also cited Article 28 of the constitution,
which recognizes people's right to receive truthful and impartial information.
Send inquiries to CPJ's Americas Program.
Paraguay
August 8, 1995
Cándido Figueredo, ABC Color THREATENED
Mario Lesme, Canal 9 THREATENED
Figueredo, a correspondent for the Asunción-based daily ABC Color, received several
death threats warning him to stop reporting on a Brazilian drug cartel that operates
in the Paraguay-Brazil border town of Pedro Juan Caballero where he is based. On
Aug. 8, he was threatened during a live interview with a local radio station as he was
describing earlier death threats. An anonymous Portuguese-speaking caller warned
Figueredo that he would be killed in the next few days. The next day an unidentified
man telephoned Lesme, a regional correspondent for Canal 9 television who also lives in Pedro
Juan Caballero, and told him to stop reporting on certain stories or "he would be
permanently silenced." Both journalists had reported on the growth of the Brazilian
drug cartel in the border region and had identified some local drug traffickers. CPJ
urged President Juan Carlos Wasmosy to order authorities in Pedro Juan Caballero
to provide protection for the two journalists and to issue a public statement condemning
the threats against them.
Send inquiries to CPJ's Americas Program.
Peru
Year in Review: 1995
In June, the recently re-elected President Alberto Fujimori harshly criticized a report
by a local television station that said the terrorist group Shining Path was reorganizing
its units in the Ayacucho department--an area that had not seen rebel activity for months and to which tourism had begun to return. To prove the veracity of its
report, the station turned over its film and other investigative material, and gave
an explanation of why it aired the segment.
Such a reaction would be inconceivable in most democratic countries with a strong
free press. But in Peru, where the president has won over public opinion for his
sound economic policies and strong blows against terrorist groups that dominated
the country before his election, the press has learned that those who do not heed Fujimori's
wrath are subject to legal harassment and official ostracism.
When asked by a reporter whether his stinging criticism could be interpreted as a
restriction on freedom of expression, Fujimori replied, "You should look at it as
the full exercise of freedom of expression of the president and also as the full
exercise of freedom of the press." When then asked whether freedom of the press is guaranteed
in Peru, he said, "for everyone within his own framework."
Events in 1995 reinforced Peruvian journalists' understanding that when it comes to
terrorism, the limits of press freedom are narrowly drawn. Radio Sensación owner
Emilio Carrasco Moreno and newspaper graphic designer Pedro Valdez Bernales, who
were arrested on trumped-up charges of terrorism and sentenced to 30-year and 20-year prison
terms, respectively, were released in the spring. But eight journalists unfairly
accused of collaborating with terrorists remain in jail and are serving sentences
of up to 20 years each. In November, one of these journalists, Alfonso Castiglione, had his
sentence upheld on appeal, even though four other men convicted for the same crime
were acquitted.
In a more positive development, Congress passed a law in October that will eliminate
in 1996 the secret military court tribunals* that try civilians accused of terrorism.
In the spring, Fujimori threw two retired generals in jail when they gave interviews
to the opposition media in which they criticized the Peruvian government's handling
of the conflict with Ecuador. The generals, who were not allowed to challenge the
accusations in a court of law, were released after a month and a half in jail. Their release,
however, came not after pointed consideration but rather as part of a general amnesty
granted to Peruvian armed forces and state police personnel who had committed civil or military crimes during the government's systematic counterinsurgency effort,
which began in 1980.
As a result of these cases, retired military personnel and government officials are
reluctant to speak to the press. Moreover, local journalists say, those who are singled
out for prosecution are often people against whom the president has a vendetta. They point to the example of Brig. Gen. Walter Ledesma Rebaza, one of the two retired
officers jailed in April. Ledesma had advised Fujimori's presidential opponent, former
U.N. Secretary-General Javier Pérez de Cuéllar, on military and defense issues during his campaign.
The amnesty for army personnel also permanently closed investigations into the murders
of journalists such as Todd Smith of the United States and Adolfo Isuiza Urquía of
Peru who were killed in the 1980s during the counterinsurgency effort.
Send inquiries to CPJ's Americas Program.
Peru
February 6, 1995
Foreign Journalists Association (APEP) HARASSED
APEP issued a communiqué protesting its members' exclusion from briefings with President
Alberto Fujimori and government trips to conflict zones in the Peru-Ecuador border
dispute.
Send inquiries to CPJ's Americas Program.
Peru
February 13, 1995
Mario Vargas Llosa, Author LEGAL, ACTION
Alvaro Vargas Llosa, Journalist LEGAL, ACTION
The author Vargas Llosa and his son Alvaro, a journalist, were accused of endangering
national security in a lawsuit filed in Lima by Santiago Sanguinetti Galindo, a lawyer
who for more than 20 years has been filing lawsuits against a variety of public figures. The charges stemmed from articles written for various international publications
by either Vargas Llosa or his son that criticized the government's handling of the
border conflict with Ecuador. Instead of dismissing the case as frivolous, the court began a hearing and sent the file to the government agency responsible for investigating
national security issues. A month later, the public prosecutor who was handling the
case said he had shelved the charges because "no disparagement of Peru had been found."
Send inquiries to CPJ's Americas Program.
Peru
February 14, 1995
Augusto Ernesto Llosa Giraldo, El Casmeno IMPRISONED, LEGAL, ACTION
Llosa, editor in chief of the newspaper El Casmeno and a reporter with Radio Casma,
was arrested in the northern city of Casma and charged with involvement in a 1986
terrorist incident in Cuzco, where he was staying in a hotel at the time. This February,
police raided his home and confiscated several documents, including National Association
of Journalists (ANP) posters urging the release of several detained journalists,
and an issue of ANP's newsletter. A secret tribunal of the Fifth Criminal Chamber
of the Superior Court of Cuzco convicted him of involvement in the terrorist incident,
and on Aug. 10, he was sentenced to six years in prison. Llosa appealed the sentence.
Three weeks after the verdict, he was unexpectedly transferred to the maximum security Yanamayo prison, where he was being held at year's end. He is the only journalist
among the inmates, most of whom are serving life sentences.
Send inquiries to CPJ's Americas Program.
Peru
March 1, 1995
Canal 2 HARASSED
Radio Programas del Peru HARASSED
Expreso HARASSED
La Industria HARASSED
Ya Pues HARASSED
Several Peruvian reporters who were at the Peru-Ecuador border to cover the armed
conflict between the two countries had their rooms searched by unidentified men who
went through their videotapes of interviews and other footage, and rifled through
their personal belongings. When the journalists tried to call Lima to report the abuses,
their telephone calls were cut off by hotel staff.
Send inquiries to CPJ's Americas Program.
Peru
April 19, 1995
Retired Brig. Gen. Walter Ledesma IMPRISONED, LEGAL, ACTION
Retired Brig. Gen. Ledesma was detained on orders of the Supreme Council of the Military,
the country's highest military court, and charged with "insulting" the armed forces
and the nation. The arrest order was prompted by critical statements the officer
made about the Peru-Ecuador conflict to the newsweekly Caretas. Two other retired
army officers also faced charges for similar comments made to the media. One was
put in jail. Both Ledesma and the other general were released May 30, not because
the government dropped all charges, but because they were eligible under the blanket amnesty
granted to military officers accused of having committed civil or military crimes
during the counterinsurgency war of the 1980s. CPJ wrote a letter to President Fujimori
condemning the incident and urging the immediate release of Gen. Ledesma.
Send inquiries to CPJ's Americas Program.
Peru
April 19, 1995
Cecilia Valenzuela, Caretas LEGAL, ACTION
Oscar Medrano, Caretas LEGAL, ACTION
Enrique Zileri, Caretas LEGAL, ACTION
Valenzuela, a reporter for the weekly magazine Caretas; Medrano, a photographer there;
and Zileri, the magazine's publisher, were summoned before the Supreme Council of
the Military, the highest military tribunal, after the magazine published a story
that quoted at length retired Brig. Gen. Walter Ledesma on the errors committed by the
Peruvian military in the border conflict between Peru and Ecuador. The magazine often
has come under attack by the military authorities and civilian government. All the
journalists obeyed the orders to appear before the tribunal, but Valenzuela refused to
turn over audiotapes of her interview with Ledesma. The retired brigadier general
was forced to serve a month and a half in prison for his interview and was only released
under a general amnesty for human rights violators in the military.
Send inquiries to CPJ's Americas Program.
Peru
May 25, 1995
Caretas ATTACKED, , THREATENED, HARASSED
Marco Zileri, Caretas ATTACKED, , THREATENED, HARASSED
Jimmy Torres, Caretas ATTACKED, , THREATENED, HARASSED
José Aquije, Caretas ATTACKED, , THREATENED, HARASSED
Unknown individuals broke into the production department and the office of Marco Zileri,
chief for special projects, at the weekly magazine Caretas. Although they only took
three old phones, they searched through all the files. On the same night, Aquije,
the magazine's art director, received threatening phone calls warning that he would
be followed, and the house of Torres, Caretas' principal editor, was burglarized.
The intruders checked through all of Torres' files and took most of them as well
as several books, a phone and some electrical appliances. Two days later, a receptionist at
Caretas received two phone calls in which the caller threatened to set off a car
bomb in front of the offices.
Send inquiries to CPJ's Americas Program.
Peru
June 22, 1995
Carlos Idrogo Bravo, La República LEGAL, ACTION
David Passapera Portilla, Radio Chota LEGAL, ACTION
Mauro Vásquez Gonzales, Radio Chota LEGAL, ACTION
Idrogo, a correspondent for the Lima-based daily La República, and Passapera and Vásquez,
two reporters for Radio Chota, were accused of "disturbing the public order" and
were detained for stories they had reported concerning the mayor of Chota, who was
the subject of a judicial inquiry at the time. Passapera was detained in the Pisci
prison in Chiclayo from June 22 to July 21; Vásquez and Idrogo were placed under
house arrest. All journalists appealed the decision to the Superior Court of Lambayeque.
On Aug. 22, the Third Criminal Chamber of the Superior Court of Lambayeque revoked the
arrest warrants and instead ordered the three journalists to appear before a judge.
The examining magistrate of Chota who had issued the arrest warrants later denied
having done so.
Send inquiries to CPJ's Americas Program.
Peru
June 25, 1995
Victor Rodríguez Paz, El Tiempo LEGAL, ACTION
Rodríguez Paz, founding director of the daily El Tiempo in Chimbote, was sentenced
by a Santa Ciudad provincial court to three years' house arrest and fined 18,000
nuevo soles for slander and libel against Juan Hermosa Ríos, a congressman. Rodríguez
Paz was accused of having written articles that tarnished the reputation of Hermosa Ríos.
In appealing the sentence, Rodríguez Paz's lawyer called the verdict unjust, pointing
out that the articles were written for journalistic, not slanderous, purposes.
Send inquiries to CPJ's Americas Program.
Peru
August 30, 1995
Alejandro Coronado Reyes, Radio Cosmos and Canal 4 ATTACKED
Coronado, a reporter for Radio Cosmos and a correspondent for Canal 4 television in
Huanta, Ayacucho, was attacked by unknown gunmen. The assailants sprayed his house
with bullets, using lightweight, long-range automatic weapons. The journalist and
his family survived the attack unharmed, but the bullets were imbedded in the facade of
his house and destroyed the windowpanes. Coronado is a well-known journalist, who
had recently begun a series of reports on drug trafficking in the Apurimac Valley.
In his first report, broadcast on Aug. 25 by Canal 4, he revealed the existence of a clandestine
runway in the village of Santa Rosa that is now being used by small Colombian aircraft.
Two days before the attack, he reported on further investigations of several drug traffickers.
Send inquiries to CPJ's Americas Program.
Peru
September 4, 1995
Carlos Idrogo Bravo, La República, Norte, Pulso Norteño LEGAL, ACTION
Idrogo, editor in chief of the newspaper Norte and a correspondent for the daily La
República and the magazine Pulso Norteño, was charged with defamation by the officer
in charge of the military's recruitment office in the province of Chota. He was ordered to appear before a judge of the Second Criminal Chamber of Chota to answer to the
charges, which stemmed from an article published in the June 1995 issue of Pulso
Norteño, in which Idrogo reported on alleged irregularities in the military's recruitment
of young men.
Send inquiries to CPJ's Americas Program.
Peru
September 6, 1995
Claudia Cisneros, América Televisión ATTACKED
Isabel Rengifo, Panamericana ATTACKED
Zulema Salazar, El Expreso ATTACKED
Flor Huilca, El Mundo ATTACKED
Other journalists covering prison escape ATTACKED
The four above-named reporters were attacked and briefly detained by prison guards
at the Callao jail in Lima. They were among a group of journalists attempting to
report on a prison escape. The prison guards attacked the journalists after they
attempted to get a statement from the prison warden, Ivan Pareded Yataco, who refused to talk.
Prison guards, who aggressively forced the journalists back by shouting, pushing,
kicking and striking them, detained Cisneros, Rengifo, Salazar and Huilca. The justice
minister later reported that four guards were dismissed and punished for the attack
against the reporters.
Send inquiries to CPJ's Americas Program.
Peru
September 7, 1995
Luis Gamero Aranda, El Mundo ATTACKED
Other journalists at Lima Superior Court ATTACKED
Gamero, a production manager for the daily El Mundo, was injured when Victor Pampanaupa
Gutiérrez, a defendant in a trial of 33 alleged members of a criminal gang known
as "The Destroyers," punched him in the nose. The defendants, who had been only partially restrained with single handcuffs when they were brought into the courthouse, verbally
and physically assaulted the other journalists who were covering the trial that day
at the Lima Superior Court.
Send inquiries to CPJ's Americas Program.
Peru
September 18, 1995
Congressional correspondents LEGAL, ACTION
The Peruvian Congress decided to deny journalists free access to areas where they
had once been permitted to go. Since then, reporters have had to go through tighter
security checks to gain access to meetings of certain congressional committees.
Send inquiries to CPJ's Americas Program.
Peru
October 2, 1995
Pedro Salazar Angulo, El Oriente IMPRISONED, LEGAL, ACTION
Salazar, editor in chief of the daily El Oriente in Iquitos, Loreto, was arrested
at the newspaper's offices and later held at the local police station because a couple
reputed to be loan sharks had accused him of blackmail. The couple's clients allegedly include public officials. Salazar claimed that the couple asked to take out a paid
advertisement in El Oriente in the form of an article to counter claims against them
published in several Iquitos newspapers, including El Oriente. Although Salazar showed a receipt for the advertisement during his detention, the prosecutor persisted in
charging him with extortion and blackmail. On Oct. 4, Salazar was to appear at the
Iquitos courthouse for a hearing but he suffered a minor heart attack at the police
station where he was being held and was transferred to the Amazonas Regional Hospital in
Iquitos. During his detention, Salazar's mother continued to publish the paper. On
Oct. 27, he was conditionally released pending further investigation of his case.
Fellow journalists fear that his detention may have been a ploy on the part of authorities
to silence El Oriente, which has reported on corrupt local officials.
Send inquiries to CPJ's Americas Program.
Peru