|
|
|
|
Threatened
April 2
Carlos Maravi, La República, THREATENED
Maravi, editor-in-chief of the daily La República, received an anonymous threatening letter that was also sent to other media outlets. The letter accused the daily of defending the former president of Peru, Alan García, and stated that Maravi would be put in “his rightful place” along with others involved in an alleged meeting to draw plans to exculpate the former president of charges of embezzlement that were to be heard by the Supreme Court. In particular, the letter alleged that Mirko Lauer, a columnist at La República, had taken part in the meeting.
May 3
José Llaja, Canal 5, ATTACKED, THREATENED
Enrique Cuñeo, El Comercio, ATTACKED, HARASSED
Javier Zapata, Caretas, ATTACKED, HARASSED
Llaja, a cameraman with Canal 5 television; Cuñeo, a photographer with the daily El Comercio; and Zapata, a photographer with the weekly magazine Caretas, were beaten by security guards at Lima's City Hall. The journalists were covering a labor dispute between municipal employees and the mayor's office when security personnel tried to prevent them from filming the event by beating them and destroying the cameras of Cuñeo and Zapata. The mayor later issued a public apology to the journalists and announced that there would be an investigation into the matter. In a report issued at the end of May, the commission that investigated the incident concluded that the head of the Lima police, José La Madrid Ponce, was to blame for the aggressive behavior of the officers at the demonstration. The commission also said that the police reacted inappropriately and used excessive force. La Madrid's handling of the affair will now be the subject of a judicial inquiry.
For more information contact americasweb@cpj.org