(PFC/IFEX) – Journalist Renato Álvarez, host of the debate programme “Frente a Frente”, broadcast on Televicentro Corporation’s stations 3, 5 and 7, is facing a complaint for defamation for disclosing a report that reveals the names of individuals presumably implicated in drug trafficking in Honduras. The complaint was recently launched by lawyer Jorge Barralaga, who […]
(PFC/IFEX) – Journalist Renato Álvarez, host of the debate programme “Frente a Frente”, broadcast on Televicentro Corporation’s stations 3, 5 and 7, is facing a complaint for defamation for disclosing a report that reveals the names of individuals presumably implicated in drug trafficking in Honduras.
The complaint was recently launched by lawyer Jorge Barralaga, who is seeking US$96,000 in damages. Barralaga is accused in the report of being one of the drug traffickers’ key links in the legal system and of being connected to a former government official who reportedly oversees one of the six drug cartels that operate in Honduras. Barralaga maintains that Álvarez acted irresponsibly in disclosing the report and has called on the journalist to reveal the identity of his source, so that he can file a complaint against that individual as well.
On the morning of 24 June 2003, during his programme, Álvarez revealed a list of presumed drug traffickers’ names, operations and cartels. The list included current and former police officers, public prosecutors, lawyers, former judges, politicians and business owners. Security Minister Óscar Álvarez, who was a guest on the programme, did not refute or question the information in the report. Rather, he revealed that the document has been in the possession of the authorities, including the president, since 2002. According to the minister, the American Embassy and the United States State Department were also familiar with the report.
After the report was disclosed on Álvarez’s programme, a number of individuals threatened the journalist with legal action. Barralaga is the first person to have formally filed a complaint, although the case has not yet been assigned to a judge.
The Freedom of Expression Committee (Comité por la Libre Expresión, C-Libre) condemned the complaint filed against Álvarez, calling it an intimidation tactic aimed at silencing the press and preventing it from informing on sensitive matters. According to C-Libre, the move is an affront to freedom of expression, the right to access information and journalists’ right to protect their sources.
In a letter to National Human Rights Commissioner Ramón Custodio López, PFC said it was unacceptable that a journalist could be prosecuted for disclosing information that was in the public interest and was in the hands of the government.
For further information on the case, see:
http://portal-pfc.org/perseguidos/2003/084.html
This alert has been prepared by PFC with information from C-Libre.
