(IPYS/IFEX) – On 29 September 2004, Pedro Salinas, a columnist for the daily “Correo”, asked the Lima Prefecture to provide him with protection following a series of incidents that led him to suspect that he is being followed. According to the journalist, he is being targeted for having publicly condemned the actions of Member of […]
(IPYS/IFEX) – On 29 September 2004, Pedro Salinas, a columnist for the daily “Correo”, asked the Lima Prefecture to provide him with protection following a series of incidents that led him to suspect that he is being followed. According to the journalist, he is being targeted for having publicly condemned the actions of Member of Congress Jorge Mufarech.
During a press conference, Salinas, together with former minister Fernando Rospigliosi and the head of the Partido Democrático Social party, Susana Villarán, called for an investigation into Mufarech’s conduct. Mufarech is one of the country’s most influential and controversial politicians. He has been accused of having mismanaged state resources and of being linked to a corruption network that was headed by former presidential advisor Vladimiro Montesinos. Montesinos is currently in prison.
A few days after the press conference, Salinas began noticing that individuals with video cameras and mobile phones with built-in cameras were following him. “I have witnesses who share my suspicions,” the journalist said in a release sent to various media outlets.
Salinas is asking for protection for his family as well. The journalist said he would hold Mufarech responsible “for anything that happens to me or to my family.”
The accusations against Mufarech put forth by Rospigliosi, Villarán and Salinas have already had an impact. Congress has created a special committee responsible for investigating the manner in which Mufarech has carried out his public duties.
