(PROBIDAD/IFEX) – On 13 October 2005, the Comayagua Tribunal, in the city of Marcala, central department of La Paz, acquitted five police officers and two journalists. The accused were facing defamation charges for revealing information implicating high-ranking officials in the smuggling of lumber, coffee and grains on the border with El Salvador. Judge Rafael López […]
(PROBIDAD/IFEX) – On 13 October 2005, the Comayagua Tribunal, in the city of Marcala, central department of La Paz, acquitted five police officers and two journalists. The accused were facing defamation charges for revealing information implicating high-ranking officials in the smuggling of lumber, coffee and grains on the border with El Salvador.
Judge Rafael López Murcia, who read out the ruling, said that there was no evidence to suggest that the crime of defamation had been committed. He was accompanied by Judges Raúl Iván Chávez and Rafael Bustillo. The verdict, which was unanimous, will be ratified on 31 October when the various parties’ legal representatives will appear before the court.
The judge said that journalists Carlos Galeas and Suyapa Banegas were simply doing their job by informing on a matter which was in the public interest. Similarly, the court determined that the accused police officers had acted appropriately by investigating an illegal operation that impacts on the local and national economy.
As such, the Tribunal called on the Public Prosecutor’s Office and the Security Ministry to launch a thorough investigation into the allegations of smuggling in the area.
Welcoming the Tribunal’s ruling, Galeas told the Committee for Free Expression (Comité por la Libre Expresión, C-Libre), “this is not a victory for me, this is a victory for society and freedom of expression.”
Omar Menjívar, the defendants’ lawyer, said this was a historic ruling as the court not only upheld the right to information and freedom of expression, but also called on two key government bodies to put an end to impunity and extensively investigate allegations of corruption.
