The Declaration of Chapultepec, a document promoting the applicability of journalistic values in the Western Hemisphere, has been signed by 61 presidents of countries in the Americas since its promulgation on 11 March 1994.
The Inter American Press Association (IAPA) congratulates the Association of Argentine Press Entities (ADEPA) for its initiative in promoting the signing of the Declaration of Chapultepec by political leaders in Argentina – committing them to the defense and promotion of freedom of the press and of expression, two essential components of democracy.
ADEPA took action to subscribe to the Declaration of Chapultepec; it was signed by representatives of various Argentine political groups, such as legislators Sergio Massa, Felipe Solá, Oscar Ariel Mirta Tundis, María Liliana Schwindt, Gilberto Alegre, Sergio Bergman, Gabriela Michetti, Elisa Carrió, Fernando Solanas, Margarita Stolbizer, Ricardo Alfonsín, Francisco de Narváez and Gustavo Ferrari, among other local leaders.
IAPA President Elizabeth Ballantine thanked and congratulated ADEPA and its president, Carlos Jornet, “for this valuable initiative designed to promote press freedom.” Ballantine, of the Durango Herald, Durango, Colorado, added that “we received with great enthusiasm the initiative undertaken by ADEPA which we regard as a preview of the 20th anniversary of the Declaration of Chapultepec which we will be celebrating next year.”
The chairman of the IAPA’s Committee on Freedom of the Press and Information, Claudio Paolillo, on his part stressed “the importance of the commitment of politicians of any ideology to the defense of freedom of the press and of expression.” Paolillo, editor of the Montevideo, Uruguay, weekly Búsqueda, added that “these actions have a special importance at a time when press freedom is questionable in Argentina and following the recent ruling on the constitutionality of the media law” which continues to polarize society.
The Declaration of Chapultepec, a document promoting the applicability of journalistic values in the Western Hemisphere, has been signed by 61 presidents of countries in the Americas since its promulgation at the Chapultepec Castle in Mexico City on March 11, 1994. Since then it has also been endorsed by governments, members of Congress, mayors, political leaders and very especially by students and members of the public.
The IAPA is a not-for-profit organization dedicated to the defense and promotion of freedom of the press and of expression in the Americas. It is made up of more than 1,300 print publications from throughout the Western Hemisphere and is based in Miami, Florida. For more information please go to http://www.sipiapa.org.
