(PFC/IFEX) – On 20 September 2002, journalist Miguel Armaleo, director of the daily “Lo Nuestro”, was sentenced by Judge Manuel de Campos, in San Isidro, to a one-year suspended prison term for libel, as a result of a complaint filed against him by Ricardo Ortiz, president of the Vicente Lopez Debate Council. “Lo Nuestro” is […]
(PFC/IFEX) – On 20 September 2002, journalist Miguel Armaleo, director of the daily “Lo Nuestro”, was sentenced by Judge Manuel de Campos, in San Isidro, to a one-year suspended prison term for libel, as a result of a complaint filed against him by Ricardo Ortiz, president of the Vicente Lopez Debate Council. “Lo Nuestro” is distributed in the municipalities of Vicente Lopez, San Isidro, San Fernando and Tigre, in the province of Buenos Aires.
The case stemmed from a photographic montage by Armaleo entitled “The Usual Suspects”, which was published in the 3 November 2001 edition of “Lo Nuestro”. The display referred to acts of corruption in the Vicente Lopez municipal administration and included the faces of a number of officials. It was accompanied by the cut-line, “They paid millions to non-existent companies. They attempted to amalgamate the cases in order to entangle the investigation, and they failed. Now they seek absolution before the Criminal Chamber. Fraud detrimental to public administration, as well as embezzlement and falsification of public documents are some of the charges that fall upon the indicated public servants. And what’s worse: companies implicated continue to send invoices to the municipality.”
In addition, Armaleo had said in April that due to his reports on corruption in Vicente Lopez, local Justicialista Party Councillor Juan José Garro had assaulted and verbally abused him. Following that incident, the Press Workers Union of Buenos Aires (Union de Trabajadores de
Prensa de Buenos Aires, UTPBA) condemned “the repeated telephone threats, attempted assaults and other similar actions that journalists in Vicente Lopez suffer so that they are forced to abandon attempts to investigate alleged corruption in the municipality.” The UTPBA noted that “the intimidation is targeted at journalists Miguel Angel Armaleo and Federico Tremouvilles, directors of ‘Lo Nuestro’ and ‘Primera Seccion’ newspapers, respectively.”
Armaleo’s lawyer, Norberto Tavosnanska, a well known human rights and press freedom activist, said that he would appeal the court ruling.
PFC believes that this ruling against Armaleo, in addition to constituting a violation of freedom of expression, strikes another blow against journalistic work vis-à-vis corruption in Argentina, one of the main causes of the current economic crisis and political instability that affect the country.
Recommended Action
Send appeals to Vicente Lopez Municipal Mayor Enrique García:
– expressing concern over the lawsuit and resulting verdict against Armaleo, as well as the threats and reprisals against journalists who expose corruption in the municipality
– reminding him of the importance of the municipal authorities’ collaboration in confronting corruption in Vicente Lopez, and the necessity for them to fully cooperate with journalists and media outlets that expose corruption
Appeals To
Enrique García
Intendente Municipal de Vicente Lopez
Tel/Fax: +4711 2802
E-mail: subcom@vlopez.mun.gba.gov.ar, subcom1@vlopez.mun.gba.gov.ar
Send letters of support to:
Miguel Armaleo
E-mail: lonuestro@fibertel.com.ar
Tel: +4790 4515
More information and background on the case can be found at:
http://www.portal-pfc.org/perseguidos/2002/081.html
Please copy appeals to the source if possible.
