(IPYS/IFEX) – On 15 December 2000, members of the National Liberation Army (Ejército de Liberacion Nacional, ELN) detained Wiston Viracachá, a correspondent for Caracol Television station and the head of press for the department of Nariño’s government, in south-western Colombia. The incident occurred on the road between the port of Tumaco, on the Pacific coast, […]
(IPYS/IFEX) – On 15 December 2000, members of the National Liberation Army (Ejército de Liberacion Nacional, ELN) detained Wiston Viracachá, a correspondent for Caracol Television station and the head of press for the department of Nariño’s government, in south-western Colombia.
The incident occurred on the road between the port of Tumaco, on the Pacific coast, and Pasto, the capital of Nariño, when Viracachá was returning from covering a story on the possibility of emergency situations caused by tidal waves in the Nariño coastal region.
The journalist is allegedly in the hands of the guerrilla group so that he can explain what judgement call he made about his reporting during an ELN blockade of the highway leading to the sea.
Viracachá feared that an event like this might occur because the ELN had publicly expressed its displeasure over his coverage of the guerrilla organisation. For its part, the ELN announced that it would not kill Viracachá and would release him once they cleared up the journalist’s manner of covering information related to the group.
According to information gathered by IPYS, on 18 December a commission was formed in order to initiate a dialogue with the ELN commanders. Francisco Therán, president of the Nariño Journalists’ Circle, and Regional Ombudsman Jorge Enrique Benavides will head the commission.
According to Lima daily “El Tiempo”, the national directors of Caracol Television said that they have begun efforts to secure Vicarachá’s release by talking with the ELN commanders who are currently imprisoned in the Itagüí jail.
The Nariño Journalists’ Circle told IPYS that they were concerned about the situation in the department, because the Vicarachá case was not an isolated incident. There have been other attacks against journalists this year.
In the last few months, the following journalists have been assaulted or threatened: Therán, who works for the newspaper “La Gente”; Juan Pablo Ortega from the news programme Todelar; Oswaldo Florez from the RCN radio network; Carlos Oviedo, from the cultural radio station Bolívar; and Ricardo Romero Sánchez, publications director of the magazine “Sí” and the newspapers “El Otro” and “El Temporal”.
Commenting on Vicarachá’s case, Therán said: “The situation for us journalists is dramatic, particularly for independent journalists, and as a result we cannot report on injustices and corruption.”
Recommended Action
Send appeals to authorities:
- calling on them to do everything in their power in order to secure Vicarachá’s immediate and unconditional release
Appeals To
Andrés Pastrana Arango
President of the Republic
Carrera 8 No. 7-26 Bogotá
Fax: +571 336 21 09 / 286 79 37 / 286 74 34
E-mail: www.presidencia.gob.co
Alfonso Gomez Méndez
Attorney General
Diagonal 22B No. 52-01
Fax: +571 570 20 00, ext. 1587
E-mail: contacto@fiscalia.gob.co
Please copy appeals to the source if possible.
