(IPYS/IFEX) – Journalist Ángel Durán, (of the city of Huaraz, department of Ancash, Chavín region) announced that on 16 September 1999 he would begin an indefinite hunger strike in Lima. Durán is asking for guarantees for his safety, as the local authorities have thus far not granted him protection. Durán has been the target of […]
(IPYS/IFEX) – Journalist Ángel Durán, (of the city of Huaraz, department of
Ancash, Chavín region) announced that on 16 September 1999 he would begin an
indefinite hunger strike in Lima. Durán is asking for guarantees for his
safety, as the local authorities have thus far not granted him protection.
Durán has been the target of death threats, attempted bribery and a campaign
to discredit him carried out by certain media.
On 13 September, Durán asked the Prefect of Ancash to provide guarantees for
his safety. The authorities refused to do so, arguing that an investigation
of his case had already been carried out the previous year, at the request
of the minister of the interior and a number of members of congress.
Durán’s harassment began after he filed a complaint with the Ancash office
of the public prosecutor against the vice-minister of the Presidency, Fredy
Moreno Neglia. Durán accused Moreno of embezzlement, corrupting officials
and unlawful appropriation of funds, involving an amount of over 10 million
soles (approximately US$2,970,000).
On 7 September, at 8: 15 p.m. (local time), Durán received a threatening
telephone call at his home, warning him: “Look, brother. It seems to me that
you do not like your life and you want to go to the next one. You have some
time to think about it.” Four days later, he ran into his friend José
Artola, who works for Radio Ancash which is owned by the vice-minister. His
friend explicitly warned him: “You are stupid. You do not know who you are
getting mixed up with. If you go on like this, Fredy will do all he can to
have you put underground.”
According to Durán, on 10 September, Moreno himself called him to offer him
20 thousand soles (approximately US$5,940,000) in exchange for his silence.
Although the caller did not identify himself, the journalist recognised his
voice. Furthermore, the caller used the name “el Tigre” (the tiger), the
nickname by which Moreno is known in Huaraz. In Durán’s opinion, the
vice-minister is trying to ensure that Durán will not distribute in Lima any
proof he has against him. The journalist did not accept the bribe and,
before hanging up, Moreno swore at him.
Moreno is the owner of two Huaraz media: Radio Ancash and the “Prensa
Regional” daily. According to Durán, Moreno has used these media to wage a
campaign against him, calling him “pseudojournalist”, “blackmailer” and
“demented”. After Moreno’s call, the campaign was re-initiated. The 13
September edition of “Prensa Regional” attacked Durán.
According to Durán’s statement to IPYS, the Studio 97 and Armonía radio
stations have also aligned themselves with the vice-minister, who has also
been trying to influence the Ministry of Transport and Communications (MTC)
to review all radio station licences, as a pressure tactic.
Between 1997 and 1999, Durán faced fourteen legal actions filed against him
by Moreno and those close to him. In one case, he was accused of illegally
acting as a journalist by Carlos Maldonado, vice-president of the Chavín
region at the time that Moreno presided over the region. Durán was absolved
of all the charges against him.
On 18 February 1998, Durán was kidnapped by four unknown persons. One block
away from his house, he was forced into an automobile and was severely
beaten. A few hours later, he was abandoned on the city’s outskirts, where
he was later found unconscious. He remained in that state for a number of
days. Before the kidnapping, Durán and his Radio Video Stereo colleagues had
received daily threatening telephone calls. Although they had publicly
denounced this, the authorities failed to effectively respond to the
threats.
Recommended Action
Send appeals to authorities:
Appeals To
Alberto Fujimori Fujimori
President of the Republic
Fax: +51 1 427 6722 / 426 6535Edgardo Mosqueira Medina
Minister of the Presidency
Fax: +51 1 222 3678Martha Hildebrandt Pérez
President of Congress
Fax: +51 1 426 8290Lieutenant General Fernando Dianderas Otonne
General Director of the Peruvian National Police
Fax: +51 1 225 1775Jorge Santistevan de Noriega
Ombudsman
Fax: +51 1 426 6657
Please copy appeals to the source if possible.
