(IAPA/IFEX) – The following is a 19 December 2002 IAPA press release: IAPA criticises position taken by House of Representatives against Bolivian daily Miami (December 19, 2002) – The Inter American Press Association (IAPA) today criticised a resolution adopted by the Bolivian House of Representatives that denounces the daily La Razon for having published information […]
(IAPA/IFEX) – The following is a 19 December 2002 IAPA press release:
IAPA criticises position taken by House of Representatives against Bolivian daily
Miami (December 19, 2002) – The Inter American Press Association (IAPA) today criticised a resolution adopted by the Bolivian House of Representatives that denounces the daily La Razon for having published information on budgetary issues.
The La Paz-based newspaper published data about the employment benefits and expenses of the representatives and about the increase of the lower house’s budget. Aggravated by the coverage, legislators issued a unanimous declaration on 12 December 2002. The legislators condemned “the smear campaign being carried out by La Razon” and rejected “the manipulation of information against the honour of the legislature.”
In a letter to House of Representatives President Guido Añez Moscoso, the chairman of the IAPA’s Committee on Freedom of the Press and Information, Rafael Molina, lamented the decision and affirmed the expectation that the legislature would not limit the public’s right to information.
The full text of the letter is available above in Spanish only.
