(IPYS/IFEX) – On 11 December 2003, journalist Rosa María Palacios, director and host of the “Tribuna Libre” programme, broadcast on Channel 6 cable television station, announced that her phone is being tapped after she discovered a wireless microphone attached to the telephone cable line at her home. Palacios is a member of IPYS’s board of […]
(IPYS/IFEX) – On 11 December 2003, journalist Rosa María Palacios, director and host of the “Tribuna Libre” programme, broadcast on Channel 6 cable television station, announced that her phone is being tapped after she discovered a wireless microphone attached to the telephone cable line at her home. Palacios is a member of IPYS’s board of directors and the organisation is very concerned over these allegations.
Palacios reported on her programme that a few days earlier she suspected that her phone was being tapped and as a result hired a security company to inspect her home and her telephone line. After an initial search, nothing was found.
However, when the technicians examined the cables on a telephone pole located in front of Palacios’s home, they discovered that a small device had been attached to the telephone line. The device is the latest technology in telephone interception and is imported. It is used together with portable receiving and recording equipment that can be placed as far as 500 metres from the journalist’s home.
According to news reports, Palacios said that the technicians estimated that the equipment is worth between US$8,000 and 10,000. The journalist also expressed regret that she could not file a complaint with the authorities. “Despite the fact that this is a criminal act, I cannot file a criminal complaint because I have no way of knowing who did this,” Palacios said.
When asked to speculate on why her phone is being tapped, Palacios said, “As a journalist working for a cable television station, I do not have a large investigative team nor do I do a lot of exposés. Nevertheless, it seems that someone thinks I am interesting enough to spy on.”
Palacios expressed concern that other journalists could be spied on. “Journalists who are much more important than I am should be on the alert,” she said.
IPYS has urged the Public Prosecutor’s Office and the police to investigate the case and do everything possible to shed light on the matter.
