(FLIP/IFEX) – The following is a 30 November 2006 joint action by FLIP and IPYS, supported by other IFEX members and other organisations, as well as individual journalists: President Álvaro Uribe Vélez President of the Republic Palacio de Nariño Carrera 8 No. 7-26 Bogotá, Colombia We, the undersigned journalists, media outlets and national and international […]
(FLIP/IFEX) – The following is a 30 November 2006 joint action by FLIP and IPYS, supported by other IFEX members and other organisations, as well as individual journalists:
President Álvaro Uribe Vélez
President of the Republic
Palacio de Nariño
Carrera 8 No. 7-26
Bogotá, Colombia
We, the undersigned journalists, media outlets and national and international organizations that defend freedom of expression, request the establishment of an integrated state policy to protect journalists, fight impunity and improve the conditions under which journalism is carried out in Colombia.
In Colombia, the right to freedom of expression continues to be a difficult right to exercise despite existing spaces for political dialogue and democratic debate. Keeping the public informed is a difficult task taken on by journalists and media outlets, in a setting that has become ever harder to interpret.
From January to September 2006, 95 violations of press freedom were documented, including 3 assassinations, 5 people being forced to leave the country, 2 kidnappings, 15 incidents of inhumane treatment, and 58 threats – and these are only the violations that have been publicly reported.
Throughout the country, journalists feel obliged to censor themselves in the face of threats or to not report on issues that may upset certain individuals and interests. They feel that this is the safest way to stay alive. Worse still, some, including those who are being educated in journalism, have come to believe that the constant acts of intimidation are part of the work. The result: significant segments of Colombian society which remain largely uninformed and a press that is afraid to inform the public.
With the demobilization of the 32,000 members of paramilitary groups, it was hoped that the situation facing the press would improve. What is certain is that these groups, despite the peace dialogues with the government, continue terrorizing men and women of the press. An additional aggravating factor is that a third generation of paramilitary groups have now occupied the space vacated by the demobilised groups, with at least 22 new armed fronts in various cities throughout the country.(1)
Given this national press environment, the following media outlets, journalists, and national and international organizations defending press freedom urge the public authorities to take the following concrete actions in order to protect and promote press freedom in Colombia:
– Prosecutor General (Fiscal General de la Nación) Mario Iguarón Arana should speed up the investigations already underway into the murders, threats and acts of aggression against journalists, and investigate the reorganization of new paramilitary groups which are apparently behind the latest violations of press freedom;
– High Commissioner for Peace Luis Carlos Restrepo should demand that both the demobilised paramilitary groups and those who have yet to demobilize respect press freedom and journalists’ fundamental rights; he should also work with the Prosecutor General’s Office (Fiscalía) to determine which groups are behind the new threats;
– Vice-President Francisco Santos should accelerate the establishment of an inter-institutional committee with participation from the Prosecutor-General’s Office and the Office of the Director of the Criminal Police, as was promised in the February 2006 meeting;
– Attorney General (Procurador General) Edgardo Maya Villazón should investigate the government employees alleged to have threatened journalists or interfered with their work;
– The Ministry of the Interior and Justice, the Security Administration Department (DAS) and the National Police should continue to protect journalists across the country.
NOTE:
(1) Informe BACRIM “Bandas Criminales Emergentes” Junta Nacional de Inteligencia. MinDefensa, 30 de mayo de 2006
c.c.
Francisco Santos Calderón, Vice-President
Mario Iguarán Arana, Prosecutor General (Fiscal General de la Nación)
Edgardo Maya Villazón, Attorney General (Procurador General)
Luis Carlos Restrepo, High Commissioner for Peace
ORGANISATIONAL SIGNATURES
Organisation, Representative
Cartoonists Rights Network, International, Dr. Robert Russell
Center for Human Rights and Democratic Studies (CEHURDES) Nepal, Khadga Sen Oli
Independent Journalism Center-Moldova, Corina Cepoi
World Press Freedom Committee, E. Markham Bench
Center for Media Freedom and Responsibility, Melinda Quintos de Jesus
Index on Censorship, Rohan Jayasekera
ARTICLE 19, Agnes Callamard
Norwegian PEN, Carlos Morten
International Press Institute (IPI), Michael Kudlak
Reporteros Sin Fronteras – Americas, Benoît Hervieu
International Federation of Journalists, Aidan White
Medecins Sans Frontieres/Reporters without Borders, Suzanne Dhaliwal
Toronto Women for a Just and Healthy Society, Angela Miles
CJFE, Julie Payne
Journalists Without Limits, Egypt, Abeer Alaskary
PEN Canada, David Cozac
(For the names of the 70 individuals who also signed this letter, contact FLIP.)
