(FLIP/IFEX) – On 18 January 2003, journalist Abdel Martínez and photojournalist Raúl Lopez, both of “Vanguardia Liberal” newspaper, were detained for about 15 minutes and forced to erase photographs they had taken of Valledupar’s National Penitentiary. Valledupar is the capital of Cesar department, in northern Colombia. The order was given by the prison warden, who […]
(FLIP/IFEX) – On 18 January 2003, journalist Abdel Martínez and photojournalist Raúl Lopez, both of “Vanguardia Liberal” newspaper, were detained for about 15 minutes and forced to erase photographs they had taken of Valledupar’s National Penitentiary. Valledupar is the capital of Cesar department, in northern Colombia. The order was given by the prison warden, who claimed that he had acted according to regulations and that the journalists had behaved in a rash manner.
Martínez and Lopez arrived at the maximum security prison in a taxi to cover a two-day-old hunger strike by inmates. According to Ana María Valencia, the newspaper’s editor-in-chief, the reporters set themselves up on a bridge some 200 metres from the jail to photograph the towers, which were decked with the prisoners’ banners. They were then approached by the guards, who told them that the prison warden would grant them an interview.
The journalists claim they were placed under lock and key in the prison’s reception area. Prison warden Marino Moreno Arias then rudely demanded that they hand over their camera and asked the prison’s systems analyst to erase the photographs. The journalists contacted the newspaper’s editor-in-chief, who advised them against handing over the camera. Faced with the possibility of having all the photographs in his camera erased, Lopez decided to cooperate and delete the photographs he had taken of the prison.
According to Moreno, the journalists were working without a permit from the penitentiary. He added that the journalists were detained in accordance with the 1993 Law 65 (Regulations for Prisons and Penitentiaries), which grants prison guards “judicial police powers”. The warden noted that this legislation prohibits the taking of photographs near the facility, particularly given the fact that the Valledupar National Penitentiary is a maximum security jail and has been declared a military target by armed groups.
Moreno added that the fact that the journalists were wearing their press vests did not make any difference, since under current conditions in Colombia any one could be disguised in this manner. When questioned about the erasing of the photographs, he noted that Lopez himself had deleted them under the watchful eye of a prison official.
Background Information
Law 65, passed in 1993, outlines security measures for the areas surrounding prisons and grants “judicial police powers” to prison guards. The law specifies that the media “can have access to the detention centres, as long as they meet all the requirements set out by the National Penitentiary and Prison Institute.”
FLIP calls upon all state institutions to respect the media. The organisation notes that even though journalists must respect certain regulations concerning the security of penal institutions and military installations, all government officials must treat those whose job it is to inform with respect.
