The highest authority of the Armed Forces initiated actions against 12 media outlets in order to force them to reveal their sources.
This statement was originally published on en.sipiapa.org on 5 February 2025.
The Inter American Press Association (IAPA) condemns the harassment campaign orchestrated by the Chief of the Joint Staff of the Armed Forces of Honduras, Roosevelt Hernández, against journalists and media outlets.
In an unprecedented attack on press freedom, the military high command has brought forward legal actions to force 12 media outlets to reveal their sources, violating fundamental principles of journalism and constitutional and international rights that protect the confidentiality of information, according to local press reports.
The harassment and threats by the senior military leader are directed against the country’s influential media outlets: El Heraldo, La Prensa, Radio Cadena Voces (RCV), La Tribuna, Radio América, Abriendo Brecha, CHTV, Hable Como Habla, Q’Hubo Tv, Hondudiario, Criterio HN, and Noticias 24/7.
The Association of Honduran Journalists (CPH, for its Spanish acronym) has denounced the “growing judicialization, intimidation, and escalation of attacks” from the government and official sectors. CPH has urged the National Police, the Public Ministry, and the Armed Forces to immediately cease all acts of intimidation against the press.
José Roberto Dutriz, president of the IAPA, stated that “judicial harassment has become a systematic weapon to try to silence journalism, especially when exposing acts of corruption and abuse of power.” Dutriz, CEO and General Director of La Prensa Gráfica in El Salvador, called for “the immediate end of this attack that undermines democracy and freedom of expression in Honduras.”
Carlos Jornet, Second Vice President of the IAPA and President of the Committee on Freedom of the Press and Information, stated that “forcing the media to disclose the identity of their sources undermines press independence and society’s right to be informed.” Jornet, editor-in-chief of La Voz del Interior in Argentina, emphasized that “confidentiality of sources is a fundamental pillar for the practice of journalism, especially in contexts where the denunciation of abuses and corruption depends on protecting those who dare to speak.” He recalled that Principle 8 of the Declaration of Principles on Freedom of Expression adopted in 2000 by the Inter-American Commission on Human Rights (IACHR) establishes: “Every social communicator has the right to keep his/her source of information, notes, personal and professional archives confidential.”
In recent weeks, there have been a series of attacks against the press. These include the threat from the National Emergency System 911 (SNE-911) to file a lawsuit against El Heraldo, allegedly in retaliation for its investigations into the institution, as reported by the IAPA in a statement. Additionally, Noticias 24/7 suffered a cyberattack after republishing El Heraldo‘s investigation on SNE-911.
IAPA’s report on Honduras, presented last October, had warned that “officials promoted systematic attacks against journalists and media reporting on President Xiomara Castro’s administration.”
