**This alert contains information further to an IFEX alert of 28 August 1998** (CPJ/IFEX) – On 28 August 1998, CPJ expressed its grave concern about a series of death threats made against Homero Aridjis, noted author and poet, president of PEN International, president of the Group of 100, and columnist for the daily “Reforma”. The […]
**This alert contains information further to an IFEX alert of 28 August
1998**
(CPJ/IFEX) – On 28 August 1998, CPJ expressed its grave concern about a
series of death threats made against Homero Aridjis, noted author and poet,
president of PEN International, president of the Group of 100, and columnist
for the daily “Reforma”.
The organization is particularly concerned that threats against Aridjis were
made as a result of his defense of press freedom. Aridjis began receiving
threats last November, after speaking at a dinner in Mexico City hosted by
CPJ and attended by many of Mexico’s leading journalists. At the 7 November
gathering, Aridjis discussed attacks on Mexican journalists and criticized
the government for its failure to investigate them. “Many of you know that
in the last five months five reporters who cover police matters was attacked
and one of them was killed,” Aridjis noted at the time. “If aggression is
tolerated it can become indiscriminate.”
The pattern of threats against Aridjis raises deep concerns about the
security and privacy of reporters covering sensitive matters in Mexico. One
of the threats occurred the day after he gave a telephone interview to Molly
Moore, Mexico City bureau chief for “The Washington Post”. Speaking with
Moore by phone on 26 November from New York City, Aridjis discussed the
crime wave in Mexico City, including the band of kidnappers who had cut off
the ears of their victims. On 27 November, the following message was left
on his answering machine in Mexico City: “I’m looking for you, dog. Soon
you will die like dogs. I have both of you in my sights. I’m going to cut
your ears off.” Two days
later Aridjis’ housekeeper spotted two men loitering outside his house.
Aridjis received another threatening call on 17 August a few weeks after
speaking about the lack of respect for freedom of expression in Mexico
during a conference in Ottawa, Canada on “The Artist and Human Rights.”
After he returned to Mexico, a woman left a threatening message on Aridjis’
answering machine: “You’ll be sorry, you son of a bitch. Your daughters are
whores. You’re going to die very soon.”
CPJ takes the threats against Homero Aridjis very seriously and is
particularly
concerned that the perpetrators appear to have personal information about
Aridjis and his family, and are privy to his private phone conversations. In
addition, the threats seemed to have come in response to public statements
made by Aridjis in which he has criticized government intolerance of free
expression in Mexico.
As president of PEN International, Aridjis represents the aspirations of
writers around the world to exercise their right to express themselves
freely. If he is harassed in his own country, then any writer anywhere can
be harassed.
Recommended Action
Send appeals to President Ernesto Zedillo:
ensure
a complete investigation into the threats on Aridjis’ life
Appeals To
His Excellency
Ernesto Zedillo
President of Mexico
Los Pinos
Mexico City
Fax: +525 271 1764 / 515 1794 / 277 2376
Please copy appeals to the source if possible.
Nota: ninguna version de esta alerta sera disponible en español.
