2006-12-04
Paramilitary’s resurgence threatening free expression, international community demands action from authorities
Español: Reclamo internacional ante el resurgimiento de paramilitarismo, una amenaza a la libertad de expresión
Country/Topic: Colombia
Date: 04 December 2006
Source: Fundación para la Libertad de Prensa (FLIP) , Instituto Prensa y Sociedad (IPYS)
Person(s):
Target(s):
Type(s) of violation(s):
Urgency: Bulletin
(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.)
RECOMMENDED ACTION:
Similar letters may be sent to President Uribe and other Colombian authorities:
Señor Presidente Álvaro Uribe Vélez [President] Presidencia de la República Palacio de Nariño Carrera 8 No. 7-26 Bogotá, Colombia Tel: +571 562 93 00 Fax: +571 3375890 / 3420592 E-mail: auribe@presidencia.gov.co
Alto Comisionado para la Paz Luis Carlos Restrepo [Presidential High Commissioner for Peace] Presidencia de la República Carrera 8 No. 7-26 Bogotá, Colombia Fax: +571 5609946 E-mail: prensapaz@presidencia.gov.co
Dr. Mario Germán Iguarán Fiscal General de la Nación [Prosecutor General] Fiscalía General de la Nación Diagonal 22B 52-01 (Ciudad Salite) Bogotá, Colombia Fax: +571 5702000, ext. 2017
Dr. Edgardo Maya Villazón Procurador General de la Nación [Attorney General] Procuraduría General de la Nación Carrera 5, No. 1580 Bogotá, Colombia Fax: +571 3429723
Vicepresidente Francisco Santos [Vice-President] Vicepresidencia de la República Carrera 8, No. 7-27 Bogotá, Colombia Tel: +571 5601095 / 5657649 Fax: +571 5658671
FLIP Newsletter 
