WHEREAS
the Argentine Congress is debating bills on freedom of information that contain significant restrictions and the Senate has requested IAPA's opinion on the matter

WHEREAS
the last two reports spoke of a series of moves by the government of Argentina tending to place conditions or pressures on journalistic activity

WHEREAS
the newspaper Río Negro has been the object of a series of attacks by the government of Neuquén province, in reprisal for the newspaper’s editorial policy

WHEREAS
the Neuquén province Minister of Security, Luis Manganaro, prosecuted the Río Negro newspaper and its reporters, demanding an investigation into the newspaper’s publication of a criminal complaint alleging fraud in the Neuquén provincial bank during his term as bank president; and that he sought to have the newspaper reveal its sources for said information, the confidentiality of which is protected by Article 43 of the Argentine Constitution

WHEREAS
this prosecution has taken place in the framework of a broader series of attacks against Río Negro newspaper, among them constant restrictions on its journalists’ access to public information, and discrimination in the quantity of paid advertising space purchased by the government

WHEREAS
Principle 5 of the Declaration of Chapultepec states, “Prior censorship, restrictions on the circulation of the media or dissemination of their reports, forced publication of information, the imposition of obstacles to the free flow of news, and restrictions on the activities and movements of journalists directly contradict freedom of the press”

THE GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF THE IAPA RESOLVES

to write a letter to the governor of Neuquén, Jorge Sobisch, condemning the attitude of his security minister and pointing out that it runs counter to the basic principles of freedom of the press, also request an immediate rectification of those actions by the Neuquén government that tend to impinge on Río Negro journalists’ ability to freely practice their profession.

to request that the IAPA president dispatch a commission to the Republic of Argentina in order to meet with members of the Senate concerning freedom of information bills and the overall status of press freedom in Argentina, and particularly the status of the newspaper Río Negro.