IAPA protests murder of Venezuelan journalist

Punish those who killed news photographer Jorge Aguirre, Mauro Marcano and Jorge Tortoza, all from Venezuela, free press organization demands

MIAMI, Florida (April 7, 2006)—The Inter American Press Association (IAPA) today expressed outrage at the murder in Venezuela of news photographer Jorge Aguirre and called on officials in that South American country to investigate the crime speedily so as to identify the guilty and bring them to justice.

“We regret Aguirre’s tragic death, yet another outrage inflicted upon journalists and news media in Venezuela,” declared Gonzalo Marroquín, chairman of the IAPA’s Committee on Freedom of the Press and Information. “We hope that the authorities will get to the bottom of the matter so as to determine who is responsible for the crime.”

Aguirre, 60, was shot and mortally injured on April 5 by a man on a motorcycle. A photo journalist for the Capriles Group, he was a passenger in an automobile driving on the campus of the Central University of Venezuela, where a student demonstration was under way in protest at violence in the country in recent days, heightened by the murder of three young brothers. Aguirre was covering another event on campus when the demonstration broke out.

The motorcyclist ordered Aguirre’s driver to stop and after a brief argument the driver decided to continue driving, as the man who stopped him was not wearing a uniform or showing any identification. The man then opened fire, hitting Aguirre in the armpit. He was rushed to hospital, where he died shortly afterwards.

Marroquín, editor of the Guatemala City, Guatemala, newspaper Prensa Libre, recalled that at its recent meeting in Quito, Ecuador, the IAPA had resolved to send an international mission to Venezuela “to report to us first-hand on the state of press freedom in that country, as we have received many complaints of restrictions on being able to report and be informed of what is happening.” He expressed concern at recently-passed legislation there “that affects fundamental rights.”

The IAPA has already formally requested meetings with senior Venezuelan officials and is awaiting word on when it might be able to send its mission.

The Western Hemisphere free press organization has also urged the government in Caracas to continue with investigations and consequent legal proceedings in the cases of the murder of Mauro Marcano and Jorge Tortoza, committed on September 1, 2004 and April 11, 2002, respectively.        

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