Following are the texts of the resolutions adopted by the IAPA at its Midyear
Meeting in San Salvador, El Salvador, March 21-24. The complete wording of the
resolutions and further information, including country-by-country reports on
the state of press freedom in the Americas, is posted on the IAPA’s Web
site, www.sipiapa.org
The Midyear Meeting of the IAPA resolved:
• In Colombia: to ask the Government of Colombia to make its statements consistent with President Alvaro Uribe´s signature of the Declaration of Chapultepec and his assurances given orally to the IAPA that there will be no restrictions on press freedom during his administration; to urge the Congress not to pass the law on accrediting journalists, given the enormous risks it entails for freedom of the press in Colombia; to request that the government of Colombia, the military and police guarantee the minimum conditions of safety for the practice of journalism.
• In El Salvador: to condemn the practice of FMLN and other parties and groups of instigating violence against journalists and the media; to demand that these groups stop their verbal abuse and systematic attacks on the media’s image, and insist that they act fully in accordance with freedom of expression as a fundamental democratic freedom.
• In Guatemala: to demand that President Alfonso Portillo and representatives of the other branches of government respect press freedom and immediately stop all harassment and put an end to the smear campaign against the independent press; to demand that Guatemalan Attorney General Carlos de León stop the practice of subpoenaing journalists to testify in relation to their investigative reports, and stop all interception of telephone communications by his office, as required by Guatemalan law and fundamental human rights.
• In Haiti: to demand that President Jean Bertrand Aristide guarantee that Haitian journalists can do their jobs without being harassed, threatened and attacked by government supporters; to demand that Haitian judicial authorities expedite the adjudication of those responsible for the murders of journalists Jean Léopold Dominique, Gérard Denoze and Brignol Lindor, so they are properly tried and punished; to ask government, police and military authorities to guarantee the minimum security for the free practice of journalism.
• In Venezuela: to condemn the violence against the media that has become a fact of life in Venezuela in recent years; to condemn President Hugo Chávez’s campaign against the media through such actions as making foreign currency unavailable by order of the government for the purchase of newsprint; to hold President Hugo Chávez responsible for the physical safety of journalists, photographers, cameramen and others working in the media who are assaulted by government officials or supporters.
• In Cuba: to demand the immediate release of all jailed journalists,
especially Raúl Rivero, vice president of IAPA for Cuba, and the end
of the current repressive campaign against press freedom; to request the immediate
intervention of democratic governments, professional groups and human rights
organizations, and in general the entire international community, to demand
that the Cuban government end its hostile acts against freedom of information;
to demand the free and unrestricted practice of independent journalism in Cuba
and its representatives’ access to the tools necessary to disseminate
ideas, information and opinions inside and outside the country.
FUENTE: nota.texto7
