30 July 2008

PRESS FREEDOM VIOLATIONS ON THE WANE IN COLOMBIA, SAYS FLIP


Good news from Colombia: there were fewer press freedom violations in the first half of 2008 in Colombia than over the same period last year - likely because 2008 is not an election year, a new report by the Foundation for Press Freedom (FLIP) has found.

From January to June, FLIP recorded 63 cases of violations - a 27 percent decrease from the first six months of 2007. Death threats remain the most common form of violations (with 38 cases recorded), especially for journalists reporting on the armed conflict, corruption at the local and departmental levels, or recent national political scandals.

Sixteen cases of physical attacks were registered - many at the hands of demonstrators during a national march against violence in March, and a protest of motorcycle-taxi drivers in Sucre in April. No journalists were murdered because of their work.

In the port city of Barrancabermeja, Santander, and in Saravena in the department of Arauca, FLIP found the press freedom situation especially worrying. "Demobilised" paramilitaries and Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia (FARC) guerrillas have been overwhelmingly responsible for threats and assaults against journalists in the two cities in recent months.

Read the full report here (Spanish only): http://www.flip.org.co/veralerta.php?idAlerta=309

(30 July 2008)



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Also from the Communiqué, 30 July 2008

INTERNATIONAL: EVERY HUMAN HAS RIGHTS MEDIA AWARDS 30 July 2008 BRAZIL: JOURNALISTS GET DEATH THREATS WHEN REPORTING IN SHANTYTOWN 30 July 2008 CANADA: POLICE POSING AS REPORTERS ERODES PRESS FREEDOM, SAYS CJFE 30 July 2008 SERBIA: PROTESTERS ATTACK JOURNALISTS COVERING KARADZIC'S ARREST 30 July 2008 CAMBODIA: MEDIA BIAS DELEGITIMISES ELECTION, SAYS HUMAN RIGHTS WATCH 30 July 2008 ZIMBABWE: IFJ AND IPI CALL FOR INQUIRY INTO JOURNALIST'S DEATH 30 July 2008 CHINA: CHINA AND THE IOC BACKTRACK ON OLYMPIC INTERNET ACCESS 30 July 2008

Colombia

Journalist in Villavicencio, Meta, receives death threat 22 December 2011 FLIP concerned over actions against journalists in period leading up to elections 31 October 2011 See all alerts: Colombia


South America

ECUADOR: Local media team banned from covering referendum vote counting 9 February 2012 ECUADOR: Fundamedios and AEDEP challenge constitutionality of amendments to Democracy Code 9 February 2012 VENEZUELA: Journalists attacked by men at funeral 8 February 2012 ECUADOR: Fundamedios condemns million-dollar fines against journalists Calderón and Zurita 8 February 2012


 
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