19 August 2003
HAITIAN GOVERNMENT PROMISES TO REVIEW PRESS-FREEDOM CASES
The government of Haiti has promised to report on the status of investigations into the murders of journalists and other press-freedom violations, following recent meetings with the Committee to Protect Journalists (CPJ).
A delegation of CPJ members visiting Haiti met on 13 August with Prime Minister Yvon Neptune, who agreed to review a listing of cases documented by CPJ and to send a response within a month.
That day, Minister of Justice and Public Security Calixte Delatour told CPJ he would give an update within two weeks on the investigation into the alleged assassination attempt on journalist Michele Montas in December 2002 [See: http://www.ifex.org/en/content/view/full/18188/].
During CPJ's visit to Haiti, the group interviewed several journalists, many of whom said the government fails to stop pressures and intimidation from the ruling party and its supporters. Pressures cited by journalists ranged from death threats to physical attacks to politically motivated tax inspections.
"The killings of two Haitian journalists in recent years, the flight of dozens of others into exile, as well as ongoing attacks against those still working in the country, have made Haiti one of the most violent places to practice journalism in the western hemisphere, second only to Colombia," says CPJ.
CPJ expressed concern that attacks on journalists were likely to continue in the run-up to Haiti's legislative elections in November. It urged the government to "control and disarm so-called 'popular organizations' that clearly operate outside the law, promoting violence and attacking citizens, including journalists."
The Organization of American States' Rapporteur on Freedom of Expression, Eduardo Bertoni, has also voiced concerns about impunity in Haiti recently. In a report issued last month, Bertoni noted that '"the constant possibility of reprisals because of what is investigated, printed, or disseminated leads to self-censorship on the part of many media outlets and social communicators."
He expressed concern that those "affected by attacks on their freedom of expression do not always enjoy the necessary judicial protection, which, if provided, would make it possible to determine liabilities, stop the intimidation, and make reparation for the injury caused."
For more information, visit:
- CPJ: http://www.cpj.org/news/2003/Haiti15aug03na.html
- OAS Rapporteur on Free Expression: http://www.cidh.org/Relatoria/English/Country%20Reports/HaitiReport/toc.htm
- Reporters sans frontières: http://www.rsf.org/article.php3?id_article=3755
- IFEX Alerts on Haiti: http://www.ifex.org/en/content/view/archivealerts/118/
(Map of Haiti © Human Rights Watch)
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