Freedom of Expression
Press Release 158/06
OFFICE OF THE SPECIAL RAPPORTEUR FOR FREEDOM OF EXPRESSION CONCLUDES VISIT TO COSTA RICA
San José, November 29, 2006. In concluding its working visit to Costa Rica, the Office of the Special Rapporteur for Freedom of Expression of the Inter-American Commission on Human Rights (IACHR) of the OAS highlights the fundamental role that freedom of expression has played in the long democratic tradition of the country and recommends that the competent authorities continue to advance in this matter. In this respect, the Office of the Special Rapporteur considers it important to give priority to the following issues: investigating the murders of two journalists that occurred in the country in recent years and punishing those responsible; continuing the process of bringing the legislation into conformity with international standards on freedom of expression; and expanding the citizenry’s access to information in the hands of the State.
During its visit to Costa Rica, carried out between November 27 and 29, 2006, the Special Rapporteur for Freedom of Expression, Ignacio J. Álvarez, attorney Carlos Zelada, and journalist María Isabel Rivero met with representatives of the State, civil society, and communications media. At the state level, they were received by the First Vice-President of the Republic and Minister of Justice, Laura Chinchilla; by the Director General of Foreign Affairs of the Chancellery, José Joaquín Chaverri; by the Attorney General of the Nation, Francisco Dall’Anese Ruiz; by the President of the Legislative Assembly, Francisco Antonio Pacheco; by the President of the Constitutional Chamber of the Supreme Court, Luis Fernando Solano; and by the Human Rights Ombudsperson (Defensora de los Habitantes), Lisbeth Quesada. Additionally, the delegation of the Office of the Special Rapporteur met with recognized civil society organizations, including the College of Journalists of Costa Rica (Colegio de Periodistas de Costa Rica), the Institute of the Press and Freedom of Expression (Instituto de Prensa y Libertad de Expresión, IPLEX), the Center for Justice and International Law (Centro para la Justicia y el Derecho Internacional, CEJIL), and the Inter-American Institute of Human Rights (Instituto Interamericano de Derechos Humanos), as well as representatives of communications media in the country. These meetings permitted the Office of the Special Rapporteur to complement and update information on the situation of the right to freedom of expression in Costa Rica. Accompanying this press release is an annex with the observations of the Office of the Special Rapporteur with respect to some issues related to freedom of expression in Costa Rica.
The Office of the Special Rapporteur thanks the different state organs, civil society organizations, and the media and journalists for their extensive collaboration during this visit. The Office of the Special Rapporteur, as part of its mandate, reiterates its disposition to collaborate and provide technical assistance to the initiatives in the matter of freedom of expression that are being presented in the country.
For additional information about the Office of the Special Rapporteur: http://www.cidh.org/relatoria/
OBSERVATIONS OF THE OFFICE OF THE SPECIAL RAPPORTEUR FOR FREEDOM OF EXPRESSION ON THE SITUATION OF FREEDOM OF EXPRESSION IN COSTA RICA
The following are the specific observations of the Office of the Special Rapporteur at the conclusion of its visit to Costa Rica, carried out from November 27 to 29, 2006:
1. Investigations with respect to the murders of two journalists.
The Office of the Special Rapporteur received information related to the investigations of the murders of journalist Parmenio Medina, committed in 2001 for motives that could have been related to his journalistic activity, and of journalist Ivannia Mora, carried out in 2003 for motives that were apparently not related to her journalistic activity. In both cases, the Office of the Special Rapporteur was informed that those responsible for these crimes have not yet been punished.
The Office of the Special Rapporteur highlights the importance of maximizing state efforts to ensure that such investigations are effective and result in the sanctioning of the actual perpetrators and the masterminds. It is of fundamental importance that these crimes do not remain in impunity. As has been stated by the IACHR and by the Inter-American Court of Human Rights, impunity can lead to the repetition of acts of the same nature, which in turn can lead to self-censorship by communicators.
2. Legislation related to criminal proceedings against journalists.
The IACHR and the Inter-American Court of Human Rights have pronounced from various perspectives, within the framework of Article 13 of the American Convention on Human Rights, with respect to the negative consequences for freedom of expression of criminal sanctions as a means of protecting the honor or reputation of those who are involved in matters of public interest.
The IACHR and the Inter-American Court of Human Rights have clearly stated that expressions regarding public officials or other persons who carry out functions of a public nature must enjoy a wider margin of openness and extensive debate, which is essential for the functioning of a democratic system. The democratic control that society exercises through public opinion foments transparency in state activities and promotes the responsibility of functionaries in their public administration, which is the reason that there must be a broader margin of tolerance with respect to affirmations and opinions expressed regarding those who are linked to matters of public interest.
The foregoing considerations do not signify, in any manner, that the honor of public officials or of persons involved in issues of public interest must not be legally protected, but rather that this must be done in accordance with the principles of democratic pluralism.
Based on these considerations, within the framework of the inter-American system for the protection of human rights, the use of the crime of desacato (which penalizes criticism of public officials) or other criminal standards used with the objective of inhibiting criticism directed at public persons or at sanctioning expressions of public interest, are incompatible with the right to freedom of expression.
In this respect, Principle 10 of the Declaration of Principles on Freedom of Expression of the IACHR states that: “Privacy laws should not inhibit or restrict investigation and dissemination of information of public interest. The protection of a person’s reputation should only be guaranteed through civil sanctions in those cases in which the person offended is a public official, a public person or a private person who has voluntarily become involved in matters of public interest. In addition, in these cases, it must be proven that in disseminating the news, the social communicator had the specific intent to inflict harm, was fully aware that false news was disseminated, or acted with gross negligence in efforts to determine the truth or falsity of such news."
Therefore, the international obligation of the States party to the American Convention on Human Rights to make their legislation compatible with that instrument implies, on the one hand, the repeal of the crime of desacato, and on the other hand, the elimination of any type of crime that, in attempting to protect honor or reputation, has an intimidating effect that restricts debate on issues of public interest.
In this vein, the Office of the Special Rapporteur observes that Costa Rica is one of the nine countries in the Hemisphere that have repealed the crime of desacato from their legislation in recent years. However, it notes that the Costa Rican legislation maintains in Article 7 of the Press Law (Ley de Imprenta) prison sentences for those who, through the press, commit defamation crimes. Therefore, the Office of the Special Rapporteur considers it to be of fundamental importance that the competent authorities of the State work towards the repeal of Article 7 of the Press Law, promoting in addition to this advances in legislation consistent with the international standards in the matter of freedom of expression.
In this respect, the Office of the Special Rapporteur emphasizes that there is currently a bill on freedom of expression and press under consideration by the Legislative Assembly that contemplates the repeal of the aforementioned Article 7 of the Press Law and that would bring about advances with respect to other important issues in the matter of freedom of expression. The Office of the Special Rapporteur urges the Legislative Assembly to consider this bill promptly.
3. Access to information.
The Office of the Special Rapporteur received information from civil society organizations, journalists, and communications media about the refusal of some public officials to provide information requested from them, a problem that is apparently more common in the interior of the country.
The Office of the Special Rapporteur observes that although there is no specific law on access to information, this right is consecrated in Article 30 of the Constitution. Given that many public officials do not respect this right in practice, individuals find it necessary to file actions for the infringement of fundamental rights and freedoms (recursos de amparo) before the Constitutional Chamber of the Supreme Court of Justice, which are generally resolved in their favor, generating positive jurisprudence.
Access to information is a human right that forms part of Article 13 of the American Convention on Human Rights, which consecrates freedom of thought and expression. This was recently recognized by the Inter-American Court of Human Rights in its judgment in the case of Claude Reyes et al. In that judgment, the Court also reaffirmed the principle of maximum disclosure, which establishes the presumption that all information is accessible within a limited system of restrictions, and established the obligation of the States to provide information that is requested from them without requiring that the requester establish a direct interest in it.
In this sense, the Office of the Special Rapporteur urges the State to train its organs, officials, and agents charged with attending requests for access to information and to stimulate a culture of maximum disclosure. Additionally, the Office of the Special Rapporteur considers it important to promote legislative initiatives that develop the constitutional precept and incorporate in the law the international standards on this matter, to prevent the disclosure or non-disclosure of information from being subject to the discretion of an official or state dependency.
San José, Costa Rica, November 29, 2006.