Freedom of Expression
Press Release 77/14
PRESS RELEASE
77/14
IACHR MAKES ITS
CHOICE OF EDISON LANZA AS SPECIAL RAPPORTEUR FOR FREEDOM OF EXPRESSION
Washington, D.C., July
23, 2014 – In exercise of its autonomy and independence, the Inter-American
Commission on Human Rights (IACHR) made its choice today of Edison Lanza for
the post of Special Rapporteur for Freedom of Expression. The Commission sent
the name of the selected person to the Secretary General of the Organization of
American States (OAS), who has expressed his agreement with the appointment. In
the terms of Article 15 of its Rules of Procedure, Edison Lanza will be
appointed for a three-year period, renewable once, and will take office on
October 6, 2014.
The Inter-American
Commission made its decision based on the professional qualities and experience
of the candidate, taking into special consideration his technical expertise, leadership,
and ability to work effectively with States, civil society organizations, and
all other actors of the Inter-American System of Human Rights. In addition, the
Commission took into account the wide support that his candidacy received
during the consultation process, expressed by civil society organizations of
numerous countries in the region.
Edison Lanza is a
Uruguayan lawyer and journalist. He has been a reporter in several media
outlets, consultant for international organizations on issues of freedom of
expression and right to information, counsel for the Uruguayan journalists’
union, and a university professor. In addition, he has filed several emblematic
cases related to the right to freedom of expression in the Inter-American Human
Rights System; he has been a member, directed and founded several
non-governmental organizations for the defense of the right to freedom of
expression, and he is a member of several national bodies to monitor compliance
of standards related to freedom of expression and access to public information.
He has written and promoted several bills at the national and regional level
and is author of numerous publications specialized in the subject. He graduated
as a lawyer and took graduate studies on freedom of expression and criminal law
at the Universidad de la República of Uruguay, and he is a PhD candidate at the
Faculty of Social Sciences of the University of Buenos Aires on studies linked
to the regulatory processes of audiovisual media in the region.
Edison Lanza is co-founder
and president of the Center for Archives and Access to Public Information,
co-founder of the Media and Society Group, member of the Committee on Freedom
of Expression and Access to Information in the Regional Alliance for Freedom of
Expression and Information, and Member of the Working Group on the
Inter-American System of Human Rights and the OAS of the IFEX-ALC alliance in
defense of freedom of expression. He has been a consultant for several
organizations, including the United Nations Special Rapporteurship on Freedom
of Expression, the World Bank, the UN Education, Science and Culture
Organization (UNESCO), and the World Association of Community Radios (AMARC).
He was hired by the Legislative Assembly of El Salvador to develop a bill that
guarantees the exercise of the right of reply and correction, was a member of
the expert group convened by the Department of International Law of the OAS in
the process of building the Template Inter-American Law on Access to Public
Information, was appointed by Uruguay’s Executive branch as a member of the
Technical Advisory Committee that drafted the basis of the bill of Audiovisual
Communication Services, was a representative of civil society in the Technical
Advisory Committee which prepared the basis for the regulation on the Rights of
Children and Adolescents , Freedom of Expression and Media, and was a member of
the Working Group that developed an initiative to amend the offenses of
contempt and slander in Uruguayan legislation, approved in 2008.
The selection of
Edison Lanza was the result of a comprehensive, open, transparent and
participatory process. The call for resumés for the post was published on
December 19, 2013. The Commission thanks and values the interest of the 49
persons who presented their candidacies for the post. During the 150th Period
of Sessions, held at the headquarters from March 20 to April 4, 2014, the
Commission selected six finalists and published their resumés on its Website.
In accordance with Article 15.4 of the Rules of Procedure of the IACHR, the
Commission opened a period of time to receive comments from the OAS Member
States and civil society on the finalist candidates, from May 1 to 31, 2014.
During this period, the IACHR received 154 letters with comments from OAS Member
States and from civil society. The letters received came from three
international organizations, ten from regional organizations, 51 from
Guatemala, 20 from Uruguay, 16 from Peru, 15 from Ecuador, 13 from Argentina, 5
from Chile, 5 from Mexico, 4 from the United States, 2 from El Salvador, 2 from
Bolivia, 2 from Switzerland, and one from each of these countries: Venezuela,
Costa Rica, Brazil, Colombia and Spain.
The plenary of the
Commission interviewed the six finalists on July 22, during the 151th Period of
Sessions, which takes place at headquarters in Washington, D.C., July 14 to 25,
2014. The IACHR recognizes the excellent professional capacity of all the
finalists, which was once again demonstrated in the high quality of the
interviews. The Commission thanks them for their participation in this process.
The Special
Rapporteur on Freedom of Expression, Catalina Botero, will continue her work
until October 6, 2014, the end date of her second 3-year-mandate. The
Commission wishes to recognize the work that Catalina Botero has done and
continues to do in the defense and protection of the right to freedom of
expression and her contribution to the progress made in the region through her
effective leadership.
A principal,
autonomous body of the Organization of American States (OAS), the IACHR derives
its mandate from the OAS Charter and the American Convention on Human Rights.
The Inter-American Commission has a mandate to promote respect for human rights
in the region and acts as a consultative body to the OAS in this area. The
Commission is composed of seven independent members who are elected in an
individual capacity by the OAS General Assembly and who do not represent their
countries of origin or residence.