Freedom of Expression
Colombia
25. Since it was established, the Office of the Special Rapporteur has been reporting an anguishing annual account of the murders of journalists and media workers in Colombia, particularly those in which the relationship between their work in media and the crime was most apparent. This year, the Office of the Special Rapporteur received information on four assassinations of journalists and other media workers, without, as of the date of this report, having received confirmation of details so as to be able to establish a clear relationship between the homicides and their work as journalists.
26. The Office of the Special Rapporteur has received, with concern, the reports from different civil society organizations on impunity in cases of murders of and threats to journalists, as well as complaints regarding the sluggishness of the investigations and the delays in the judicial proceedings. The Office of the Special Rapporteur calls on the Colombian authorities to step up their efforts to undertake diligent and effective investigations that make it possible to identify and punish the persons responsible for these acts, and to establish clearly the motives in those cases in which there is no certainty as yet. The murder of social communicators has a profound chilling effect on society, even in those cases in which there is doubt (and in those cases precisely because of the doubt) as to the relationship between the crime and the victim’s work in media. This effect is amplified if the citizens observe that these homicides are in impunity. The Inter-American Court of Human Rights has noted: “…the State has the obligation to use all the legal means at its disposal to combat that situation [of impunity], since impunity fosters chronic recidivism of human rights violations, and total defenselessness of victims and their relatives.”[1]
27. Also of concern to the Office of the Special Rapporteur is that, in addition to the already-complex situation that the situation of armed conflict poses to the full exercise of the freedom of expression, threats and assaults have been increasingly common as a result of reports by news media and journalists of corruption cases involving public officials in the exercise of their duties.
PRINCIPLE 9 OF THE DECLARATION OF PRINCIPLES ON FREEDOM OF EXPRESSION (Murder, kidnapping, intimidation of and/or threats to social communicators, as well as the material destruction of communications media)
28. The Office of the Special Rapporteur considers worrisome the large number of cases reported that are related to this principle, which have diverse causes and are reported in different regions of the country. Journalists and media outlets continue to receive threats and suffer attacks in the context of the armed conflict, but also as a result of their reports of organized crime and corruption. Some journalists were forced to abandon their places of residence and even to flee the country, as has been the case of Cristian Herrero Nariño, Claudia Julieta Duque, and Luis Alberto Castaño. As for this last case, the program that Castaño directed on the radio was the only news programming in the municipality of Líbano, in Tolima, and it was suspended when he left.[2]
29. On September 7 and 8, 2004, independent journalist Claudia Julieta Duque received anonymous threats by phone. Duque had already been followed by vehicles. She continued to receive threats and continued to be followed; then, on November 17, she received a phone threat warning that they would kill her daughter. Since 1999 Duque has suffered intimidation, when she began to investigate the assassination of journalist and humorist Jaime Garzón. In the course of her investigations, she has pointed to the Administrative Security Department (Departamento Administrativo de Seguridad, (DAS)).[3] Considering the level of the threats and the difficulties plaguing the investigation, Duque opted to leave Colombia in November.[4]
30. The Office of the Special Rapporteur received information on cases of kidnappings, abductions, and threats in the context of the armed conflict. Among the journalists who were kidnapped or abducted, apparently by armed groups, have been Julien Fouchet, of Radio Nova,[5] detained in Santa Marta[6]; Inés Peña,[7] of Enlace 10, kidnapped and tortured in Barrancabermeja,[8] and Luis Carlos Burbano Carvajal, of Caracol Noticias Televisión and his cameraman Mauricio Mesa Lancheros.[9] The Office of the Special Rapporteur received reports of threats against Garibaldi López[10] and Diego Waldrón[11] of Calor Estéreo,[12]Barrancabermeja; the daily newspaper El Nuevo Día,[13] in Ibagué,[14] and Luis Alberto Castaño, mentioned above.[15]
31. The Office of the Special Rapporteur was also informed of several cases in the city of Cúcuta, in Norte de Santander, by the border with Venezuela. One of these was the case of Cristian Herrera Nariño,[16] who received several threats that led him to leave the country.[17] Journalist Jorge Elías Corredor Quintero,[18] director of the program El Pregón del Norte, was the target of an assassination attempt in which his step-daughter was killed.[19] In June, journalists Olga Lucía Cotamo, director of regional information for RCN in Cúcuta, Angela Echeverri, host, and Fernando Fonseca, all of RCN in Cúcuta,[20] received a threat by a pamphlet that was apparently signed by the Ejército de Liberación Nacional (ELN).[21]
32. The Office of the Special Rapporteur was informed of other cases such as that of threats to journalist and human rights defender Ademir Luna,[22] and which also extended to taxi driver Fabián Correo,[23] in the Magdalena Medio region; and the case of columnist Luis Eduardo Gómez,[24] who was said to have received threats from officials in the municipality of Arboletes,[25] Silvio Sierra Sierra,[26] threatened in the city of Popayán,[27] and Geovanny Serrano,[28] intimidated by unknown persons.[29] On October 2, 2004, Semana magazine reported in an editorial that some of its journalists had received threats, yet it was impossible to determine if they were from drug traffickers or members of the military. In addition, according to the magazine, several telephone conversations had been illegally wiretapped.[30]
PROGRESS
33. In November, a process of awarding radio frequencies began for 400 community radio stations in different communities of Colombia, which would join 476 such radio stations already existing in the country.[31] The Office of the Special Rapporteur considers this process auspicious in light of Principle 12 of the Declaration of Principles on Freedom of Expression, according to which the assignment of radio and television frequencies should consider democratic criteria that guarantee equal opportunities for all individuals to access them.
34. On October 12, 2004, the Constitutional Court handed down a ruling in which it recognized journalism as a profession, but rejected all the articles of a bill that sought to set a priori requirements, such as having an official journalist card, or compulsory certification by the State. One is a journalist, according to the Constitutional Court, if he or she is involved in handling information, independent of having a university degree; recognition as such does not depend on the Government.[32] This judgment is consistent with Principle 6 of the Declaration of Principles on Freedom of Expression, which states, in part: “Compulsory membership or the requirements of a university degree for the practice of journalism constitute unlawful restrictions of freedom of expression.”
[1] Inter-American Court of Human Rights, Paniagua Morales et al. v. Guatemala Case.
[2] On September 9, 2004, Luis Alberto Castaño, director of information for the community radio station Café 93.5, was forced to leave the municipality of Líbano, in the department of Tolima, due to threats received and the alleged existence of a plan by the paramilitaries to assassinate him.
[3] Reporters without Borders, “Una periodista víctima de repetidas amenazas,” at http://www.rsf.fr/Article.php3?id_Article=11364, September 10, 2004, and Inter-American Press Association, Country-by-Country Reports, Annual Assembly, at: www.sipiapa.com, October 2004.
[4] Fundación para la Libertad de Prensa, “Amenazas obligan al exilio de periodistas,” http://www.ifex.org/es/content/view/full/62914, November 30, 2004.
[5] Reporters without Borders, www.rsf.org, February 19, 2004, Reporters without Borders, www.rsf.org, citing information from the French news agency AFP, Reporters without Borders, www.rsf.org, February 28, 2004, http://www.rsf.org/Article.php3?id_Article=9296.
[6] On January 15, 2004, Julien Fouchet, 27 years of age, of French origin, who worked with Radio Nova and was a law student in Bogotá, Colombia, disappeared when at the Sierra Nevada de Santa Marta, situated by the Caribbean coast. The French Embassy officially announced his disappearance February 18, 2004. On February 27, 2004, a French diplomatic source finally reported that Fouchet had been released.
[7] Committee to Protect Journalists, www.cpj.org, February 4, 2004. An analysis of the freedom of the press in Colombia presented by FLIP in February 2004 denounced threats and attacks on the freedom of the press. See http://www.flip.org.co/informes/2004/Enero.PDF.
[8]On January 28, 2004, armed paramilitaries from the Autodefensa Unidas de Colombia (AUC) kidnapped journalist Inés Peña, 22 years of age, in Barrancabermeja, Santander, in northeastern Colombia. Peña hosts the Cultura por la vida segment on the news program La Mohana, produced on the private channel Enlace 10. On her program she levels criticisms at the paramilitaries in the region, in addition to denouncing human rights violations. She also works with youths on human rights issues, and is a leader of the Organización Femenina Popular. Peña and the organization she led had been threatened previously. The police in Barrancabermeja initiated an investigation into the incident.
[9] On October 10, 2004, Luis Carlos Burbano Carvajal of Caracol Noticias Televisión and his cameraman Mauricio Mesa Lancheros were held for several hours by members of the Fuerzas Armadas Revolucionarias de Colombia (FARC) in the municipality of La Divina Pastora, by the border between the departments of Nariño and Putumayo, in southern Colombia. They were producing a story on a painter’s exhibit in the upper Putumayo region. Burbano was wearing his vest and ID identifying him as a journalist; even so, the members of the FARC accused him of doing work not related to journalism. They were released the next day.
[10] On February 9, 2004, Garibaldi López, director of two radio programs on Calor Estéreo: Actualidad en Estéreo and Controversia, was threatened. That day a phone call was received at his home supposedly from the Autodefensas Unidas de Colombia (AUC) in which they told him: “The first was José Emeterio Rivas [journalist assassinated in April 2003], the second will be Garibaldi López, and the third Diego Waldrón.” López covers various issues, including human rights violations by paramilitaries.
[11] On February 14, 2004, journalist Diego Waldrón, 37 years of age, director of the weekly Siete Días and host of the radio program Noticias Calientes broadcast by Calor Estéreo in Barrancabermeja, in northern Colombia, received a death threat at home, by the alleged bodyguard of someone close to the mayor’s office. The threat was said to have been in retaliation for his comments on designations in the municipal police. He was warned to halt the criticisms of local officials or accept the consequences.
[12] Committee to Protect Journalists (CPJ), March 5, 2004, http://www.cpj.org/ cases04/americas_cases04/colombia.html, Reporters without Borders, www.rsf.org, February 25, 2004, Committee to Protect Journalists (CPJ), www. cpj.org .
[13] On August 17, 2004, El Nuevo Día, a daily newspaper in the city of Ibagué, received a death threat by email that had the letterhead of the Autodefensas Unidas de Colombia. The email made reference to an Article from a news agency published in the paper that referred to the alleged purchase by the paramilitary group known as “Centauros” of another group called “El Bloque de Tolima.” The spokespersons for the Bloque Centauro denied responsibility for the threat.
[14] Fundación para la Libertad de Prensa, (FLIP), “Diagnóstico de la libertad de prensa, agosto de 2004,” at www.flip.org, September 16, 2004.
[15] Reporters without Borders, “Black-out informativo en una ciudad del Departamento de Tolima,” in http://www.rsf.fr/Article.php3?id_Article=11477, September 29, 2004, and Inter-American Press Association, Country-by-Country Reports, Annual Assembly, at: www.sipiapa.com, October 2004.
[16]Reporters without Borders, “Varios periodistas amenazados en Cúcuta (Norte de Santander),” in: http://www.rsf.fr/Article.php3?id_Article=10650, June 16, 2004, Fundación para la Libertad de Prensa (FLIP), “Diagnóstico de la libertad de prensa, septiembre 2004,” at: www.flip.org, October 7, 2004.
[17] In March and April, Cristian Herrera Nariño, in charge of the judicial section of the daily La Opinión, of Cúcuta, received six anonymous threats and insults after publishing, in April, an article about the increase in car theft in the city. On June 10, Herrera and his photographer Carlos Patiño were assaulted by an agent from the judicial police (DIJIN) while they were taking photographs of an alleged drug trafficker during a police operation. That same night, two men passed by Herrera’s home to warn him not to publish the photographs. In addition, he had been warned of a plan to assassinate him. Finally, in September, Herrera opted to leave Colombia.
[18] Committee to Protect Journalists (CPJ), April 27, 2004, http://www.cpj.org/ news/2004/Colombia27apr04na_Sp.html, and Inter-American Press Association, Country-by-Country Reports, www.sipiapa.com.
[19] On April 22, 2004, at night, two men arrived at the home of journalist Jorge Elías Corredor Quintero, who directs the radio program El Pregón del Norte for the radio station La Voz del Norte in the city of Cúcuta. One of the men took out a weapon and shot at him. Corredor tried to defend himself but a bullet hit his step-daughter Livy Sierra Maldonado, 20 years old, who died instantly. He was under police protection, and the security forces offered 50 million pesos (about US$19,000) as a reward for information leading to the arrest of the killers.
[20] International Freedom of Expression Exchange, www.ifex.org, June 11, 2004, “Amenazados periodistas de RCN en Cúcuta,” Reporters without Borders, “Varios periodistas amenazados en Cúcuta (Norte de Santander),” at http://www.rsf.fr/Article.php3?id_Article=10650, June 10, 2004, and Inter-American Press Association, Country-by-Country Reports, Annual Assembly, at: www.sipiapa.com, October 2004.
[21] On June 8, 2004, threats were made, by means of a pamphlet, against Olga Lucía Cotamo, director of regional information, Angela Echeverri, host, and Fernando Fonseca, journalist and manager, all of the local RCN station in Cúcuta. According to information received by the Office of the Special Rapporteur, the threat declared them military targets because of their alleged political sympathy for President Álvaro Uribe, and they were threatened to leave the country. That pamphlet was left during the nighttime hours at the local radio station. It was denounced by the respective authorities. The pamphlet was apparently signed by the Frente Carlos Germán Velasco of the Ejército de Liberación Nacional (ELN).
[22] Reported by the Corporación Regional para la Defensa de los Derechos Humanos (CREDHOS) in Barrancabermeja, Colombia, on March 30, 2004. See http://www.caritaspanama.org/accionsolidaria/credho_sos_periodista.htm.
[23] On March 29, 2004, in the Magdalena Medio region, at night, two men got in a taxi that belonged to Eduardo Luna, the father of journalist and human rights defender Ademir Luna, and driven by Fabián Correo. They mistook Correo for Ademir Luna, had him turn into a dead-end street, where they threatened to kill him. Correo insisted on identifying himself by his name. The assailants transmitted a death threat for Luna and then left him. Correo reported the incident to the police.
[24] Inter-American Press Association, Country-by-Country Reports, Annual Assembly, at: www.sipiapa.com,
October 2004.
[25] On September 21, 2004, Luis Eduardo Gómez, director and owner of Revista Urabá and columnist with the local daily newspaper of Arboletes, in the department of Antioquia, denounced having received threats from officials of the local government after he reported on irregularities in the local administration.
[26] Fundación para la Libertad de Prensa, “Diagnóstico de la libertad de prensa, octubre de 2004,” at: www.flip.org.
[27] On October 14, 2004, in the city of Popayán, in southwestern Colombia, Silvio Sierra Sierra, host of the program Quéjese on Radio Super and correspondent for the daily El País, of Cali, was threatened. The intimidation was received by the National Police, in the form of an anonymous phone call warning of an alleged planned to assassinate Sierra. His program has included accusations concerning common criminals and gangs in Popayán.
[28] Assessment of the freedom of press in Colombia presented by FLIP in February 2004 on threats and attacks on the freedom of press, http://www.flip.org.co/informes/2004/Enero.PDF.
[29] On January 17, 2004, Geovanny Serrano, journalist with the Sindicato de Trabajadores de las Empresas Públicas de Cali (Sintraemcali), who has worked for Caracol, Colmundo Radio, Todelar and Telepacífico, in Valle del Cauca, east of Bogotá, received threats from unknown persons by telephone. The threats came after the broadcast of a television program in which he denounced alleged irregularities in municipal enterprises of Cali. In early 2003, Serrano had also denounced threats against him.
[30]Reporters without Borders, “Los periodistas de Semana amenazados y vigilados Telefónicamente,” October 5, 2004, in http://www.rsf.fr/Article.php3?id_Article=11518.
[31] World Association of Community Radio Broadcasters (AMARC), at: http://www.ifex.org/es/content /view/full/62665, November 19, 2004, at International Freedom of Information Exchange (IFEX), www.ifex.org.
[32] Inter-American Press Association. Country-by-Country Reports, Annual Assembly 2004. At www.sipiapa.org, October 2004.