Journalist detained and charged with defamation
New York, December 20, 2005—The Committee to Protect Journalists strongly protests the detention on Friday of Mexican journalist and human rights activist Lydia Cacho Ribeiro. She was released on bail on Saturday and faces criminal defamation charges. Cacho, a columnist for the Mexico City-based weekly magazines Día Siete and Tentaciones, was arrested around noon while…
Mexican radio reporter survives murder attempt
New York, November 8, 2005—A Mexican radio reporter was seriously wounded on Sunday after being shot seven times at close range while walking his dog in a park in Loma Bonita, a town in Oaxaca state. The Committee to Protect Journalists is investigating whether the shooting was retaliation for the journalist’s work. Benjamín Fernández González,…
Mexico’s Fox to seek special prosecutor to fight crimes against free expression
New York, September 15, 2005—Mexican President Vicente Fox said today he will ask his nation’s attorney general to appoint a special prosecutor to investigate crimes against free expression, a commitment made after a series of deadly attacks against journalists in Mexico’s northern states. Meeting with a delegation from the Committee to Protect Journalists at the…
Newspaper employees dragged from offices
New York, July 19, 2005—The Committee to Protect Journalists is outraged by the violent removal of 31 employees from the offices of the Oaxaca-based daily Noticias. The employees had been confined to their offices for the last several weeks, due to a blockade erected by a striking, pro-government union. Around 8 p.m. Monday night, dozens…
Ex-police chief detained in photographer’s murder
New York, July 7, 2005—An ex-police chief in Mexico is being held for alleged involvement in the November 2004 gangland-style slaying of Gregorio Rodríguez Hernández, a photographer with the Mazatlán edition of the newspaper El Debate, in the northwestern state of Sinaloa, according to press reports. Abel Enríquez Zavala was detained on Sunday after investigators…
CPJ calls on Mexican governor to end newspaper blockade
Dear Mr. Ruiz Ortiz: The Committee to Protect Journalists is deeply concerned about the safety of 31 employees of the Oaxaca-based daily Noticias who have been held inside the newspaper’s facilities for nearly two weeks after supporters of a pro-government union staged a strike outside the newspaper. We call on you to use the power of your office to bring an immediate end to this situation and allow the publication to resume its normal work.