New York, March 1, 2004—Three journalists were injured over the weekend while covering violent street clashes in Venezuela’s capital, Caracas, in the wake of a four-day antigovernment protest. The protesters were demanding a referendum to recall President Hugo Chávez Frías. On Friday, February 27, Venezuelan National Guard troops fired rubber bullets and threw tear gas…
New York, February 24, 2004—The Committee to Protect Journalists (CPJ) is deeply concerned about an increasing number of violent attacks against journalists and radio stations in Haiti in the wake of a rebellion aimed at ousting President Jean-Bertrand Aristide. On Saturday, February 21, unidentified gunmen shot Pierre Elisem, director and owner of Radio Hispagnola, in…
New York, February 20, 2004—The Committee to Protect Journalists (CPJ) is alarmed that Sony Bastien, president and general director of the Port-au-Princebased private station Radio Kiskeya, has recently received death threats for his work. The threats against Bastien came after the journalist read an editorial on February 5 criticizing President Jean Bertrand Aristide for accusing…
Read the Amicus Brief in English and Spanish [Acrobat PDF, 3.2 MB] San José, February 19, 2004—A delegation from the Committee to Protect Journalists (CPJ) submitted an amicus curiae brief to the Inter-American Court of Human Rights today in Costa Rica’s capital, San José. The brief was in support of Costa Rican journalist Mauricio Herrera…
New York, February 11, 2004—Nicaraguan journalist Carlos José Guadamuz was shot dead yesterday in Nicaragua’s capital, Managua, as he was arriving to work. The Committee to Protect Journalists (CPJ) continues to investigate whether his murder is related to his journalistic work. According to local news reports, the journalist’s murder took place at around 1 p.m.…
Dear Mr. Millán: The Committee to Protect Journalists (CPJ), a New Yorkbased independent, nonprofit organization that works to safeguard press freedom worldwide, is deeply concerned about Mexican journalist Irene Medrano Villanueva, who has been threatened and harassed during the last two months in connection with her journalistic work.
Bogotá, February 5, 2004—The Committee to Protect Journalists (CPJ) is investigating the murder of Oscar Alberto Polanco Herrera, a television journalist who was shot dead yesterday, February 4, in the town of Cartago, Valle del Cauca Department, 125 miles (200 kilometers) southwest of the capital, Bogotá. Authorities said that Polanco Herrera, director of the local…
New York, February 4, 2004—The Committee to Protect Journalists (CPJ) strongly condemns the recent violent attack against Colombian journalist and human rights activist Inés Peña, who was assaulted and tortured in the city of Barrancabermeja, Santander Department, last week. On January 28 at around 3 p.m., two armed men abducted the journalist while she was…
Dear Mr. de León: The Committee to Protect Journalists (CPJ), an independent, nonpartisan organization dedicated to defending press freedom worldwide, is disturbed by the alleged participation of Guatemala state agents in a June 2003 attack against José Rubén Zamora, publisher of the daily elPeriódico. We urge you to ensure that these allegations are fully investigated and to bring those responsible to justice.
Your Excellency: The Committee to Protect Journalists (CPJ), a New York-based nonprofit organization that works to safeguard press freedom worldwide, is concerned about Ecuadorian journalist Rodrigo Fierro Benítez, who was convicted of criminal defamation in 2003 and whose sentence was recently upheld.