Just 24 days after the elections in Guatemala, non-profit organizations for human rights and freedom of the press have denounced the intensification of attacks against media outlets that criticize the current Guatemalan government, which, they have stressed, undermines democracy.
"We call on the authorities to respect and protect freedom of expression and of the press as a condition to guarantee democracy and the legitimacy of the electoral process," stressed in a statement a dozen organizations that are concerned and alert about the situation in the Central American country.
And it is that, in Guatemala, a system of intimidation, silencing and restrictions on the free exercise of journalism has increased, they pointed out.
According to the recent Prensa Libre survey, in a context in which only 16 percent of the population trusts the Supreme Electoral Tribunal as an institution that guarantees a democratic electoral process, such restrictions on the press may further affect the credibility of the result of the scrutiny.
This is not new, since the threats facing the press are historical, especially the community threat in territories where national and international companies associate with organized crime and local authorities to silence journalistic investigations, the organizations stressed.
In view of this, a team of observers traveled to various areas of the national territory and held dialogues with journalists and communicators to learn about the circumstances in which they carry out their activities and the challenges they face, as well as with directors of the media, representatives of organizations civil society and state authorities to find out about their initiatives and efforts to guarantee press freedom.
"The conclusion we reached is extremely worrying not only for the right of journalists and communicators to inform, but mainly for the right of citizens to be informed to make decisions freely and consciously," they pointed out.
The mission gave an account of how a scenario exists in which the press is seen as a threat to the alliance between state and private actors, created to control institutions, and sustain corruption and impunity in the country, making harassment and criminalization a new form of censorship that began during the government of Jimmy Morales, intensified with Alejandro Giammattei, and that could be consolidated in these elections.
This Tuesday, the Special Prosecutor's Office against Impunity in Guatemala, requested 40 years in prison for the president and founder of the newspaper El Periódico, the journalist José Rubén Zamora, accused of money laundering, influence peddling and blackmail. The journalist has been in pretrial detention since he was arrested on July 29, 2022.
El Periódico had to close in mid-May after denouncing political persecution by President Alejandro Giammattei.
That, the signatory organizations pointed out, “is an example of how this repressive system chooses strategic objectives to send an intimidating message to the press in general. Daring to denounce the corruption and impunity embedded in the Guatemalan State was enough to trigger the persecution. Unfortunately, the case of El Periódico is not isolated.
Added to this, the mission said it had verified other worrisome cases for journalism in its different expressions, for example, the criminalization of Carlos Choc and Robinson Ortega, the arbitrary imprisonment of Anastasia Mejía, the illegal detention of Norma Sancir and the attack suffered by Sonny Figueroa.
Fear reached the pens, and several journalists have had to stop signing their work for fear of reprisals and becoming "targets" of subpoenas to reveal their sources.
In this sense, they pointed out that around 20 journalists left the country after being threatened or legally accused for covering uncomfortable power, while others are being watched or have received death threats, even from candidates.
«The arbitrary use of the official guideline and the government pressure on advertisers reinforces the silencing attempts. Self-censorship is also the result of the actions of net centers and others dedicated to constant digital harassment and intimidation, such as those carried out by the Fundación Contra el Terrorismo. Machismo, racism, homophobia and classism, among other axes of oppression, are aggravating factors of the violence that journalists suffer due to their work.
Although it is true that Guatemala has a prosecutor's office specialized in crimes against journalists, most cases of intimidation and aggression against the press are not investigated or go unpunished, so the actions are insufficient. To this they add that the Office of the Human Rights Ombudsman does not actively comply with its mandate in this context.
In addition, the restriction on state sources is added, which increases the lack of transparency.
"Given this serious scenario, we conclude that without a free and independent press there can be no free and fair elections, and without free and fair elections there can be no true democracy, therefore the State of Guatemala must take urgent measures to guarantee the right to inform and be informed”, they emphasized.
Finally, the organizations called on the authorities to respect and protect freedom of expression and of the press as a condition to guarantee democracy and the legitimacy of the electoral process, establishing safe and favorable conditions for the exercise of journalistic work throughout the country. .
The signatory organizations are: ARTICLE 19 Office for Mexico and Central America, Committee to Protect Journalists ?CPJ?, Free Press Unlimited, Freedom House, Foundation for Freedom of the Press ?FLIP?, fundamedios, IFEX-LAC, Protection International Mesoamerica, Reporters Without Borders ?RSF?, and southern voices.
You may be interested in: Organization Article 19 prepares events within the framework of World Press Freedom Day
