HONDURAS

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There are clouds on the horizon threatening press freedom because of limitations caused by the government. President Manuel Zelaya uses unfriendly rhetoric to refer to the media. He accuses them of exaggerating the government’s mistakes and minimizing its accomplishments, promoting a perception that insecurity is worse than it is and, in general, of openly opposing his administration. So far he has made no direct attacks except when he made fun of a slogan of the daily El Heraldo in a public meeting, changing “Truth in your hands” to “Lies in your hands,” reacting to articles about government corruption. There are repeated insults of “groups in power,” and government people explain privately that it is an allusion to the owners of media outlets. But neither the president nor his close associates dare to explain or clarify the comments. This leads to an increase in insinuations about the media which has created an uncomfortable atmosphere for the practice of journalism. On April 26, the president said, “I do not meekly follow the powerful or the media.” On May 25, he complained of his treatment by the press and said the press “should be more positive.” He asked editors and journalists to “develop investigative journalism and instead of criticizing, report the positive things that we Hondurans have.” On August 22, he accused the media of provoking anxiety in the country with news about violent events, and the next day he accused them of yellow journalism and “throwing mud” at the Ministry of Public Safety On September 9, Ana Muñoz, a model, sued the owner of the daily La Tribuna, Carlos Flores, and the editor of the newspaper’s Extra Entretenimiento section for libel. Flores was acquitted by a court, and on September 26, Caballero attended a conciliation hearing to avoid a public trial. Journalist Aníbal Barrow was convicted of libel in a lawsuit brought by another journalist, Roxana Guevara. The sentencing is pending. On September 4, journalist Ernesto Rojas of the program “San Pedro Sula de Noche,” broadcast by Radio San Pedro, was sued by city council member Guillermo Villatoro Hall. On the same day in Tegucigalpa, the journalist Francisco Romero of the program “Hablemos de Noche de Hondured,” was sued by Yansen Juárez, national coordinator of programs and projects in the Public Education Ministry. On August 1, reporter Fanny Velásquez and cameraman Geovanny Méndez of the news show “TVC” of Corporación Televicentro, were verbally and physically attacked by Guillermo Villatoro, director of Pediatric Medicine at the Materno Infantil hospital, while they were covering news about health there. Roberto Michelleti, president of the National Congress, announced that the third and last debate on the law on transparency and public information would be held the first week of October.

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