El Salvador

In recent months journalists' dealings with government sources have not been normal. Many officials of the national and local governments continue systematically to refuse to meet with journalists and supply information of public interest. The most obvious case of denial of information of public interest is that of the mayor of Antiguo Cuscatlán, Milagro Navas, who refuses to meet with journalists or to answer questions about her work. For a year, journalists have been asking for explanations of the granting of a license-in perpetuity-for two casinos in that town. A member of the council asked that the request be made in writing, and a journalist from El Diario de Hoy did so, but the issue has not yet been resolved. The questions concern the legality of the operating licenses of the casinos, which most of the residents oppose. Another worrisome issue is the continuous attacks by the FMLN, the main opposition party, against journalists of the two largest newspapers, because of their articles describing the party's anniversary march during which support was expressed for Osama bin Laden and U.S. flags were burned. The current general coordinator of the FMLN, Salvador Sánchez Ceren, who participated in the march, publicly accused the managing editor of El Diario de Hoy of working for the State Information Office. The charge is absolutely false, and the journalist demanded that the leaders of the FMLN either deny it or prove it. A few days later, a photographer of La Prensa Gráfica was accused to going to the Legislative Assembly to take pictures for the State Information Office. Just like the earlier accusation, this one was false. The charges represent a dangerous act by the FMLN of reacting to accurate, objective and responsible journalistic reports as well as a clear deterioration of the relationship between this Salvadorean party and free journalism.