El Salvador

EL SALVADOR The state of siege that was imposed after a Farabundo Marti Liberation Front (FMLN) offensive last November was lifted by the national legislature in April. Journalists, however, remain under the threat of terrorist violence and the efforts of the extreme left to control, intimidate and pressure the media. El Diario de Hoy has charged that it receives an average of two threatening phone calls a day, apparently made by FMLN militants. The recent death in an auto crash of two journalists was at first believed to be the work of criminals but later shown to be accidental. Foreign correspondents are refused entry to battle zones - for security reasons, the government says - even at their own risk. On May 24, two journalists, Chris Norton and Joel Millman, were said by the Armed Forces press office to have deliberately defamed military officers.