WHEREAS
the International Federation of Human Rights (FIDH) and the Asociación Pro Derechos Humanos de España (APDHE) have submitted a complaint to the International Criminal Court accusing the independent media of having promoted and encouraged political persecution of those who opposed the June 28 coup
WHEREAS
the complaint to the court does not have the legal and judicial foundation necessary to bring an action of this type, since the court deals with war crimes, crimes against humanity and genocide
WHEREAS
the complaint´s media and propaganda intention is to discredit the independent media and try to influence their criteria and the editorial freedom which are indispensible for the framework of plural and diverse press freedom
WHEREAS
because of the limits in some groups´ interpretation of the role of the media in oversight, opinion, criticism and education of public opinion, diverse independent voices are needed to understand society´s complex problems
THE GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF THE IAPA RESOLVES
to express concern about the use of procedures that distort goals concerning the role of the media without respecting its editorial independence and its role among those rights and constitutional guarantees that require press freedom and the elimination of elements that could be considered censorship and prior restraint for all types of information and opinion
to acknowledge the support of civic groups in the face of this type of complaint which attempts to discredit the media in complex social situations
to ask the International Criminal Court to dismiss any complaint that undermines press freedom as established in universal and inter-American human rights documents, considering that any step against these guarantees would set a bad precedent for the public right to information.
next events
Madrid, Spain