Ecuador

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WHEREAS President Correa has declared that the press is the biggest enemy of his government WHEREAS recently members of Congress belonging to the government party and the opposition reached positive agreement to pass a Communication Law that is consistent with international conventions to which President Correa has been opposed WHEREAS President Correa, using his constitutional right, introduced into the Law on Citizen Participation the obligation of the news media to “render account,” as if they were public officials or state-owned companies WHEREAS the obligation of the news media to “render account” dangerously puts them on the same footing as the “public services” and in addition subjects them to control by an agency in turn controlled by the executive branch of government WHEREAS in the next few days the National Assembly is due to approve or reject President Correa’s veto of the Law on Citizen Participation WHEREAS Principle 5 of the Declaration of Chapultepec states “Prior censorship, restrictions on the circulation of the media or dissemination of their reports, forced publication of information, the imposition of obstacles to the free flow of news, and restrictions on the activities and movements of journalists directly contradict freedom of the press” THE IAPA MIDYEAR MEETING RESOLVES to urge the National Assembly to respect the Legislative Agreement reached concerning the Communication Law, extending it to any regulation that is passed to ask the National Assembly to vote for rejection of President Correa’s veto of the Law on Citizen Participation and not allow that in creating an obligation for the news media to “render account” freedom of the press to be curtailed to reject the attempt of President Correa to sabotage the Legislative Agreement reached concerning the Communication Law by vetoing the Law on Citizen Participation.

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