Perú II

WHEREAS At the conclusion of a session of the Council of Ministers on March 10, then- Justice Minister Aurelio Pastor, flanked by the Prime Minister, Javier Velásquez Quesquén, publicly demanded, on behalf of the government, that Congress and the Public Prosecutor’s Office investigate the independent re-opening of America Television WHEREAS Authorities of the Executive Branch took on contradictory and ambivalent positions in regard to a presumed intervention of the government of President Alan García Pérez in the private affairs of a media group WHEREAS The statement in question expressed tacit approval of the actions initiated by the former owner of America Television, José Enrique Crousillat, sentenced to eight years in prison for having taken 69 million soles from Vladimiro Montesinos during the regime of ex-president Fujimori WHEREAS Coincidentally, José Enrique Crousillat was the beneficiary of a controversial presidential pardon in December on the basis humanitarian reasons, which was considered a step backward in the fight against corruption; and that said pardon was reversed amidst serious accusations of irregularities WHEREAS Then-Justice Minister Aurelio Pastor accused the group El Comercio, without evidence, of assaulting democratic stability for having called for his resignation, just as did other news media and even politicians of his own party; and finally, he urged citizens to rise up against the media WHEREAS IAPA members have made a request to charge the Commission on Freedom of the Press and Information with the organization of a mission to visit Peru THE MIDYEAR MEETING OF THE IAPA RESOLVES: To express its concern and remain in a state of alert in view of the accusations brought forth in the Assembly in regard to the various acts that attack freedom of expression in Peru To charge the Commission on Freedom of the Press and Information to contemplate the formation of an investigative mission to visit Peru to analyze the situation prevailing in that country.