Miami (June 12, 2012) .- The president of the Inter American Press Association (IAPA), Christopher Barnes, sent a letter to the Inter-American Commission on Human Rights (IACHR), applauding the process to choose the person to occupy the Office of the Special Rapporteur for Freedom of Expression (RFOE) and highlighted the issues and challenges that the new rapporteur will have to face.
In a letter sent to Joel Hernández García and Paulo Abrāo, president and executive secretary of the IACHR respectively, Barnes applauded the transparency of the process and the "diversity of experience, gender equality and plurality of perspectives" of the 10 finalists.
Next Monday the IACHR will close the deadline to present observations on the finalist candidates, who are: Renata Ávila Pinto, Andrés Cañizález, Mauricio Herrera Ulloa, Carlos Martín Lauría, Damián Miguel Loreti, Paula Ligia Martins, Clara Beatriz Quiñones Cely, Ana Cristina Ruelas Serna, Pedro Vaca Villarreal, Andrea LM Wilson.
Barnes, director of The Gleaner Company (Media) Limited, Kingston, Jamaica, emphasized that the IAPA "always supported and will continue to support the good work of RFOE, and its rapporteurs and rapporteurs." He added that "the IAPA has promoted the creation of the RFOE has worked and presented to the Inter-American System more than 30 cases of murdered journalists, sent many Amicus to the Inter-American Court to counter the criminalization of opinion and expression, promoted the adoption of the Declaration of Principles and was a promoter of the process that led to the first masterpiece of the Inter-American Court on press freedom, Advisory Opinion 85".
The IAPA is a not-for-profit organization dedicated to the defense and promotion of freedom of the press and of expression in the Americas. It is made up of more than 1,300 publications from throughout the Western Hemisphere and is based in Miami, Florida.
