Impunity

Aa
Midyear Meeting 2023
April, 25-27
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WHEREAS since the October 2022 General Assembly, ten journalists and media workers have been murdered for apparent reasons related to their professional work: five in Haiti and one each in Colombia, the United States, Guatemala, Honduras, and Paraguay, respectively

WHEREAS, in Haiti, the following were murdered: Ricot Jean, journalist, cultural presenter and member of the editorial staff of Radio-Télé Évolution Inter, on April 25, 2023, in Saint-Marc; Dumesky Kersaint, a journalist with Radio Télé Inurep, on April 16; Francklin Tamar, who directed the "Kompa, Kompa," and "Sábado Cultural" programs on Radio Solidarité, on December 18, 2022, in Port-au-Prince; Fritz Dorilas, co-host of the program "Le droit, la loi et la justice" (The law, and justice), on Radio Megastar, on November 5, 2022, in the commune of Tabarre, Port-au-Prince; and Romelo Vilsaint, a reporter for the online radio Generation 80, on October 30, 2022, in Delmas, Port-au-Prince

WHEREAS, in Colombia, Wilder Alfredo Córdoba, director of the private channel Unión TV and social leader, was murdered on November 28, 2022, in La Unión, department of Nariño

WHEREAS, in the United States, Dylan Lyons, a reporter for Spectrum News 13, was murdered on February 22, 2023, in Orlando, Florida

WHEREAS, in Guatemala, Eduardo Fernando Mendizábal Gálvez, a journalist for the media outlet "Visor Villa Canales" on Facebook, was murdered on March 19, 2023, in Villa Canales, Guatemala

WHEREAS, in Honduras, José Amílcar Chávez, a correspondent for Hoy Mismo newscasts and owner of a Christian radio station, was murdered on April 1, 2023, in Olanchito, Yoro

CONSIDERING that in Paraguay, Alex Álvarez, journalist of Radio Urundey FM, was murdered on February 14, 2023, in the city of Pedro Juan Caballero; that for the 1991 murder of journalist Santiago Leguizamón, in Pedro Juan Caballero, the Inter-American Court of Human Rights issued a historic ruling, pointing to the State of Paraguay as responsible for the violation of human rights for the crime

WHEREAS in Chile and Paraguay were presented this semester bills to protect journalists, which seek to prevent, protect and guarantee the life and safety of those who practice the profession

WHEREAS, in Peru, justice was achieved in the case of the murder of journalist Hugo Bustíos, which occurred 34 years ago, with the sentencing of a former military officer, former congressman, and former presidential candidate Daniel Urresti to 12 years of imprisonment

CONSIDERING that Principle 4 of the Declaration of Chapultepec establishes that "murder, terrorism, kidnapping, pressure, intimidation, unjust imprisonment of journalists, material destruction of the media, the violence of any kind and impunity for aggressors severely restrict freedom of expression and of the press" and "these acts must be promptly investigated and severely punished."

THE IAPA MID-YEAR MEETING RESOLVES

To condemn the murders of Ricot Jean, Dumesky Kersaint, Francklin Tamar, Fritz Dorilas, and Romelo Vilsaint in Haiti; Wilder Alfredo Córdoba in Colombia; Dylan Lyons in the United States; Eduardo Fernando Mendizábal Gálvez in Guatemala; José Amílcar Chávez in Honduras; and Alex Álvarez in Paraguay

Urge the governments of Haiti, Colombia, the United States, Guatemala, Honduras, and Paraguay to fulfill their responsibility to identify all those responsible for the murders and apply the corresponding sanctions so that they do not remain in impunity and without justice

Express satisfaction with the ruling of the Inter-American Court in the case of the Paraguayan journalist Santiago Leguizamón

Welcoming the presentation of bills for the protection of journalists in Chile and Paraguay

Applaud the conviction of the co-perpetrator of the murder of Peruvian journalist Hugo Bustíos

To recall that violence, murder, and disappearance of journalists and media workers is an extreme form of censorship and that the lack of justice encourages other acts of violence and restricts the exercise of freedom of expression and press freedom.

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