During this period, tensions between the authorities and the press increased, given the foreseeable intention to prevent investigations into issues linked to the current administration. Restrictions on access to public information and the harassment of media outlets and journalists are part of a structure of partisan abuse of power that has been consolidated as a government strategy.
The Bicameral Commission of Investigation, better known as the "garrote commission," is an instrument of Cartismo to persecute political rivals and media outlets critical of the ruling party—in particular, according to statements by the Commission's members, the ABC Color Group and companies linked to it—and other groups critical of the government, such as non-profit social organizations.
The agenda of the "garrote commission" consists of pressuring the Attorney General's Office and oversight institutions to investigate cases that will allow these groups to be charged (such as those related to Banco Atlas, owned by the ABC Group) and promoting bills aimed at limiting freedom of expression and access to information, such as the Personal Data Protection Law. In January, President Santiago Peña Nieto, following publications in ABC Color about a mansion he built in the summer resort of San Bernardino shortly after taking office and about his use of an Air Force helicopter for personal transportation, expressed anger at the newspaper in public statements, in which he used the warning phrase "Be careful." The ABC Color team's investigation addressed questions about using public funds, given that Peña Nieto had significantly increased his unnecessary expenses, such as catering, fuel, and ceremonial services. The latter category saw a 763% increase in spending in 2024, from 1.23 billion guaraníes to 10.265 billion guaraníes by November of that year, according to the budget execution report of the Presidential Civil Cabinet. In October, President Peña Nieto was questioned about a multimillion-dollar investment by IPS in Ueno Bank bonds, despite being a shareholder in Ueno Holding. When a journalist asked if this did not create a conflict of interest, he responded aggressively, accusing him of being part of "a mean, mendacious media campaign" to defend "the economic interests of the Zuccolillo Group."
In December, the Chamber of Deputies approved the Personal Data Protection bill in general and postponed the specific review of its articles. Among these, Article 24 provides that access to data held in public sources requires "permission," even in the case of public officials, stipulating that "the right of access to information held in public sources may be denied or limited." The Commission added this article on Social Equity and Equal Rights for Men and Women, chaired by the leader of the Cartista caucus, Rocío Abed de Zacarías. In December, Senator Lilian Samaniego (ANR), through a complaint filed under Law No. 5777 on the Comprehensive Protection of Women against All Types of Violence, obtained a precautionary measure preventing journalists, hosts, and panelists on the program "El Repasador" (Channel 13) from referring to her.
In December, prosecutor José Luis Casaccia ordered the release of Eduardo González, brother-in-law of Cartista deputy Orlando Arévalo, who had been arrested and taken to police headquarters by officers from the 17th Precinct for firing shots in the air. With his release, the prosecutor prevented the journalist from being tested for nitrites, nitrates, and breathalyzer. When journalist Santiago González called him from radio station 1080 AM, asking why these tests had not been performed on González, the prosecutor responded by threatening to have him investigated.
In January, the Paraguayan Journalists' Safety Roundtable reported that 33 cases of violence against press workers were recorded in 2024. Of these, 10 were cases of threats and coercion against journalistic activity; 8 were cases of censorship; 7 were assaults or attacks; 2 were judicial proceedings affecting journalism; 3 were stigmatizing speeches issued by authorities or politicians; and one was arbitrary detention. Paraguay has a high rate of murders of journalists (21 since 1991), and 2024 was the first in several years without fatal crimes against media workers.
In January, Cartista congressman and member of the "garrote commission" Rodrigo Gamarra reacted to the press publication of the president's alleged luxuries by proposing a Gag Law similar to Law 209 for the Defense of Public Peace and Personal Liberty, imposed by dictator Alfredo Stroessner to imprison regime opponents.
In February, Cartista senator Norma Aquino, alias Yamy Nal, threatened by phone to send her lawyers to ABC Color journalist Fiona Aquino, who was tasked with investigating the privileges enjoyed by the congressman's son in his work as an audiovisual assistant at the National Institute of Statistics (INE).
In October, the senator had responded with an obscene gesture and threats to ABC Color journalists who asked her about her absences while serving as a judicial official.
In February, First Instance Criminal Judge Celia Estela Salinas de Armoa upheld the constitutional injunction filed by attorney Ezequiel Santagada against Asunción Mayor Óscar "Nenecho" Rodríguez. In her ruling, the judge found that his administration violated the right of access to public information. The decision forced the mayor to hand over information about the 500 billion guarantors in bonds for public works that his administration diverted, a diversion reported by ABC in 2024 and confirmed by the Comptroller General of the Republic. The mayor only partially responded to the injunction and omitted documents, hiding behind confidentiality clauses; even so, the report revealed that he indebted the Municipality with bonds until 2035.
In February, journalist Francisca Pereira of La Nación reported on the social media platform X that her name appeared on the phone of Cartista deputy Lalo Gomes, who was killed during a prosecutor-police procedure. The journalist expressed concern that Gomes had expressed anger toward her over questions she asked him about his sworn statement, his debts, and a complaint filed in Brazil by law enforcement.
In February, five years after the murder of journalist Leo Veras, his widow, Cinthia González, issued a statement stating that the Prosecutor's Office and the Justice Department had not done their job correctly and that the murder had ended in impunity. She asserted that the Prosecutor's Office never provided her with information about the investigation and that she was summoned to testify only a year after the crime. In February, ABC Color journalist Mabel Rehnfeldt reported on her Instagram account the threats she received immediately after the resignation of former Cartista congressman Orlando Arévalo, who was involved in events that constituted influence peddling as a member of the Jury of Magistrates. These threats are not isolated incidents but rather part of a cyber bullying campaign involving trolls and fake profiles against the journalists in charge of the investigation into the chats of the late Cartista congressman Eulalio "Lalo" Gomes, which led to Arévalo's forced resignation.
In March, journalist Aníbal Gómez, from the Pedro Juan Caballero branch, reported that he received a visit from an emissary from Congressman Santiago Benítez (ANR), who asked him to "forget" about the legislator in his journalistic work. On April 1, dissident Colorado representative Mauricio Espínola filed a complaint before Congress against ITTI Saeca, naming it as one of the primary beneficiaries of contracts for handling sensitive information, especially in the military and police sectors. Since that date, ABC Color revealed that President Peña Nieto was a partner in the Ueno Holding group, linked to multimillion-dollar government tenders related to confidential information and the management of IPS (Spanish Social Security Institute) and government funds through Ueno Bank, part of the same conglomerate.
In response to these publications, Peña Nieto first denied the links and attacked ABC Color director Natalia Zuccolillo, citing a conflict between Banco Atlas (part of Grupo ABC) and ITTI. The president accused the press of persecution and maintained that he no longer had a relationship with Ueno Holding, asserting that he had sold his shares in March. However, documents confirmed that the dismissal occurred the day before his April 4 conference, after his connections to the business group were exposed.
Numerous habeas data petitions have been filed by individuals linked to tax investigations and judicial proceedings for drug trafficking and corruption. Once these petitions have been dismissed due to the expiration of the time required, they seek to remove news of the criminal incident from newspapers' digital platforms. The courts have remained firm in rejecting these types of actions.
