"The Inter American Press Association (IAPA), together with the Committee to Protect Journalists (CPJ) and the Voces del Sur Network, a regional coalition of organizations dedicated to promoting and defending press freedom, freedom of expression, access to information, and the safety and protection of journalists, rejects the ruling issued against Fundamedios by the First Chamber of the Specialized Civil Court of the Provincial Court of Justice of Guayas, Ecuador, in a habeas data action filed by businessman Pedro Julio Bejarano Alvarado. The ruling orders Fundamedios to remove an alert on journalist safety published in 2025 on its institutional website.
This judicial decision constitutes a serious setback for freedom of expression, the defense of the right of access to information, and the public’s right to be informed about matters of clear public interest. The ruling disregards international standards on the protection of freedom of expression, the guarantees enshrined in Ecuador’s own Constitution, and Constitutional Court decisions, while setting a deeply dangerous precedent for journalists, media outlets, and human rights organizations that document attacks, litigation, and restrictions on the practice of journalism."
