Silvia A. Higuera Flórez is a Colombian journalist who has written for the Knight Center since 2012. She is interested in covering Latin American issues and human rights, especially the right to freedom of expression, and investigative journalism. She studied Social Communication and Journalism at Universidad Pontificia Bolivariana in Bucaramanga (Colombia), and received her Master's of Arts in Journalism from the University of Texas at Austin in 2015. She worked with the Office of the Special Rapporteur for Freedom of Expression of the Inter-American Commission on Human Rights (IACHR) under the Orlando Sierra fellowship during 2014. She also worked for the Colombian newspaper Vanguardia Liberal and wrote for different magazines about local, economic and public order issues. Her work has also appeared in The Miami Herald and El Nuevo Herald of Miami. Email: silvia.knightcenter@gmail.com
Silvia A. Higuera Flórez es una periodista colombiana que trabaja para el Centro Knight desde el 2012. Su interés periodístico es América Latina y los derechos humanos, particularmente el derecho a la libertad de expresión, así como el periodismo de investigación. Estudió Comunicación Social – Periodismo en la Universidad Pontificia Bolivariana de Bucaramanga (Colombia), y recibió su maestría en Periodismo en la Universidad de Texas, en Austin en 2015. Trabajó para la Relatoría Especial para la Libertad de Expresión de la Comisión Interamericana de Derechos Humanos (CIDH) en el marco de la beca Orlando Sierra, durante 2014. También hizo parte del diario Vanguardia Liberal y escribió para otras revistas colombianas cubriendo fuentes locales, económicas y judiciales. Algunos de sus trabajos han aparecido en The Miami Herald y El Nuevo Herald de Miami.
Silvia A. Higuera Flórez é uma jornalista colombiana e escreve para o Centro Knight desde 2012. Seu interesse jornalístico é a América Latina e os direitos humanos, nomeadamente o direito à liberdade de expressão. Estudou Comunicação Social – Jornalismo na Universidade Pontifícia Bolivariana de Bucaramanga, na Colômbia e completou seu mestrado em jornalismo na Universidade do Texas em Austin. Silvia trabalhou na Relatoria para a Liberdade de Expressão da CIDH pela bolsa Orlando Sierra, em 2014. Trabalhou para o jornal Vanguardia Liberal e escreveu para outras revistas colombianas cobrindo temas locais, econômicas e judiciárias. Alguns de seus trabalhos apareceram no The Miami Herald e no El Nuevo Herald de Miami.
Colombia’s Foundation for Press Freedom (FLIP for its acronym in Spanish) rejected threats against journalists Jineth Bedoya Lima and Salud Hernández Mora, as well as political and social leaders, allegedly proffered by a block of the illegal armed group Águilas Negras. The organization also demanded that authorities guarantee protection so that the journalists can continue with their work.
When Colombian literature Nobel laureate Gabriel García Márquez died in April 2014, in addition to the sadness that followed, a need arose in the Colombian community to ensure his legacy would continue from generation to generation.
The Colombian National Police is being accused of potentially being responsible for two separate attacks on press freedom on Oct. 8.
When you think about the situation of journalists in Mexico, the first image that comes is one of violence. And for good reason. The country is considered the most dangerous in the American continent to practice this profession. In 2017 alone, at least 11 journalists have been recorded as killed for reasons related to their work.
This is at least the 12th time journalist Jineth Bedoya Lima has been called by the Colombian Attorney General to testify in the case of her kidnapping, torture and sexual assault that occurred more than 17 years ago.
During a two-day public hearing, the Inter-American Court of Human Rights based in Costa Rica heard the case against the Colombian State for the murder of journalist Nelson Carvajal Carvajal on April 16, 1998.
Colombia's Supreme Court confirmed that two former paramilitary leaders will be excluded from benefits offered under the Justice and Peace Law because they did not tell the truth in the investigation into the abduction, torture and rape of journalist Jineth Bedoya Lima that occurred 17 years ago, El Tiempo reported.
The recent case of stigmatization against Semana columnist Daniel Samper Ospina is just one example of the new types of threats facing journalists in Colombia as the deadly violence of decades past plummets.
The deterioration of freedom of expression in Latin America is clear. In 2016 alone, 36 journalists were killed in that region for reasons that may be related to their work, according to the Special Rapporteur for Freedom of Expression of the Inter-American Commission on Human Rights (IACHR).
In his more than 30 years as a journalist, Jorge Ramos has dedicated himself to holding power to account, to being a rebel, to disobeying, something he advises the next generations of journalists to do. Ramos, winner of the 2017 Recognition of Excellence of the Gabriel García Márquez (GGM) Journalism Award, has been committed to "causing discomfort and [doing] it through journalism,” as Venezuelan journalist Laura Weffer explains.