Mexican senators approved a proposal ("dictamen de ley") that would require federal authorities to investigate, prosecute, and punish crimes against journalists or any attacks affecting the rights to access of information, freedom of expression or of the press, according to a statement from the Senate.
Crimes will be investigated at the request of the victim or by the request of state authorities, the senators explained. The proposal recognizes that journalists and human rights advocates in Mexico are “in the worst phase of their professional life” due to the crimes suffered and the non-responsiveness of the authorities, according to the Quadratin agency. The proposal amends article 73 of the Mexican Constitution to establish attacks on freedom of expression as a crime.
Due to the number of journalists killed during 2011, Mexico is considered the most dangerous country in the world for the press.
