With the aim of improving the conditions for the exercise of freedom of expression in Ecuador in the coming years, civil society organizations created a document that establishes the way to achieve this with the commitment of political actors and citizens.
Accompanied by her children, friends and supporter, Verónica Saráuz, wife of Ecuadorian journalist Fernando Villavicencio, certified before the Civil Judicial Unit of Quito a payment of US $47,306 in damages to Rafael Correa.
Venezuelan authorities deported Spanish freelance journalist Aitor Sáez ahead of protests planned for Jan. 23, continuing a pattern of treatment towards international journalists prior to mass demonstrations.
167 years of Panamanian journalistic history could come to an end as the continuity of operations at newspapers La Estrella de Panamá and El Siglo is uncertain due to a legal problem with the U.S. Department of the Treasury.
The main attacks on freedom of expression in Ecuador during 2016 were a result of the application of the controversial Organic Law of Communication, in force since 2013, according to the 2016 report from freedom of expression organization Fundamedios.
Dutch journalist Okke Ornstein who is jailed in Panama on charges of criminal defamation will be released by the Panamanian president in the midst of an international campaign for his release, according to his supporters. Ornstein is on a list from the Ministry of Government of persons to receive a reduction of sentence from the President of Panama in the coming days. However, the announcement does not provide further details.
Currently, at least 250 journalists worldwide have been detained in relation to their reporting work, according to recent reports by the Committee to Protect Journalists (CPJ) and international nonprofit Reporters Without Borders (RSF).
Reporters Without Borders (RSF for its acronym in French), a nonprofit organization that defends freedoms of expression and information, has been investing in Brazil to increase visibility and presence in the country. In 2015, RSF opened a regional office for Latin America in Rio de Janeiro and launched a version of its site in Portuguese at the end of November 2016.
Ana Julia Jatar shared a photo of her brother Braulio 82 days after he was first imprisoned in Venezuela. His face is gaunt, his once full head of silver hair is shaven and he wears a sad expression on his face.
In Peru, there is a high level of media concentration that threatens freedom of information in the country, according to a report prepared by Peruvian digital investigative journalism site Ojo Público, in conjunction with the German chapter of the international organization Reporters Without Borders (RSF for its acronym in French).
In the presence of UNESCO assistant director-general for communication and information, Frank La Rue, representatives from the three branches of government in Paraguay signed on Nov. 28 a Letter of Intent to Establish a Security Mechanism for Journalists in Paraguay.
A Såo Paulo court recently ruled that investigators could access Matais’ telephone records. The decision was related to a series of reports written by the journalist in Folha de S. Paulo newspaper in 2012. Matais now works at O Estado de S. Paulo.