The Association of Journalists of El Salvador (APES, for its acronym in Spanish) reported 173 aggressions against members of the press during the presidential and legislative elections of Sunday, Feb. 4 in that country. According to a statement published by the association on social media on Monday, most of these incidents occurred before the opening of the polling stations and after the closing of the voting centers.
The reported aggressions include restriction of journalists' access to polling stations, intimidation, harassment and stigmatizing statements by public officials. APES reported that the main aggressors were security personnel, members of electoral boards, supporters of political parties and other public officials.
As for the victims, of the 173 aggressions registered during election day, 65 were against male journalists, 39 against female journalists, 36 against media outlets, six against APES members and 27 against other members and press groups that were not identified. The departments with the highest number of incidents were San Salvador, Usulután, Morazán and San Miguel.
