“A broad segment of Colombia’s press has raised concerns over the potential election of Abelardo de la Espriella as president. Ahead of the runoff vote, press freedom organizations and journalists have pointed to the attorney’s long history of using legal action against those who have criticized him or his clients, warning that his ‘pattern of attacks’ has intensified during the campaign. The candidate, meanwhile, has argued that it is necessary to ‘set limits on journalists who believe they are untouchable.'
[…]
[The International Federation for Human Rights (FIDH) and the Foundation for Press Freedom (FLIP)] pointed to what they described as De la Espriella’s long-standing ‘pattern’ of targeting journalists who criticize him, dating back to his career as a criminal defense attorney and involving a series of high-profile and controversial cases.
[…]
‘Abelardo de la Espriella’s pattern of attacks against the press is evident: public disparagement, accusations of alleged political agendas, judicial harassment of journalists, baseless challenges to editorial independence, and actions aimed at undermining journalism on matters of public interest related to his candidacy,’ FLIP said in a statement issued Thursday, June 18."
