El Salvador: CFWIJ Condemns The Suspicious Attack On Julia Gavarrete’s House. We Demand The Government To Protect The Journalist And Investigate The Attack.
Location: El Salvador, San Salvador
Date: July 10, 2020Available in: 🇪🇸 Espanol
Gato Encerrado News reporter Julia Gavarrete reported on July 2nd that her house was broken into while she was at a press conference. When Julia returned from work, she found her house door open and her room had been deliberately scattered with her belongings, papers, stationery and work material. Her laptop was stolen, that being the only material of value missing and no other valuable strokes is described as a robbery. The incident seems methodological to the journalist who feels it could be linked with the state.
Julia has been long investigating corruption and mismanagement by the government in El Salvador and has helped publish countless reports in English-language media. She has also recently published irregularities on the handling of the pandemic by the government and several human rights violations.
This incident in her house does not seem to be a coincidence or a simple thievery.
On July 8th The Human Rights Institute of the Universidad Centroamericana José Simeón Cañas (Idhuca) filed a criminal complaint on grounds of aggravated theft.
Arnau Baulenas, legal coordinator of Idhuca, mentioned in a press conference that there is evidence of monitoring of journalists ordered by the current government, censorship and cancellation of accreditation towards media whose editorial line is not favorable.
“From my point of view, what has happened is not a coincidence. For me, it cannot be considered an isolated act of crime, more because of the characteristics," said Baulenas in an interview with Gato Encerrado “the intruders did not steal other valuables, but rather the objective was the computer".
Civil society organizations showed their solidarity with what happened and demanded that the Prosecutor's Office carry out an investigation. Furthermore, they asked the Salvadoran State to guarantee the safety of journalists and ensure that freedom of press is respected.
El Salvador is known to have intimidated journalists to deter them from fair and critical reporting in the past.
According to Reporters Sans Frontiers, the media are among the victims of the widespread violence in El Salvador, one of Latin America’s most dangerous countries. Several journalists have been murdered or physically attacked in recent years. El Salvador’s legislation provides the media with little protection, and officials harass and threaten journalists who try to investigate corruption or government finances. The authorities tried to intimidate a team of investigative reporters for the online magazine Factum in February 2019 in a bid to get them to reveal their sources for a story that embarrassed the government. Nayib Bukele, who took office as the new president in June 2019, has often criticized the media, going so far as to compile a list of journalists he accuses of being “political opponents acting in a Manichaean fashion with the intention of destabilizing the government.”
The Coalition For Women In Journalism is alarmed by the threats not only on Julia Gavarrete but also on all opposing El Salvadorian journalists under the Bukele regime. We demand authorities to conduct a transparent and thorough investigation on the break-in and ensure the safety of journalists in the country. ...
The Coalition For Women In Journalism is a global organization of support for women journalists. The CFWIJ pioneered mentorship for mid-career women journalists across several countries around the world, and is the first organization to focus on the status of free press for women journalists. We thoroughly document cases of any form of abuse against women in any part of the globe. Our system of individuals and organizations brings together the experience and mentorship necessary to help female career journalists navigate the industry. Our goal is to help develop a strong mechanism where women journalists can work safely and thrive.
Follow us on Instagram @womeninjournalism and Twitter @CFWIJ. Our website is WomenInJournalism.org and we can be reached at press@womeninjournalism.org
My dear friend @PetizaGavarrete, a top-flight Salvadoran journalist, had her laptop stolen while reporting at a gov’t press conference. She’s been writing about gov’t mismanagement, and the theft certainly looks like an act of intimidation. We are watching closely, @nayibbukele. https://t.co/97QyUoLz1M
— Jonathan Blitzer (@JonathanBlitzer) July 9, 2020
The Coalition For Women In Journalism closely monitors the incidents in Turkey with great concern. Since March 8, Women's Day, police violence against women journalists increasingly continues in the country. As the coalition, we urge the Turkish state to provide a free environment for journalists. Following the news is our most fundamental democratic right to report. We demand the immediate release of our detained colleagues. Journalism is not a crime. Journalism cannot be prevented.
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