Mexico: Journalist Lizbeth Hernández Was Attacked And Detained While Covering A Women's Rally.
Location: Mexico
Date: November 13, 2020Available in: 🇪🇸 Espanol
Journalist Lizbeth Hernández was detained and battered while following women's protests in Mexico. We condemn this attack against the journalist and demand an end to the increasing police violence in Mexico.
Journalist Lizbeth Hernández was detained by the police while following a feminist group’s occupation of the State Commission for Human Rights (CODEM) building in Ecatepec. She was subjected to this harsh police intervention in September of 2020.
Despite being identified by the police as a journalist, Lizbeth was detained, her mobile phone was seized and she was prevented from reporting the demonstration. The police also pushed her while she was covering the rally. The journalist was later put in a police vehicle without being informed where she was being taken, while police insulted her and the other detainees. When a group of women arrived with a request to release the detainees, the police attacked the women with tear gas. Even once the journalist was released, the police attacks continued. Security forces attempted to strangle another female journalist as well as trying to crash into Lizbeth’s car, breaking one of the windows.
Due to the violent attacks and harsh intervention of the police, covering protests have become significantly dangerous to women journalists in Mexico. Women journalists who follow the demonstrations face brutal police violence, despite being known as reporters. The police do not distinguish between journalists and protesters. Many women journalists are harassed, intimidated and arbitrarily detained.
The Coalition For Women In Journalism documented two violent murders of journalists and many cases of harassment in Mexico so far in 2020. Many women journalists are under attack by security forces, they even face death threats for simply doing their job. Journalism means keeping the public informed and conveying events as they happen. We condemn these vicious attacks against journalists and, once again, such interventions cannot silence journalists.
...
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
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.
If you have been harassed or abused in any way, and please report the incident by using the following form.