RSF hails European Parliament call for Guatemalan newspaper editor’s release
Reporters Without Borders (RSF) hails a European Parliament resolution’s call for the immediate and unconditional release of José Rubén Zamora, the editor of the newspaper elPeriódico, and all other persons detained arbitrarily in Guatemala. Another example of the growing campaign for Zamora’s release, the resolution also calls on the Guatemalan prosecutor’s office not to obstruct the work of journalists.
Adopted by the European Parliament on 14 December by a big majority, the resolution’s primary purpose is to condemn the coup attempt in Guatemala and, in particular, the repeated attempts by the prosecutor’s office to annul the results of the legislative and presidential elections and thereby prevent President-elect Bernardo Arévalo from taking office.
The resolution also demands the immediate release of journalists, prosecutors and judges who have been detained arbitrarily in recent years, in particular, Zamora, and reminds the authorities that they must refrain from any attempt to obstruct the work of Guatemala’s journalists and human rights defenders.
We welcome the resolution adopted by the European Parliament at this strategic moment in the transfer of power in Guatemala. We are one month away from Bernardo Arévalo’s installation as president, and institutional security must be guaranteed so that Guatemala can turn a sad page in its history in terms of the right to information and press freedom. Zamora’s release and an end to the persecution and criminalisation of journalists in Guatemala are essential for the country’s return to the path to democracy.
On 10 December, four days before the European Parliament's resolution, the Inter-American Commission on Human Rights (IACHR) also approved a resolution deploring the manipulation of the judicial system and serious threats to the rule of law in Guatemala. The resolution drew the attention of members of the Organisation of American States to the serious decline in guarantees for freedom of expression due to the misuse of criminal law to intimidate and silence critics, including journalists.
RSF steps up #FreeZamora campaign
Zamora, who has been subjected to judicial harassment because of his newspaper’s investigative reporting on corruption, was awarded the RSF Press Freedom Prize in the Independence category last month. At the RSF awards, his son, Jose Carlos Zamora, thanked the entire elPeriódico team for their tireless efforts in defence of journalism in Guatemala.
Together with other organisations that defend journalism, RSF has launched several initiatives as part of the campaign for the release of Zamora, who is due to be retried on 5 February. Until then, RSF will continue to tirelessly call for his release and for a fair trial.
While taking part in a meeting with Arévalo’s transition team last month, RSF voiced its concern about the growing risks for journalists during the ongoing attempts to derail a democratic transition. The participants also made recommendations for improving the conditions for journalism and press freedom in Guatemala.
RSF secretary-general Christophe Deloire wrote to President-elect Arévalo on 15 December stressing the urgency of the need to release Zamora.
The #FreeZamora campaign has been collecting signatures all over the world to a petition for Zamora’s release. You can sign it here.
