Bogotá, November 7, 2024—Bolivian authorities must thoroughly investigate violent attacks on journalists covering a wave of anti-government protests, including against reporter Jurgen Guzmán of private broadcaster Unitel TV, and hold those responsible to account, the Committee to Protect Journalists said Thursday.
On October 26, protesters blocking a highway nearthe central Bolivian town of Melga threatened to hang Guzmán and briefly confiscated his crew’s TV camera. One of the protesters then tied a noose around Guzmán’s neck and tightened it, according to the Bolivian National Press Association (ANP) and the journalist, who spoke with CPJ via messaging app.
“The right to protest cannot be turned into aggression against other civilians, including journalists,” said Cristina Zahar, CPJ’s Latin America program coordinator, in São Paulo. “CPJ hopes that the Bolivian authorities will identify and bring to justice those responsible for the attack on Jurgen Guzmán.”
Guzmán told CPJ that the attackers held the rope around his neck for at least 10 seconds, adding, “I put my hand under the twine to avoid being asphyxiated.”
Guzmán said the protesters then released him, returned the camera, and allowed his three-person crew to leave the area.
The incident was one of several violent attacks against journalists covering anti-government protests and highway blockages, which began last month after authorities issued an arrest warrant for former President Evo Morales on charges of human trafficking and statutory rape. Many Morales supporters view mainstream journalists as allies of President Luis Arce, a fierce critic of Morales, Guzmán told CPJ.
On October 25, Red UNO TV reporter Romer Castedo and camera operator Ricardo Pedraza were assaulted and had equipment stolen. On October 29, Unitel journalist Josué Chubé was attacked by Morales supporters and detained for almost five hours. On November 1, a dynamite explosion during a protest knocked over Spanish news agency EFE photographer Jorge Ábrego, who also suffered a heart attack. He was treated at a hospital and released on November 5.
CPJ called and left messages with the Bolivia Attorney General’s office to inquire about investigations into recent attacks on journalists, but there was no answer.