Guatemalan newspaper elPeriódico closes under government pressure
New York, May 15, 2023—In response to the announcement that the independent Guatemalan newspaper elPeriódico would cease online publication on Monday, May 15, the Committee to Protect Journalists issued the following statement: “The decision of the elPeriódico newspaper to cease publication is the result of the President Alejandro Giammattei administration’s judicial and financial harassment of…
CPJ calls for Guatemala to halt investigation into elPeriódico journalists
Guatemala City, February 28, 2023 – The Committee to Protect Journalists on Tuesday called on Guatemalan authorities to stop any investigation of columnists and employees of elPeriódico newspaper, release its president José Rubén Zamora unconditionally, and allow the newspaper’s staff to work freely. Judge Jimi Bremer, acting on a request by prosecutor Cinthya Monterroso of…
Guatemalan daily elPeriódico ends print publication as co-founder, financial manager remain imprisoned
New York, December 1, 2022 – In response to independent daily Guatemalan newspaper elPeriódico’s recent announcement that it would end print publication as of Thursday, December 1, the Committee to Protect Journalists issued the following statement expressing alarm: “The painful decision by elPeriódico to halt print publication, leaving the future of the outlet’s reporting and…
‘To persecute any critical voice’: Jailed Guatemalan journalist Zamora’s son on his father’s arrest
When Guatemalan police arrested José Rubén Zamora in July 2022, it marked the latest salvo in a decades-long campaign of harassment against the pioneering Guatemalan investigative journalist, who won CPJ’s International Press Freedom Award in 1995. Zamora, who founded elPeriódico in 1996 and still serves as president of the newspaper, was arrested on July 29….
Guatemalan police detain elPeriódico financial manager for alleged money laundering
Guatemala City, August 23, 2022–Guatemalan authorities must stop harassing employees of the elPeriódico newspaper, unconditionally release its financial manager Flora Silva, and allow its staff to work freely, the Committee to Protect Journalists said Tuesday. On August 19, Guatemalan police arrested Silva after a raid on her home, according to a statement by the public…
Guatemalan journalist José Rubén Zamora charged with financial crimes, remains in detention
New York, August 10, 2022–A judge in a Guatemala City court on Tuesday ordered Guatemalan journalist and president of the elPeriódico newspaper José Rubén Zamora to remain in pre-trial detention while prosecutors move forward with a criminal investigation on charges of money laundering, blackmail, and influence peddling. Zamora has been held since he was arrested…
CPJ calls for immediate release of Guatemala journalist José Rubén Zamora
New York, July 30, 2022 — In response to news reports about the arrest of Guatemalan journalist and president of the elPeriódico newspaper José Rubén Zamora, the Committee to Protect Journalists released the following statement on Saturday: “Guatemalan authorities should immediately release and drop any criminal charges against journalist José Rubén Zamora, president of elPeriódico,” said…
Guatemalan official files criminal suit against 3 journalists under violence against women law
Guatemala City, May 18, 2022 — Guatemalan authorities should drop all charges against three journalists from the independent newspaper elPeriódico and stop using laws intended to protect women from violence to target and intimidate reporters, the Committee to Protect Journalists said Wednesday. On May 13, Judge Anaelsee Ramírez formally notified elPeriódico publisher José Rubén Zamora,…
Guatemalan journalist Juan Luis Font leaves the country after former official accuses him of ‘unlawful association’
Guatemala City, April 6, 2022 — Guatemalan authorities should immediately dismiss criminal proceedings against journalist Juan Luis Font, allow him to work freely without fear of reprisal, and stop using lawsuits to harass members of the press, the Committee to Protect Journalists said Wednesday. In late March 2022, the country’s former communications minister Alejandro Sinibaldi…