Peru / Americas

  
Friends and family carry the coffin of Peru's former president, Alan Garcia, who killed himself on April 17, in Lima, Peru, on April 19, 2019. Some government officials have blamed Peruvian investigative journalists for his suicide, and engaged in a harassment campaign. (Reuters/Janine Costa)

In Peru, journalist Gustavo Gorriti, other media blamed for ex-president’s suicide

New York, April 22, 2019 – Peruvian authorities should immediately take action to ensure the safety of journalists at news website IDL-Reporteros, and officials should refrain from making inflammatory statements blaming the outlet and its director, Gustavo Gorriti, for the suicide last week of former President Alan García, the Committee to Protect Journalists said today.

Read More ›

This photo of Hugo Bustíos Saavedra was taken minutes before he was killed. Daniel Urresti Elera has been on trial for his alleged role in the murder. (Caretas)

Peru mayoral candidate Daniel Urresti acquitted of Hugo Bustíos murder

Medellín, October 4, 2018–Peru’s National Criminal Chamber today acquitted former interior minister and current mayoral candidate Daniel Urresti of murder charges for the 1988 killing of war correspondent Hugo Bustíos, according to news reports. A lawyer for the Bustíos family said they would appeal, the reports said.

Read More ›

The Pescadores beach in Lima, in April 2018. Peruvian authorities are harassing two news outlets over their investigative reporting. (Reuters/Mariana Bazo)

CPJ calls for Peru to stop harassing news outlets over investigative reporting

New York, July 17, 2018–The Committee to Protect Journalists today called on Peruvian authorities to end their harassment of two news outlets. A government body issued summonses to the directors of news website IDL-Reporteros and the TV program “Panorama,” and the public prosecutor and police went to the offices of IDL-Reporteros to demand that it…

Read More ›

An attacker set fire to Juan Berríos Jiménez's car, pictured, in the early hours of January 6. (Juan Berríos Jiménez)

Attackers set fire to car of Peruvian radio journalist

Unidentified attackers set fire to a car belonging to radio journalist Juan Berríos Jiménez in Iberia, a town in the Madre de Dios region along Peru’s border with Brazil and Bolivia, according to news reports.

Read More ›

Journalist facing charges in Ecuador files for asylum in Peru

New York, April 18, 2017–Ecuadoran journalist Fernando Villavicencio, director of the news website Focus Ecuador and a critic of outgoing President Rafael Correa, today filed a petition for political asylum in Lima, Peru. A statement from the regional press group Instituto Prensa y Sociedad (IPYS) said the journalist, who fled to Lima after presidential elections…

Read More ›

Assailants try to cut out Peruvian journalist’s tongue

New York, February 8, 2017–Peruvian authorities should swiftly bring to justice all those responsible for a brutal attack against broadcast journalist Marco Bonifacio Sánchez, the Committee to Protect Journalists said today. Unidentified assailants tried to cut off the journalist’s tongue as he walked home in the northern Peruvian town of Cajamarca late in the night…

Read More ›

CPJ Newsletter: We fight back against defamation, highlight impunity in India, and host an exhibit on Shawkan’s works

September edition IOC creates mechanism for journalist complaints after CPJ consultation In early August, we welcomed the creation of a press freedom complaints mechanism by the International Olympic Committee. The move followed years of advocacy with the IOC by CPJ and other rights groups to do more to hold governments that host the Olympic Games…

Read More ›

Criminal defamation suits in Peru and Chile could have chilling effect

New York, June 3, 2016 — Two criminal defamation suits filed against journalists by the president of Chile and a Peruvian governor could have a chilling effect on the press in both South American countries, the Committee to Protect Journalists said today.

Read More ›

CPJ calls on Peru to decriminalize defamation as two journalists face court

Bogotá, Colombia, April 19, 2016–A Peruvian journalist received a suspended jail sentence Monday and was ordered to pay damages to former President Alan García Pérez after being convicted of criminal defamation, according to news reports.

Read More ›

All but one country in Americas criminalize defamation

CPJ releases comparative study of criminal defamation laws in the Americas Lima, Peru, March 2, 2016–An alarming resurgence in the use of outdated criminal defamation provisions to target critical journalists across Latin America represents a danger to freedom of expression in the region, according to a new report released today by the Committee to Protect…

Read More ›