Inter-American Commission on Human Rights

15 results arranged by date

Fighting abusive litigation against journalists

CPJ and others who defend the rights of journalists are rightly alarmed when public officials and other powerful figures instigate baseless criminal prosecutions that can send journalists to prison and force them to pay heavy fines. A case pending in the Inter-American Court of Human Rights, Fontevecchia & D’Amico vs. Argentina, shows how abusive civil litigation…

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CPJ

UN plan on journalist security could bring improvement

Representatives from U.N. agencies, member states, and nongovernmental organizations convened on Tuesday at the United Nations Inter-Agency Meeting on Safety of Journalists and the Issue of Impunity to plan how to address journalist security. Participants of the meeting, which was convened by UNESCO at its Paris headquarters, also discussed how the United Nations could promote…

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Carlos Saúl Menem, former president of Argentina. (AP)

Menem misuses privacy claim, CPJ says in IACHR brief

New York, September 12, 2011–A lawsuit alleging invasion of privacy brought by Argentina’s former president, Carlos Saúl Menem, against two journalists with the local newsweekly Noticias violates Article 13 of the American Convention on Human Rights, the Committee to Protect Journalists said in a legal brief filed Friday before the Costa Rica-based Inter-American Court of Human…

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Peru must take steps to decriminalize defamation

Dear President Humala: We congratulate you on your first week in office as president of Peru and would like to take this opportunity to urge you to sign into law a recent bill passed by Congress that eliminates prison terms for defamation, an important first step toward the decriminalization of libel in your country. At a time when archaic criminal defamation laws are being used by officials to punish critical reporters, we call on you to uphold your pledge to protect freedom of expression by signing this bill and promoting the necessary changes toward a complete decriminalization of libel, leaving redress for this offense to civil courts.

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Death threats against Lydia Cacho

New York, June 29, 2011–Mexican federal authorities must fully investigate renewed anonymous death threats against prominent journalist and human rights activist Lydia Cacho and bring those responsible to justice, the Committee to Protect Journalists said today.

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