62nd
General Assembly
Mexico City, Mexico
September 29 to October 3, 2006
Camino Real Hotel
Reports and Resolutions
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VENEZUELA
Resolution of the Midyear Meeting
Quito, Ecuador
WHEREAS
that the Inter American Press Association, in resolutions in its 2004 and 2005
assemblies drew attention to the serious and increasing restrictions on freedom
of expression, right to information and exercise of journalism implicit in the
new legal framework promoted and approved by the regime that governs Venezuela
WHEREAS
that at the request of Venezuela´s Attorney General, based on sentence
1942 of the Constitutional Court, a judge ordered the application of prior censorship
on information, and writs of protection filed against this decision were denied
WHEREAS
that attacks, economic pressures and threats against independent media have
intensified in a dangerous manner
WHEREAS
that the application of the Law of Social Responsibility in Radio and Television
has already generated the “necessary administrative measures” to
penalize several private radio stations, taking regular radio programs off the
air, in addition to frequent and mandatory simultaneous broadcasting of official
programs, which mark the beginning of an escalation of increased penalties and
fines imposed by this law, including the revocation of radio frequencies and
the closure of radio stations
WHEREAS
that many journalists have been assaulted while performing their job, and that
the government has arrested, imprisoned, persecuted and threatened others
WHEREAS
Principle 4 of the Declaration
of Chapultepec states: “Freedom of expression and of the press are severely
limited by murder, terrorism, kidnapping, pressure, intimidation, the unjust
imprisonment of journalists, the destruction of facilities, violence of any
kind and impunity for perpetrators. Such acts must be investigated promptly
and punished harshly”
THE MIDYEAR MEETING OF THE
IAPA RESOLVES
to condemn the violation of Articles 57 and 58 of the Constitution of the Bolivarian
Republic of Venezuela in regards to freedom of expression and the right to information
on the part of the regime that governs this nation
to reject the attacks and
acts of intimidation by the government of Venezuela against independent media
and journalists
to send an IAPA Mission
to Venezuela to investigate the present situation of freedom of expression and
information there.
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