They condemn the attacks on the press by the State of Guatemala

In a statement marking the third year of President Alejandro Giamatti’s administration, the APG recorded 117 attacks during 2022 aimed at “censoring, criminalizing, and attacking voices that criticize and disparage the current authoritarian regime.”

He warned that this generated a policy of terror and persecution against journalists and the media.

According to the source, the Giamatti government’s actions include attacks and restrictions on freedom of the press, judicial harassment, restrictions on coverage, particularly in the judiciary and the presidency, and two cases of forced exile/displacement.

In total, the APG breaks down, there are 404 attacks on the press during the three years of the current administration.

“One of the main patterns that this government has already normalized is judicial harassment, by filing false complaints, and judicial censorship to prevent publications on certain topics or that refer to certain officials, as well as subpoenas to testify of journalists for their work,” the association said.

To this end, he noted, Giamatti enjoys the unfettered support of the Supreme Court of Justice, whose judges remain in office irregularly, and the Attorney General, Consuelo Porras, who has dedicated herself to concocting lawsuits against the reporters.

As an example, he cited the criminalization of José Rubén Zamora, the president of elPeriódico, an act with which the Public Prosecutor’s Office and the Presidency seek to shut down that medium, one of the most critical of the government, he explained.

In the text, the APA expressed concern that acts of judicial harassment and restrictions on information sources will increase in this election year in order to create an image of the press as an “enemy of democracy”.

In addition, he asked international organizations and society in general to closely monitor the situation of human rights and freedom of expression in Guatemala, which may suffer more serious setbacks in recent months in the power of the Famos party.

The text released today is in stark contrast to the idyllic situation on the subject, which was presented in the public report of Giamatti’s third year in office at the National Palace of Culture with much praise for the so-called year of achievements, 2022.

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