Photo: Solidarity protest outside the Peruvian Consulate in Los Angeles, Jan. 4
Since the Dec. 7 parliamentary coup against democratically-elected Peruvian president Pedro Castillo, huge numbers of people have been taking to the streets to resist the new regime. They have been met with brutal repression that has left over 40 protesters dead. A wide range of progressive journalists and media outlets from around the world, including Liberation News, released the following joint statement denouncing this violence.
We, communicators and journalists, repudiate the brutal violence against the Peruvian people by the security forces and the disturbing attacks against journalists and photographers who seek to tell the truth about what is happening in the country.
Since December 7, when the coup d’état against constitutional president Pedro Castillo and his subsequent illegal detention took place, the Peruvian people have been in constant mobilization to demand the immediate resignation of the de facto leader, Dina Boluarte, the dissolution of Congress, the realization of a Constituent Assembly and the immediate release of Pedro Castillo.
Their just and courageous protests have been met with an extremely violent response by the security forces. To date, at least 48 Peruvian brothers and sisters have been killed with bullets, sound grenades, tear gas and pepper spray during the protests. We have seen with great concern how these flagrant violations of human rights, the right to protest, freedom of expression and the democratic state have been justified by the executive branch, the mass media and right-wing politicians.
In all this, we have not been able to depend on the narrative of the corporate media that call the protesters “vandals” “terrorists”, justifying the violence against them as sinister accomplices of the barbarism of the state. It has been the popular communicators, independent journalists and photojournalists, who take to the streets risking their physical integrity, facing extreme violence in order to communicate the truth to the world.
We are concerned about the case of Aldair Mejía, photojournalist, who was shot by a projectile while covering the demonstrations in Juliaca. He had denounced that prior to the attack, a member of the Peruvian National Police had threatened him saying “Get out of here, if not I’ll blow your head off and kill you”. In addition to him, there are many other cases of colleagues who have suffered stigmatization, accusations, violent attacks, criminalization and more in the context of their journalistic work. Journalism is not a crime!
As communicators and journalists of the world, we stand in solidarity with the brave Peruvian people and with their communicators and journalists who are facing the terrible repression of Dina Boluarte’s government.
We demand an immediate end to this repression and respect for the human rights of protesters and members of the press.
Signatories:
Journalists
Alina Duarte, Mexico
Ama Pratt, Pan African Television, Ghana
Ana María Islas, Mexico
Anish Radhakrishnan, Peoples Dispatch, India
Benjamín Norton, Geopolítica Económica, United States // Nicaragua
Brian Mier, TeleSur/Brazilwire, Brazil
Byron Javier Viteri Pólit, Coordinadora Artistas Progresistas Eloy Alfaro, Ecuador
Camila Parodi, Marcha Noticias, Argentina
Carlos Aznarez, Resumen Latinoamericano, Argentina
Cira Pascual Marquina, Venezuelanalysis, Venezuela
Claudia Cisneros, Independiente, Perú
Danay, Cuba
Dayana López Villalobos, Independiente, Argentina
Denis Rogatyuk, El Ciudadano, Chile
Diana Almeida, Revista Crisis Ec, Ecuador
Eduardo Lohnhoff Bruno, Abya Yala Tv, Bolivia
Elmer Raúl Ayala Hinojosa, Poder Popular @lljr_poder @ElmerAyala_PE, Perú
Eugene Puryear, Breakthrough News, United States
Fabiola Gutiérrez, Red de Periodistas y Comunicadoras Feministas de Chile , Chile
Facundo Pérez , ARG Medios, Argentina
Felipe Bianchi Dos Santos, ComunicaSul y Centro de Estudos da Mídia Alternativa Barão de Itararé, Brazil
Felipe Kohler, Revista Crisis Ec, Ecuador
Fernando Barreto, Ecuador
Fiorella Isabel, RT International, United States
Francely Flores, Molino Informativo,
Gerardo Szalkowicz, Nodal, Argentina
Giovani del Prete, Diplomacia dos Povos, Brazil
Gustavo Espinoza, Noticias Hudson Valley NY/ Revista Travesías de la Migración, United States
Heriberto Paredes, Independiente, México
Ignacio Urrutia, Chile
Ingrid Sánchez, Peninsula 360 Press, México
Jackson Jean, TeleSUR, Haití
Jaime Herrera, Telesur, Perú
Jaime Soto, Chile
Javier Arjona, www.indixenas.org, España
Javier Tolcachier, Agencia Internacional de Noticias Pressenza, Argentina
Jazmín Valdivieso, La Zurda Radio, Bolivia
Jean Waltès Bien-Aimé, Radyo Rezistans, Haití
Jennifer Mujica, Individual, Argentina
John McEvoy, Declassified UK, UK
Jose Gil Almeida, Jornal Agua Verde, Brazil
José Luis Granados Ceja, Venezuelanalysis, México
Jose Marques, Jornal da Rua XV ciudad de Curitiba, Brazil
José Robredo Hormazabal, Chile
Julián Pilatti, ARG Medios, Argentina
Kwesi Pratt, Jnr, The Insight Newspaper, Ghana
Laura Carlsen, Independiente, Mexico
Laura Lucía Cevallos Alcázar, Sin Línea Mx, México
Laura Quispe Perez, TeleSISA, Argentina
Lautaro Rivara, ALAI, Argentina – Ecuador
Loreto Paillacar, Círculo de Periodistas, Chile
Luis De Jesús, Claridad, Puerto Rico
Luis Enrique Angio, Argentina
Luis Varese, Ecuador
Mahmoud Elenani, Independent Film Producer, Egypt
Marcos Cariz Villanueva, Trabajadores al poder, Chile
Margarida Flávia Gonnet García, Semanario Brecha(URU) / Análisis Digital(ARG), Uruguay
Margarita Pastene Valladares, Chile
Mario López M., Estapasando.cl, Chile
Martha Raquel Rodrigues, Jornalistas Livres / MST, Brazil
Martín Varese, Peoples Dispatch, Nicaragua
Mauricio Leandro Osorio, Independiente, Chile
Midhun Puthupattu, Peoples Dispatch, India
Nathalie Castillo, Diputada de la República- Periodista ex Presidenta Nacional del Colegio de Periodistas de Chile, Chile
Omar Lucas, Perú
Oscar Gálvez, Voces de Ixumulew, Guatemala
Oscar Puebla Ortega, El Molino Informativo, Mexico
Pablo Navarrete, Alborada, UK
Patricia Villegas Marin, teleSUR, Colombia- Venezuela
Pilar Troya, Brasil de Fato, Brazil
Prasanth Radhakrishnan, Newsclick, India
Rafael Urrejola Dittborn, Centro de Formación Memoria y Futuro, Chile
Rania Khalek, Breakthrough News, United States
Rodrigo Acuña, Indestructible Podcast, Australia
Roger McKenzie, Morning Star, United Kingdom
Sandra Trafilaf, Chile
Tanupriya Singh, Peoples Dispatch, India
Tanya Wadhwa, Peoples Dispatch, India
Vijay Prashad, Globetrotter,
Vivian Neves Fernandes, Brazil
Vyshakh Thaliyil, Peoples Dispatch, India
Yoselina Guevara, Info al Desnudo, Venezuela ( Italia)
Zoe Alexandra, Peoples Dispatch, United States
Media outlets
Agencia Internacional de Noticias Pressenza
ALAI
ARG Medios
Barricada TV
Boletín Américas, Américas.org
Brasil de Fato
Breakthrough News
Centro de Estudos da Mídia Alternativa Barão de Itararé
Colombia Informa
ComunicaSul
Consejo Metropolitano del Colegio de Periodistas
Correo del Alba
El Ciudadano
Hora do Povo
Iniciativa Direito a Memória e Justiça Racial
Jornal Agua Verde
Jornal da Rua XV ciudad de Curitiba
Jornalistas Livres
Kawsachun News
Liberation News
El Molino Informativo
Noticias Hudson Valley NY
Pan African Television
Radyo Rezistans
Red de Periodistas y Comunicadoras Feministas de Chile
Resumen Latinoamericano
Revista Crisis Ec
TeleSISA
The Insight Newspaper
Trazos de Nuestra Identidad Medio digital alternativo
Venezuela Analysis
Voz en Fuga
