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From the IFEX Communique #6.25

PERU: PRESS FREEDOM GROUPS APPEAL TO GOVERNMENT IN THE FACE OF
ATTACKS ON MEDIA AND ACCUSATIONS OF CORRUPTION

The government of Peru has repeatedly attacked press freedom
recently, inspiring the Institute for Press and Society (IPYS) to call
on press freedom groups worldwide to join it in an international
protest to the government. IPYS and over a dozen other groups wrote to
President Alberto Fujimori complaining about the "hostile environment"
currently impeding freedom of expression in Peru. Fujimori and other
high-ranking officials in the government "have accused the media of
corruption and of fostering campaigns to discredit the Peruvian Armed
Forces, all without as yet having brought forward any proof to back up
these accusations," according to the letter. Fujimori accused the
media of being corrupt during an inaugural speech at the 27th General
Assembly of the Organization of American States. IPYS also reported
the censorship of the television station Frecuencia Latina Canal 2,
and attacks on its owner, who was accused of fostering a campaign to
discredit the Armed Forces.

According to the letter, "The Ministry of the Interior and the
Council of Ministers have produced a series of public
announcements which appeared in print and on television which
attempt to dismiss reports and investigations by the media by
presenting them as fallacious and claiming that they are contrary to
the role of the media to inform. This campaign will only serve to
create confusion in society and discredit the work of the media in
general." IPYS reports that journalists and directors of media outlets
have complained of harassment and threats, including Cesar
Hildebrandt. IPYS Executive Director Kela Leon appeared on
Hildebrandt's television program "En Persona" on the television
station Uranio 15 on 25 June to publicize the letter to Fujimori in
advance.

** ** **

The IFEX "Communique" is published weekly in English, French and
Spanish by the IFEX Clearing House, Toronto. The facility is
operated by the Canadian Committee to Protect Journalists (CCPJ)
in partnership with the member organizations of the International
Freedom of Expression eXchange (IFEX). Contact the IFEX CH at CCPJ,
490 Adelaide Street West, Suite 205, Toronto, Ontario, M5V 1T2,
CANADA; Tel: (1-416) 703-1638; Fax: (1-416) 703-7034; or E-mail:
ifex@web.net. WWW site: http://www.ifex.org/. "Communique" Editor:
Kristina Stockwood. Subscriptions are available by e-mail and surface
mail. The views expressed in the "Communique" are the responsibility
of the sources to which they are attributed.
___________________________________________________
Bruce Girard             Agencia Informativa Pulsar
Email: bgirard@pulsar.org.ec
http://www.web.net/amarc/pulsar.html
Fono/Fax: +593-2-501 180 o 551 674
Fax en Montreal, Canada: +1-514-221-2009
Av. Atahualpa 333, Casilla 17-08-8489, Quito, Ecuador