ARCHIVES: Mexico
The Inter American Press Association (IAPA) has condemned acts of censorship, discrimination and repression by members of the Querétaro state government in Mexico taken against local journalists, and called on the federal government for guarantees for the safety of reporters. Some 75 journalists in Querétaro complained in a public statement of threats, discrimination and repression on the part of state officials in the administration of Governor Antonio Calzada. The journalists condemned the... MORE
The bullet-riddled and half-buried body of local magazine editor Antonio Gamboa Urias was found Thursday in Ahome, in the northwestern state of Sinaloa, 13 days after he was reported missing. Sinaloa prosecutor Marco Antonio Higuera said Gamboa was murdered after being abducted as he left a bar because of an argument that had taken place in the bar. Six people took part in the murder of Gamboa, whose body was found thanks to information provided by two detained suspects, Higuera said. The... MORE
Activist and radio programme host Atilano Román was shot dead while presenting his weekly programme on Radio Fiesta Mexicana in Mazatlán, in the northwestern state of Sinaloa, on October 11, according to delayed reports received by Reporters Without Borders . Two men burst into the studio and shot Román several times while he was on the air hosting his Saturday morning programme “Así es mi tierra” (Such is my land). Listeners heard the shots and the cries of his colleagues before the broadcast... MORE
Mexican reporter Miguel Ortega Bonilla is requesting protection for himself and his family after being threatened and abducted for several hours on October 5 in Teziutlán, in the central state of Puebla, as he was about to cover a peace march in the neighbouring town of Chignautla. As four men forced him into car in the centre of Teziutlán, Ortega managed to send his family a WhatsApp messaging saying, “Help, red alert, I’m being kidnapped.” Thereafter the family spent seven tense hours before... MORE
Gunmen using large-calibre firearms fired at journalist Margarito Juárez ’s home in Fresnillo, in the central state of Zacatecas, in the early hours of September 30 but failed to injure anyone although Juárez and his children were inside at the time. Juárez, who works for the newspaper Página 24 and Radio B15 , said the shots penetrated several rooms including the bedroom where he was sleeping. Shots were also fired at his car. He filed a complaint with the Zacatecas state prosecutor’s office,... MORE
The home of a Mexican crime and politics beat reporter was attacked early Monday morning in Zacatecas state, according to the Committee to Protect Journalists (CPJ). Unidentified gunmen shot at the home and vehicle of Margarito Juárez González at around 4 a.m. as he and his family slept, according to his employer, the daily Página 24 . The house and the car were damaged, but no one was harmed in the attack. Juárez, a correspondent for Página 24 in Fresnillo city, told his employer that the... MORE
The Committee to Protect Journalists has condemned Thursday's attack on Mexican reporter Karla Janeth Silva , who had reported critically on municipal authorities. Silva was kicked and beaten in her newspaper's office in Guanajuato state, according to news reports. Unidentified assailants entered the offices of daily El Heraldo de León in the late afternoon and beat and kicked Silva, the paper's Silao correspondent, in the chest and head, according to news reports. She sought treatment at a... MORE
The Committee to Protect Journalists condemns the murder on Monday of Mexican reporter Octavio Rojas Hernández in the state of Oaxaca and calls on authorities to investigate the killing, identify the motive, and bring those responsible to justice. The Oaxaca attorney-general's office said in a statement that Rojas was lured from his home at around 5:30 p.m. by an individual who said he wanted to purchase a vehicle from Rojas. The individual then shot the journalist four times in front of his... MORE
The Committee to Protect Journalists has called on the state congress in Sinaloa to repeal a law passed on Wednesday that would severely restrict the ability of the press to report on crime scenes and criminal investigations. Local congressmen presented a bill on Friday that would repeal the law, according to an official statement. As the congress is in recess, the bill will not be voted upon until August 21, the statement said. The restrictive provisions were part of an overhaul of the state... MORE
The Committee to Protect Journalists has condemned the attack on Saturday on community radio station director Indalecio Benítez that resulted in the death of his 12-year-old son. Benítez is the founder of community radio station Calentana 98.1 FM in the city of Luvianos in Mexico State and is a prominent local figure, according to news reports. Early Saturday morning he was returning with his family to his home, which also serves as the radio station, when he saw a group of armed men waiting... MORE
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