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FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
March 28, 2005
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For more information:
Kathleen Currie, (202) 496-1992
E-mail: kcurrie@iwmf.org
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Letter on Behalf of Marielos Monzon
Licenciado Oscar Berger Perdomo
Casa Presidencial, 6 a. Avenida, 4-18 zona 1
Ciudad de Guatemala,
Guatemala
Dear President Berger:
We are writing on behalf of the International Women’s Media Foundation because we are deeply concerned about the threats against journalist Marielos Monzon, the host of Buenos dias con Marielos Monzon on Radio Universidad, and her Uruguayan colleague Gabriel Mazzarovich.
According to reports from the Guatemala Human Rights Commission and Amnesty International, Monzon received death threats after broadcasting special programs about the violence against farmers, indigenous communities and teachers who have been protesting the newly ratified Central American Free Trade Agreement (CAFTA). According to these reports, protestors have been violently repressed by the police and the Guatemalan army.
Monzon has received threatening phone calls from unknown sources. One caller threatened to kill her if she did not stop “defending those Indians.” She has also received phone calls from the Uruguayan embassy, asking if Mazzarovich had died. And two Uruguayan newspapers had reported his death. The Guatemalan Human Rights Commission believes that the stories were meant to threaten him.
In October 2003, the IWMF honored Monzon with the Courage in Journalism Award for her bravery and determination in reporting on human rights abuses in Guatemala. In the past, she has been subjected to threats against herself as well as her two children. At one point, she and her family were even forced to flee the country because their safety was in jeopardy. We are alarmed that these threats signal new repression of free expression and press freedom in Guatemala.
As a network of more than 1,500 women and men in the media around the world who are supporters of a worldwide free press, we respectfully urge you to do everything in your power to take immediate action in order to guarantee the safety of Marielos Monzon and Gabriel Mazzarovich and to investigate threats against them. By using the weight of your office to ensure that justice is done and that these journalists are given the full protection of the law, you will take a strong step toward preserving a free and independent press in Guatemala.
Thank you for your attention.
Sincerely,
Larry Olmstead
Co-Chair
IWMF
Eleanor Clift
Co-Chair
IWMF
cc: Procurador de los Derechos Humanos
Dr. Sergio Fernando Morales Alvarado
Procuraduria de los Derechos Humanos (PDH)
12 Avenida 12-72, zona 1
Ciudad de Guatemala, Guatemala
cc: Embassy of Guatemala
2220 R St. NW
Washington DC 20008
Fax: 1 202 745 1908
cc: Oficinas del Programa "Buenos dias con Marielos Monzon"
19 calle 2-42, zona 14, casa 8
Guatemala City, Guatemala
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