Politics

FLIP denounces death threat against Colombian journalist

Bogota, Dec 21 (EFE).- The Foundation for Press Freedom (FLIP in spanish) denounced on Thursday that Colombian journalist Camilo Chará was threatened with death and “ordered” to leave the country within the next 48 hours.

“Today, November 21, Camilo Chará received a funeral wreath, two bullets and two threatening pamphlets at his home. In the messages they wrote “Death to the snitches” and demanded that he leave the country in the next 48 hours,” FLIP said in a statement.

The NGO recalled that in recent months Chará denounced events related to the mayor’s office in Cali, including “the denunciation of sexual violence” by the former culture secretary of Cali, Brayan Hurtado.

FLIP assures that Chará, journalist and former candidate for the Cali City Council, denounced the threats he has been the victim of, but the police told him that “until the Ministry of the Interior issues a risk resolution, the journalist must establish self-protection measures.”

“This situation is delicate and serious given the context of security and violence in Valle del Cauca. This year, we at FLIP have documented 27 aggressions against the press, 16 of which occurred in Cali,” the agency said.

The NGO added that impunity in aggressions against the press can promote the escalation of violence and recalled that “in 2021, the journalist Marcos Efraín Montalvo was murdered in Tuluá (Valle del Cauca), after receiving several threats for his investigations. Such aggressions were not investigated in time.”

FLIP “calls on the National Protection in Colombia (UNP in spanish) to assess the risks faced by the journalist and take immediate action. It is also crucial for the police to identify those responsible and implement temporary protection measures such as police patrols.”

Likewise, the Mayor’s Office of Cali must “reiterate its rejection of the threats against journalist Chará and violence in general, as public officials should support the investigative and critical work of the press.” EFE

ocm/dgp

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