National and international organizations expressed their concern on Tuesday over the lawsuit for moral damages filed against a journalist who published a note about alleged acts of corruption that dot the government and the brother-in-law of Ecuadorian President Guillermo Lasso.
The Venezuelan journalist from the digital media La Posta, Andersson Boscán -who has lived in Ecuador since his childhood- denounced in publications that officials had requested large sums of money to allegedly benefit Danilo Carrera, Lasso’s brother-in-law.
The person mentioned in the journalistic investigation filed a claim for reparation of moral damages against the journalist for an amount of $500,000.
César Ricaurte, director of the non-governmental organization Fundamedios, which monitors attacks on the press in Ecuador, said in dialogue with Associated Press that an excess is being committed. “Getting to a lawsuit should be the last resort. There are other resources that they could resort to, such as the request for rectification.
He added that there are some inconsistencies in what is presented as a journalistic investigation and that the audios and the La Posta publication do not confirm the participation of the president or his brother-in-law. Carrera has been mentioned, he noted, but it doesn’t mean he’s involved. Fundamedios monitors and issues reports on freedom of expression in Ecuador.
Meanwhile, the Minister of the Presidency, Iván Correa, asserted in an interview with the television network ecuavisa that requested the resignations of the managers of all state companies, whose management will be immediately subjected to special examinations by the State Comptroller’s Office, with the purpose of making the actions of such officials transparent.
Carrera rejected the complaints, demanded that they prove his participation in acts of corruption and said that he was the object of a smear and defamation campaign by Boscán.
The journalist pointed out that after the complaints, in the vicinity of his office there have been graffiti on the walls with threats and he responded on Twitter that he is not afraid of going to court.
The Inter-American Press Association asked the government to “investigate the threats and guarantee the journalist’s safety.”
Lasso, in a video message on Twitter, said that as soon as he learned of the audios of alleged corruption, he asked for the location in the national territory or abroad of those involved Hernán Luque, a former electrical sector official, and his alleged accomplice, Ruben Cherrez.
The president, who also offered to provide information and any documents related to the case, is in Europe attending to the Davos Forum.
The Prosecutor’s Office is not known to have carried out actions such as raids or taken other measures on the alleged case of corruption.
The president of the National Union of Journalists, Cristóbal Peñafiel, assured PA that the Boscán trial “is a threat to freedom of expression” and expressed that when the journalist makes a complaint it is to be expected that he has all the documents that support it. In that case, he added, “there are no problems in facing any demand or action of those who feel harmed.”
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