The investigative media ‘El Faro’ announced that its administrative and legal structure “moves” to Costa Rica after 25 years in El Salvador due to the “lack of conditions to continue operating” and denounces a smear campaign on the part of the Nayib Administration Bukele.
The outlet, one of the most influential in Central America, published an editorial in which it explained that the transfer of its administrative operation to San José, the Costa Rican capital, is due to “the lack of conditions to continue operating in El Salvador” and the deterioration of press freedom in the Central American country.
El Faro assured that its “newsroom will continue in San Salvador” and that they will continue “doing journalism in El Salvador.” However, it clarified that its administrative and legal operation will no longer be in said territory. Now, the editorial read, they are “a Central American newspaper based in San José.”
The outlet denounces: “The dismantling of our democracy, the lack of controls on the exercise of power by a small group, the attacks on press freedom and the closure of all transparency and accountability mechanisms in El Salvador seriously threaten the right citizen to be informed”.
The digital newspaper was born 25 years ago as a journalistic investigation project and today employs 35 journalists who produce magazines, newsletter, podcasts and even documentaries. But, he assures that since Nayib Bukele came to power, the publication and its employees were “object of delegitimization and defamation campaigns originating in the Presidential House.”
In addition, it points out that the team faced “physical monitoring and threats”, and also “espionage with Pegasus (a software that allows live spying on smartphones and computers), harassment of advertisers and defamation of officials and deputies of the official party”.
“We have faced multiple audits by the Ministry of Finance, with fabricated accusations to which we continue to respond and appeal in all the corresponding administrative and judicial instances, despite knowing that in El Salvador there is no longer a division of powers,” adds the media outlet. .
complaints from the past
In September 2020, ‘El Faro’ denounced: “The Treasury is currently auditing the accounting of this newspaper in the years 2014, 2016, 2017 and 2018”. Later, in April 2021, the digital media had indicated through an editorial that the Salvadoran government allegedly “manufactures another case” against it after an audit in which the Ministry of Finance accused them of evading taxes.
That same year, he raised his voice about another repressive act. In July 2021, Mexican journalist Daniel Lizárraga, part of his investigative team, had to leave El Salvador within the term ordered by the Government after denying him a work permit and temporary residence.
The Inter-American Commission on Human Rights (IACHR) granted in February 2021 precautionary protection measures in favor of 34 members of the media that, he warned, “they would be subjected to harassment, threats, intimidation and stigmatization.”
“Some journalists say that this government attacks the press; we are committed to freedom of expression, but some go on publishing a string of lies and what we do is deny them. That is not violating freedom,” Bukele said in 2020 during an appearance where he referred to the Treasury investigation into the Salvadoran milieu.
“Ataco” is a very beautiful municipality in our country and “attacked” is not written with a capital letter.
But the important thing:
Does it mean that any money launderer, drug trafficker or tax evader just has to put up a newspaper and then no one can investigate it anymore? https://t.co/X00r3qBEvE
— Nayib Bukele (@nayibbukele) September 26, 2020
“Do you mean that any money launderer, drug trafficker or tax evader just has to put up a newspaper and then no one can investigate it anymore?” the president reiterated on Twitter the next day.
“The criminalization of journalism” in Central America
In the editorial where it reports on the change of venue, the newspaper states that “the criminalization of journalism is, unfortunately, increasingly used by the governments of the region, parallel to the accumulation of power and the weakening of democratic institutions and social movements.” civilians. Autocrats do not tolerate other narratives.”
Costa Rica is already the base for several media outlets expelled by the authoritarian regime in Nicaragua. Television channels such as ‘100% noticias’ or digital media such as ‘Confidencial’, whose offices in Managua were confiscated by the government of Daniel Ortega
Now, they will share refuge with ‘El Faro’. An alarming situation to which other Central American journalists and media outlets may join due to the escalation of attacks on the press in the region.
El Salvador extends the exception regime for another 30 days
The Legislative Assembly of El Salvador, controlled by the ruling party, extended for the thirteenth time the state of emergency for another 30 days, which will now end at the end of May.
After a year of implementation, what Bukele called the “war against gangs” has allowed the government to surround several cities in the country and detain more than 60,000 people.
The state of exception suspends various constitutional guarantees and allows arbitrary arrests without a warrant. It interrupts the freedom of association and extends the term of administrative detention to 15 days with respect to the 72 hours outside of this measure.
But some critics, such as the deputy Claudia Ortiz, from the opposition party ‘Vamos’, have denounced that during the emergency regime “innocent people have been captured”, for whom they asked for their release.
The UN and several organizations that protect human rights have expressed their “concern” about the situation in the country. According to official figures, there are more than 67,000 people arrested, whom the government accuses of being gang members.
The authorities celebrate that the average has generated the drop in homicides, which according to official accounts were 496 in 2022, 57% less than in 2021.
with EFE
