The Ayuso Government boasts of "respect for freedom of the press" in response to the Council of Europe for the threats to elDiario.es

The Community of Madrid has nothing to contribute or rectify regarding the behaviour of Isabel Díaz Ayuso’s chief of staff, for which the Council of Europe opened an investigation in April following the insults and threats made to elDiario.es and one of its journalists.

In a letter sent to the Council, Ayuso’s Executive limits itself to setting out generalities regarding the freedom of the press guaranteed by the Constitution and the Statute of Autonomy and boasts of not vetoing any media outlets from official acts of the regional administration.

“The Government of the Community of Madrid has always maintained a position of firm respect for freedom of the press, facilitating unrestricted access to all media outlets to press conferences and other public events, without any kind of distinction,” the document reads.

In its response to the Council of Europe, which was requested in the open procedure, the Ayuso government adds that “on March 21, 2024, the Madrid Assembly unanimously approved an institutional declaration in defense of press freedom and respect for to journalistic work. This declaration reaffirms our community’s unwavering commitment to press freedom, recognizing it as an essential human right and fundamental pillar of democratic society.”

That is the end of the response from the Community of Madrid, which does not even mention the fact under investigation and much less distance itself from the insults and threats. Although, it does conclude: “While we hope that this information is useful, we remain at your disposal for any additional queries or clarifications that you may require.”

Miguel Ángel Rodríguez, chief of staff of the Madrid president, Isabel Díaz Ayuso, attacked a journalist from our editorial office with insults and threats that included the closure of this media outlet. After uncovering the tax fraud of 350,951 euros committed by the partner of the Madrid president, Miguel Ángel Rodríguez insulted and threatened his interlocutor with successive messages.

“We are going to crush you. You are going to have to close. Fuck you. Idiots.” The recipient of the messages asked Ayuso’s chief of staff: “Is this a threat?” “It’s an announcement,” replied Miguel Ángel Rodríguez, who then insulted the member of this editorial team with a few more insults.

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At elDiario.es we are aware that publishing investigations like that of Ayuso’s partner is not easy, that there may be consequences. At least we already know what we are up against this time. They have made it clear to us and in writing: “We are going to crush you, you are going to have to close down.” The threats from Miguel Ángel Rodríguez, the right-hand man of the president of Madrid, are not just a temper tantrum. It is not even the first time that he has resorted to pressure like this to prevent information from being published.

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