The Foundation for Press Freedom (FLIP) asked the Attorney General’s Office to investigate the governor of Magdalena, Carlos Caicedo, for stigmatizing journalist Leopoldo Granados. From FLIP they warn that Governor Caicedo, on Twitter, accused Granados of being a “pseudo journalist denounced for extortion” and “prepaid by para-political clans.” The attacks on the journalist occur, according to FLIP, due to the complaints he made in the media outlet Seguimiento.co, which he directs, for irregularities in the contracting of the Salamina hospital.
Regarding Governor Caicedo’s series of tweets, FLIP warns that his messages “stigmatize the reporter and aggravate his situation of risk, who has been the victim of threats and is currently in exile.”
These are the reasons why FLIP has asked the Attorney General’s Office not only to investigate these behaviors, but also “to monitor and adopt measures regarding the Fuerza Ciudadana movement and its members when they attack the press.”
The trills of Governor Caicedo
The tweets in question are from February 27, 2023, and in these, Governor Caicedo not only attacked the journalist, stigmatizing him and dismissing his complaint, he also accused him of being at the service of deputy Elizabeth Molina, who he assured is the one who manipulate
“This pseudo-journalist denounced for extortion, prepaid by para-political clans, for years has sought to tarnish my name because I have not agreed to his advertising blackmail; he lies and induces media such as El Tiempo and W Radio to follow him!”, was his first trill, to which he added that “The hospital he is talking about is municipal! Therefore legally I am not the nominator of the manager, he is the mayor of Salamina. Another piece of news falsely manipulated by Deputy Elizabeth Molina, the pupil of Eduardo Pulgar convicted of corruption. Some gems!”
It is not the first time that the journalist Granados has been stigmatized
According to information from FLIP, during the last two years, the journalist Granados has been the victim of stigmatization on three other occasions and has received two death threats, one of them from an unknown person who identified himself as part of Fuerza Ciudadana. .
The last attack occurred in February 2022, when the journalist received a phone call from a private number that told him: “We are from Fuerza Ciudadana, listen to me carefully because I am going to talk to you calmly. The more you criticize us, the worse things will go for you. Take care of yourself!”. Days later, Granados had to leave the country.
From FLIP they also warn that this is not the first time that Caicedo has attacked the press through his social networks. In 2019, FLIP filed a complaint against him with the National Electoral Council (CNE) for publishing two videos in which he accused journalists and the media of disseminating and inventing false news “to confuse the public.”
They also note that Caicedo, due to his leadership and position of power, has limitations on his right to freedom of expression, in addition to having the duty to provide a good environment for journalistic practice. Likewise, they point out that, although the governor has justified his actions by saying that the outlet disseminated false information about him, this “is not an excuse to stigmatize a journalist whose vulnerability is already high.”
Another concern of FLIP in this case is that in the last month the former mayor of Santa Marta and co-founder of the Fuerza Ciudadana party, Rafael Martínez, has also stigmatized the press. According to the foundation’s statement, Martínez, in a video broadcast on the networks, accused the Caracol Radio station of being a liar and blamed the journalist Víctor Polo for “confusing, sowing hatred to denigrate, rant and slander”. This is due to the reports that Polo has made on the state of some works in Santa Marta and on the work of some party members, including Governor Caicedo.
For this reason, from FLIP they insist that “it is necessary for political figures in Colombia to contribute and guarantee an optimal, tolerant and discrimination-free environment for the press and public debate. Both the Constitutional Court and the Inter-American Court of Human Rights have reiterated that those who influence matters of public interest “have voluntarily exposed themselves to more demanding public scrutiny.” with Infobae