18 Dec 17 | Journalism Toolbox Arabic
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يواجه الصحفيون في المكسيك تهديدات من حكومة فاسدة وكارتيلات المخدّرات العنيفة، كما أنهم لا يمكنهم دائما الوثوق ببعض زملائهم الصحفيين، يكتب دنكان تاكر
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شارك المئات من المتظاهرين في مسيرة صامتة في عام ٢٠١٠ لإدانة أعمال القتل والخطف ضد الصحفيين في المكسيك, John S. and James L. Knight/Flickr
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“آمل أن لا ترضخ الحكومة إلى إغراء التسلّط فتحجب خدمة الانترنت وتبدء في اعتقال النشطاء ” يقول المدوّن والناشط المكسيكي ألبرتو ايسكورسيا لمجلة “اندكس أون سنسورشيب” (مؤشر الرقابة). كان إيسكورسيا قد تلقّى للتو سلسلة من التهديدات بعد كتابة مقال عن الاضطرابات الأخيرة في البلاد. في اليوم التالي، تصاعدت التهديدات ضده، فبدأ يخطّط للفرار من البلاد، بعد أن شعر أنه محاصر ولا يوجد من يحميه من الخطر.
يشعر كثيرون بالقلق إزاء حالة حرية التعبير في المكسيك. فالركود الاقتصادي، وانهيار قيمة العملة الوطنية، والحرب الدموية ضد تجّار المخدّرات التي لا يبدو أن لها نهاية في الأفق، ووجود رئيس لا يحظى بشعبية كبيرة في الداخل بالإضافة الى صعود إدارة دونالد ترامب العدائية مؤخرّا الى سدّة الرئاسة في الولايات المتحدة الأمريكية، جارة المكسيك الى الشمال، كل هذا قد ولّد ضغوطات عديدة على البلاد في عام 2017.
يظل أحد أكبر مصادر التوّتر في المكسيك هو رئيس البلاد. فلقد جلبت السنوات الأربعة التي أمضاها إنريكه بينيا نييتو في منصبه تباطؤا في النمو الاقتصادي، وتصاعدا في العنف، وسلسلة من الفضائح المتعلّقة بالفساد. في يناير/ كانون الثاني من هذا العام، انزلق مستوى التأييد له إلى 12 نقطة مئوية فقط.
ولكن عندما حاول الصحفيون تغطية أخبار الرئيس ومفاعيل سياساته، تمت مواجهتهم بالقمع والترهيب. ففي بداية عام 2017، اندلعت احتجاجات واسعة بعد إعلان بينيا نييتو رفع سعر البنزين بنسبة 20 بالمئة. خلّفت المظاهرات التي استمرّت عدّة أيام، والتي تخلّلها مواجهات مع الشرطة وأعمال نهب وقطع الطرقات ما لا يقل عن ستة قتلى وأكثر من 1500 معتقل. وذكرت لجنة حماية الصحفيين أن الشرطة ضربت أو هددت أواعتقلت لفترة وجيزة ما لا يقل عن 19 صحفيا، كانوا يقومون بتغطية الاضطرابات في ولايات الشمال، مثل كواويلا وباخا كاليفورنيا.
في خضم هذه الأحداث، لم يتم حجب الأخبار فحسب، بل تم أيضا تلفيقها وفبركتها. انتشرت الهستيريا الجماعية في مدينة مكسيكو، فيما قامت أعداد هائلة من البوتات والحسابات المزيّفة على تويتر بالتحريض على العنف ونشر تقارير كاذبة عن مزيد من أعمال النهب، مما تسبب في إغلاق ما يقرب من 20 ألف من الشركات والمحلّات الصغيرة، وإن بشكل مؤقت.
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“لم أر مدينة مكسيكو في مثل هذه الحالة، في حياتي”، يقول ايسكورسيا عبر الهاتف من منزله في العاصمة. “عدد قوّات الشرطة كان أكثر من المعتاد. كانت هناك طائرات هليكوبتر تحلق فوقنا كل ساعة وكان يمكنك سماع صفارات الانذار باستمرار. على الرغم من أنه لم تكن هناك أية أعمال نهب في هذا الجزء من المدينة، فان الناس كانوا يعتقدون بأنها تحدث في كل مكان “.
قام إيسكورسيا، بالتحقيق في استخدام بوتات التويتر في المكسيك على مدى السنوات السبع الماضية، وهو يرى أنه تم استعمال عددا من حسابات تويتر الوهمية لنشر الخوف ولتشويه صورة الاحتجاجات المشروعة ضد رفع أسعار البنزين والفساد الحكومي. فلقد حدّد ما لا يقل عن 485 حسابا وهميا قامت بتحريض الناس مرارا وتكرارا على “نهب أحد أفرع سوبرماركت وول مارت”، باستخدام وسم خاص.
“في البدء، تدعوا (الحسابات الوهمية) الناس لنهب المحلّات التجارية، ثم تطالب بأن يعاقب اللصوص وتدعوا الى نشر الجيش”، يوضح إيسكورسيا. ويضيف: “هذه قضية حساسة جدّا لأنها يمكن أن تؤدي إلى دعوات لفرض رقابة على الإنترنت أو اعتقال الناشطين”، مشيرا إلى أن الحكومة الحالية قد سبق وأن حاولت ولكن فشلت بتمرير تشريعات لحجب خدمة الإنترنت خلال “الأحداث التي تشكّل خطرا على الشعب أو الأمن القومي”.
بعد أيام من انتشار وسم “إنهب وول مارت”، كشف بينيتو رودريجيز، وهو هاكر مقيم في اسبانيا، لجريدة الفينانسيرو بأنه كان قد تلقّى أموالا لقاء استعمال مهاراته لنشر الوسم على شبكة الانترنت. وقال رودريجيز انه يعمل أحيانا لصالح الحكومة المكسيكية واعترف بأن الحكومة المكسيكية “ربما” كانت أحد الأطراف التي دفعت له لقاء التحريض على النهب.
لقد حامت الشبهات منذ وقت طويل حول إدارة بينيا نييتو بما يتعلّق باستخدام البوتات والحسابات الوهمية لأغراض سياسية. في مقابلة مع بلومبرغ في العام الماضي، كشف الهاكر الكولومبي أندريس سيبولفيدا أنه تلقى أموالا لقاء العمل على التأثير على نتيجة تسعة انتخابات رئاسية عبر أمريكا اللاتينية منذ عام 2005 والتي شملت انتخابات المكسيك عام 2012، حيث ادّعى ان فريق عمل بينيا نييتو كان قد دفع له لاختراق اتصالات مرشحيّن هما من أشد منافسي بينيا نييتو وقيادة جيش من 30 ألف من بوتات التويتر للتلاعب بالمواضيع الأكثر تداولا ومهاجمة المرّشحين الآخرين. اصدر مكتب الرئيس بينيا نييتو لاحقا بيانا نفى فيه وجود أي علاقة له مع سيبولفيدا.
يتعرّض الصحفيون المكسيكيون للتهديد من الكارتيلات العنيفة أيضا. أثناء قيامه بجمع المعلومات من أجل كتابه “ناركوبيريوديسمو” (الصحافة المتمحورة حول كارتيلات المخدّرات) فوجئ مؤسس صحيفة ريودوس، خافيير فالديز، بكم هو شائع أن تقوم الكارتيلات باختراق غرف الأخبار في الصحف المحلية وزرع جواسيس ومخبرين فيها.
وقال فالديز لإندكس “ان الصحافة الجادة والحفاظ على الأخلاقيات هي مسألة مهمة جدا في أوقات الصراع، ولكن للأسف نجد هناك صحفيين متورطين مع الناركوس”، في إشارة الى كارتيلات المخدّرات. “لقد جعل هذا عملنا أكثر تعقيدا، والآن علينا أن نحمي أنفسنا من السياسيين والناركوس وحتى الصحفيين الآخرين”.
يعرف فالديز تماما مخاطر تهديد الأقوياء المتنفّذين والعصابات المسيطرة. يقع مقر صحيفة ريودوس في سينالوا، وهي ولاية مضطربة حيث ينهض الاقتصاد على تجارة المخدرات. وأضاف “في عام 2009 القى شخص ما قنبلة يدوية على مكتب ريودوس، لكنها لم تسبب سوى أضرار مادية. وتلقّيت مكالمات هاتفية تأمرني بأن أتوقف عن التحقيق في بعض جرائم القتل أو في جرائم زعماء عصابات المخدرات. واضطررت الى حجب معلومات هامة من النشر لأنه كان من المحتمل بأن يقوموا بقتل عائلتي لو قمت بالإشارة اليها. وبالفعل فقد قتلت مصادر أعرفها أو تم خطفهم واخفائهم … الحكومة لم تكترث اطلاقا. إنها لا تفعل شيئا لحمايتك. لقد كان هناك الكثير من هذه الحالات وهي لا زالت تحدث “.
على الرغم من أن الصحفيين المكسيكيين يواجهون العديد من المشاكل المشتركة، يأسف فالديز لقلّة الشعور بالتضامن بينهم وضعف الدعم الذي يحظون به من المجتمع الأوسع. ويخشى فالديز بأن تتكثّف الضغوط على الصحفيين فيما تستعد المكسيك للانتخابات الرئاسية في العام القادم، في خضم أزمة اقتصادية مستمرّة، مما سيكون له عواقب خطيرة على البلاد كما يقول.
ويحذر فالديز بأن “المخاطر التي تواجه المجتمع والديمقراطية هي خطيرة للغاية.” ويضيف: “للصحافة تأثير كبير على العملية الديمقراطية والوعي الاجتماعي، ولكن عندما نعمل تحت كم هائل من التهديدات فلا يكون عملنا أبدا على الوجه الأكمل المطلوب”.
يقول فالديز أنه اذا لم يحدث تغيير جذري، فستواجه المكسيك والصحفيون فيها مستقبلا مظلما، وأضاف: “لا أرى المجتمع يتعاضد مع الصحفيين أو يحميهم. في ريودوس لا نتلقى أي دعم من قبل أصحاب الأعمال لتمويل المشاريع. إذا أفلسنا وأغلقنا أبوابنا فإن أحدا لن يفعل أي شيء [للمساعدة]. ليس لدينا حلفاء. نحن بحاجة إلى مزيد من الدعايات والاشتراكات والدعم المعنوي ولكننا الآن متروكون لوحدنا.ولن نستطيع أن نستمر لفترة طويلة في هذه الظروف.”
يتشارك إسكورسيا، الذي يواجه حالة صعبة مماثلة، هذا الشعور بالخطر الداهم، ولكنه قرّر التحدّي. بعد التهديدات الأخيرة الموّجهّة ضده، كتب على حسابه على تويتر: “هذا هو بلدنا، ووطننا، ومستقبلنا، وفقط من خلال بناء الشبكات يمكننا الحفاظ عليه. قول الحقيقة، وتوحيد الناس، وخلق وسائل إعلامية جديدة ودعم تلك منها القائمة، ونشر ما يريدون التكتّم عليه، هذه هي الطريقة الحقيقية التي يمكننا أن نساعد من خلالها. “
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يمكنكم الاستماع إلى مقابلة مع دنكان تاكر من خلال بودكاست “اندكس أون سنسورشيب” (مؤشر الرقابة) على سوندكلود،
soundcloud.com/indexmagazine
دنكان تاكر هو صحفي مستقل يقيم في غوادالاخارا، المكسيك
*ظهر هذا المقال أولا في مجلّة “اندكس أون سنسورشيب” بتاريخ ١٢ أبريل/نيسان ٢٠١٧
[/vc_column_text][/vc_column][/vc_row][vc_row content_placement=”top”][vc_column width=”1/3″][vc_custom_heading text=”The big squeeze” font_container=”tag:p|font_size:24|text_align:left” link=”url:https%3A%2F%2Fwww.indexoncensorship.org%2F2017%2F12%2Fwhat-price-protest%2F|||”][vc_column_text]The spring 2017 issue of Index on Censorship magazine looks at multi-directional squeezes on freedom of speech around the world.
Also in the issue: newly translated fiction from Karim Miské, columns from Spitting Image creator Roger Law and former UK attorney general Dominic Grieve, and a special focus on Poland.[/vc_column_text][/vc_column][vc_column width=”1/3″][vc_single_image image=”88803″ img_size=”medium” alignment=”center” onclick=”custom_link” link=”https://www.indexoncensorship.org/2017/12/what-price-protest/”][/vc_column][vc_column width=”1/3″ css=”.vc_custom_1481888488328{padding-bottom: 50px !important;}”][vc_custom_heading text=”Subscribe” font_container=”tag:p|font_size:24|text_align:left” link=”url:https%3A%2F%2Fwww.indexoncensorship.org%2Fsubscribe%2F|||”][vc_column_text]In print, online. In your mailbox, on your iPad.
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11 Dec 17 | News and features, Volume 46.04 Winter 2017
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Close to where I live is a school named after an important protester of his age, John Ball. Ball was the co-leader of the 14th century Peasants’ Revolt, which looked for better conditions for the English poor and took to the streets to make that point. Masses walked from Kent to the edges of London, where Ball preached to the crowds. He argued against the poor being told where they could and couldn’t live, against being told what jobs they were allowed to pursue, and what they were allowed to wear. His basic demands were more equality, and more opportunity, a fairly modern message.
For challenging the status quo, Ball was put on trial and then put to death.
These protesters saw the right to assembly as a method for those who were not in power to speak out against the conditions in which they were expected to live and taxes they were expected to pay. In most countries today protest is still just that; a method of calling for change that people hope and believe will make life better.
However, in the 21st century the UK authorities, thankfully, do not believe protesters should be put to death for asserting their right to debate something in public, to call for laws to be modified or overturned, or for ridiculing a government decision.
Sadly though this basic right, the right to protest, is under threat in democracies, as well as, less surprisingly, in authoritarian states.
Fifty years after 1968, a year of significant protests around the world, is a good moment to take stock of the ways the right to assembly is being eroded and why it is worth fighting for.
In those 50 years have we become lazier about speaking out about our rights or dissatisfactions? Do we just expect the state to protect our individual liberties? Or do we just feel this basic democratic right is not important?
Most of the big leaps forward in societies have not happened without a struggle. The fall of dictatorships in Latin America, the end of apartheid, the right of women to vote, and more recently gay marriage, have partly come about because the public placed pressure on their governments by publicly showing dissatisfaction about the status quo. In other words, public protests were part of the story of major social change, and in doing so challenged those in power to listen.
Rigid and deferential societies, such as China, do not take kindly to people gathering in the street and telling the grand leaders that they are wrong. And with China racheting up its censorship and control, it’s no wonder that protesters risk punishment for public protest.
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But it is not just China where the right to protest is not being protected. Our special report on the UK discovers that public squares in Bristol and other major cities are being handed over to private companies to manage for hundreds of years, giving away basic democratic rights like freedom of speech and assembly without so much as a backwards glance.
Leading legal academics revealed to Index that it was impossible to track this shift of public spaces into private hands in detail, as it was not being mapped as it would in other Western countries. As councils shrug off their responsibilities for historic city squares that have been at the centre of shaping those cities, they are also lightly handing over their responsibilities for public democracy, for the right to assembly and for local powers to be challenged.
The Bristol Alliance, which already controls one central shopping district with a 250-year lease, is now seeking to take over two central thoroughfares as part of a 100,000-square-metre deal (see page 15). And the people who are deciding to hand them over are elected representatives.
In the USA, where a similar shift has happened with private companies taking over the management of town squares, the right to protest and to free speech has, in many cases, been protected as part of the deal. But in the UK those hard-fought-for rights are being thrown away.
Another significant anniversary in 2018 is the centenary of the right to vote for British women over 30. That right came after decades of protests. Those suffragettes, if they were alive today, would not look kindly on English city councils who are giving away the rights of their ancestors to assemble and argue in public arenas.
For a swift lesson in why defending the right to assembly is vital, look to Duncan Tucker’s report on how protesters in Mexico, Argentina, Venezuela and Brazil are facing increasing threats, tear gas and prison, just for publicly criticising those governments.
In Venezuela, where there are increasing food and medicine shortages, as well as escalating inflation, legislation is being introduced to criminalise protest.
As Tucker details on page 27 and 28, Mexican authorities have passed or submitted at least 17 local and federal initiatives to regulate demonstrations in the past three years.
Those in power across these countries are using these new laws to target minorities and those with the least power, as is typically the case throughout history. When the mainstream middle class take part in protest, the police often respond less dramatically. The lesson here is that throughout the centuries freedom of expression and freedom of assembly have been used to challenge deference and the elite, and are vital tools in our defences against corruption and authoritarianism. Protecting protest is vital, even if it doesn’t feel important today. Tomorrow when it is gone, it could well be too late.
But it is not all bad news. We are also seeing the rise of extreme creativity in bringing protests to a whole new audience in 2017. From photos of cow masks in India to satirical election posters from the Two-Tailed Dog Party in Hungary, new techniques have the power to use dangerous levels of humour and political satire to hit the pressure points of politicians. These clever and powerful techniques have shown protest is not a dying art, but it can come back and bite the powers that be on the bum in an expected fashion. And that’s to be celebrated in 2018, a year which remembers all things protest.
Finally, don’t miss our amazing exclusive this issue, a brand new short story by the award-winning writer Ariel Dorfman, who imagines a meeting between Shakespeare and Cervantes, two of his heroes.
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Rachael Jolley is the editor of Index on Censorship magazine.
[/vc_column_text][/vc_column][/vc_row][vc_row][vc_column][vc_custom_heading text=”From the Archives”][vc_row_inner][vc_column_inner width=”1/3″][vc_single_image image=”91582″ img_size=”213×289″ alignment=”center” onclick=”custom_link” link=”http://journals.sagepub.com/doi/pdf/10.1080/03064228808534472″][vc_custom_heading text=”Uruguay 1968-88″ font_container=”tag:p|font_size:24|text_align:left” link=”url:http%3A%2F%2Fjournals.sagepub.com%2Fdoi%2Fpdf%2F10.1080%2F03064228808534472|||”][vc_column_text]June 1988
In 1968 she was a student and a political activist; in 1972 she was arrested, tortured and held for four years; then began the years of exile.[/vc_column_text][/vc_column_inner][vc_column_inner width=”1/3″][vc_single_image image=”94296″ img_size=”213×289″ alignment=”center” onclick=”custom_link” link=”http://journals.sagepub.com/doi/pdf/10.1080/03064228108533158″][vc_custom_heading text=”The girl athlete” font_container=”tag:p|font_size:24|text_align:left” link=”url:http%3A%2F%2Fjournals.sagepub.com%2Fdoi%2Fpdf%2F10.1080%2F03064228108533158|||”][vc_column_text]February 1981
Unable to publish his work in Prague since the cultural freeze following the Soviet invasion in 1968, Ivan Klíma, has his short story published by Index. [/vc_column_text][/vc_column_inner][vc_column_inner width=”1/3″][vc_single_image image=”91220″ img_size=”213×289″ alignment=”center” onclick=”custom_link” link=”http://journals.sagepub.com/doi/pdf/10.1177/0306422017716062″][vc_custom_heading text=”Cement protesters” font_container=”tag:p|font_size:24|text_align:left” link=”url:http%3A%2F%2Fjournals.sagepub.com%2Fdoi%2Fpdf%2F10.1177%2F0306422017716062|||”][vc_column_text]June 2017
Protesters casting their feet in concrete are grabbing attention in Indonesia and inspiring other communities to challenge the government using new tactics.[/vc_column_text][/vc_column_inner][/vc_row_inner][vc_separator][/vc_column][/vc_row][vc_row content_placement=”top”][vc_column width=”1/3″][vc_custom_heading text=”What price protest?” font_container=”tag:p|font_size:24|text_align:left” link=”url:https%3A%2F%2Fwww.indexoncensorship.org%2F2017%2F12%2Fwhat-price-protest%2F|||”][vc_column_text]In homage to the 50th anniversary of 1968, the year the world took to the streets, the winter 2017 issue of Index on Censorship magazine looks at all aspects related to protest.
With: Micah White, Ariel Dorfman, Robert McCrum[/vc_column_text][/vc_column][vc_column width=”1/3″][vc_single_image image=”96747″ img_size=”medium” alignment=”center” onclick=”custom_link” link=”https://www.indexoncensorship.org/2017/12/what-price-protest/”][/vc_column][vc_column width=”1/3″ css=”.vc_custom_1481888488328{padding-bottom: 50px !important;}”][vc_custom_heading text=”Subscribe” font_container=”tag:p|font_size:24|text_align:left” link=”url:https%3A%2F%2Fwww.indexoncensorship.org%2Fsubscribe%2F|||”][vc_column_text]In print, online. In your mailbox, on your iPad.
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06 Jul 17 | Magazine, News and features, Student Reading Lists, Volume 46.02 Summer 2017 Extras
Mexican journalist Javier Valdez who was recently shot and killed. Credit: Gobierno Cholula/Flickr
For years, Index on Censorship has covered stories of violence against the media in Mexico. In the first six months of 2017, seven journalists have been killed, a terrifying statistic. To help those researching media freedom in Mexico, we have compiled a reading list of articles from the past five years. It includes details of threats, punishments and pressures faced by Mexican journalists. Students and academics whose universities subscribe to Sage Journals will find all these articles free to read.
Making a killing: A special Index investigation looking at why Mexico is an increasingly deadly place to be a journalist as reporters face threats from corrupt police to deadly drug gangs
Vol 46, Issue 3, 2017
Ahead of Mexico’s elections next year, in a special investigation for Index, Duncan Tucker looks at threats to journalists over the past decade.
Read the full article here
Parallel lives and unparalleled risks: The author discusses his time reporting from Mexico, how the death of one journalist particularly affected him and introduces an excerpt from his forthcoming novel
Vol 46, Issue 3, 2017
Mexico is one of the most dangerous countries to be a reporter today, but these dangers are not spread evenly between local and foreign reporters. Author Tim MacGabhann speaks to Jemimah Steinfeld about why this is the backdrop to his new book and introduces an extract from it
Read the full article here
Documenting the truth: Documentaries are all the rage in Mexico, providing a truthful alternative to an often biased media
Vol 47, Issue 3, 2018
Documentaries are growing in popularity in Mexico, and have more freedom to broadcast facts and challenge government lies.
Read the full article here
Between a rock and a hard place: Mexico’s journalists face threats from cartels, the government and even each other
Vol 46, Issue 1, 2017
Alberto Escorcia and Javier Valdez discuss the pressures on Mexican media from all sides: drug cartels, government agencies, and even from other media outlets. These two reporters explain the difficulties journalists face and note that often there is little police protection from cartels. Valdez, a globally known journalist, was shot and killed in May 2017.
Read the full article here
Shooting from the hip: A new mayor in a Mexican border city believes he will make it less dangerous for journalists
Vol 46, Issue 1, 2017
Does local Mexican government have the ability or will to protect journalists? In an interview with Armando Cabada Alvídrez, the mayor of the largest city in Chihuahua (on the border of the United States), and Gabriela Minjares, a co-founder of the Juárez Journalists’ Network, Index on Censorship explores government promises and speculation from journalists on Mexico’s imminent potential for improvement of journalist security.
Read the full article here
Shooting the messengers: Women investigating sex trafficking in Mexico
Vol 45, Issue 2, 2016
Mexican journalists investigating sex trafficking, prostitution or child pornography often encounter threats and pressure not to cover stories. Journalists Lydia Cacho, Sanjuana Martínez and Shaila Rosagel discuss the retaliation they faced for uncovering unsavoury relationships between sex crimes and government officials.
Read the full article here
Mexican airwaves: Interviews with radio journalists who were shut down after investigating presidental property deals
Vol 44, Issue 4, 2015
“The level of violence against Mexican journalists has been well documented, but comparatively little is known about the pressures that reporters and their bosses come under when dealing with the government.” Carmen Aristegui, one of Mexico’s most renowned journalists, lost her job and ability to report in Mexico after uncovering allegations of property fraud against President Peña Nieto.
Read the full article here
Mexican stand-off
Vol 44, Issue 2, 2015
Since the abduction of 43 missing students from Ayotzinapa training college, tensions between Mexico’s academic institutions and government have been at an all time high. In this article, Dr Rossana Reguillo Cruz discusses the case of the missing students, along with the threats she receives on a daily basis after discussing her support for investigations into their disappearance.
Read the full article here
Constitutionally challenged: Mexico’s struggle with state power
Vol 43, Issue 4, 2014
In addition to threats and cover-ups, Mexican journalists face increasing pressure from other directions. While much censorship occurs without regard to the law, this article explores how suppression of speech is becoming further integrated into Mexican society.
Read the full article here
On the ground: In Mexico City
Vol 42, Issue 2, 2013
The Mexican office of Article 19 (the right to freedom of expression), has documented 900 incidents of suppressed expression, aided 100 targeted journalists and received dozens of threats since 2006 (as this article went to press). Ricardo Gonzalez discusses the challenges and progress of the Article 19 office in the face of increasing crime against journalists, and his hope for justice.
Read the full article here
Murder In Mexico
Vol 41, Issue 2, 2012
The Olympic Games frequently draw attention to the social and political conditions of their host countries, stirring up protests from the people and censorship from the government. Brian Glanville, originally a sports reporter sent to cover the 1968 Olympics, recounts his experience of media manipulation and student massacres by the Mexican government during the games, explaining the immense importance of international media coverage when local governments cannot be held accountable.
Read the full article here
13 Apr 17 | Magazine, News and features, Volume 46.01 Spring 2017
[vc_row][vc_column][vc_single_image image=”89329″ img_size=”full” add_caption=”yes” alignment=”center”][vc_custom_heading text=”Mexico-based journalist DUNCAN TUCKER writes in the spring 2017 issue on reporting in a country where news is not just repressed, it’s fabricated, and journalists face violent threats from police and cartels. ” google_fonts=”font_family:Libre%20Baskerville%3Aregular%2Citalic%2C700|font_style:400%20italic%3A400%3Aitalic”][/vc_column][/vc_row][vc_row][vc_column][vc_column_text]
“I hope the government doesn’t give in to the authoritarian temptation to block internet coverage and start arresting activists,” Mexican blogger and activist Alberto Escorcia told Index on Censorship magazine.
Escorcia had just received a series of threats for writing an article about recent unrest in the country. The next day the threats against him intensified. Feeling trapped and unprotected, he began making plans to flee the country.
Many people are concerned about the state of freedom of expression in Mexico. A stagnant economy, a currency in freefall, a bloody drug war with no end in sight, a deeply unpopular president at home and the belligerent Donald Trump administration freshly installed in the USA across the border, these forces are all creating a squeeze in 2017.
One of the biggest tensions is Mexico’s own president. Enrique Peña Nieto’s four years in office have brought sluggish economic growth. There has also been resurgent violence and a string of corruption scandals. In January this year his approval ratings plummeted to 12%.
But when journalists have tried to report on the president and his policies they have come under fire. For example, 2017 began with intense protests after Peña Nieto announced a 20% hike in petrol prices. Days of demonstrations, blockades, looting and confrontations with police left at least six people dead and more than 1,500 arrested. The Committee to Protect Journalists reported that police beat, threatened or briefly detained at least 19 reporters, who were covering the unrest in the northern states of Coahuila and Baja California.
News was not just suppressed, it was fabricated. Mass hysteria enveloped Mexico City as legions of Twitter bots incited violence and spread false reports of further looting, causing the temporary closure of 20,000 small businesses.
“I’ve never seen Mexico City like this,” Escorcia said over the phone from his home in the capital. “There are more police than normal. There are helicopters flying above us every hour and you can hear sirens constantly. Even though there hasn’t been any looting in this part of the city, people think it’s happening everywhere.”
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Duncan Tucker is a freelance journalist, based in Guadalajara, Mexico. The rest of this article is available online here. This article is part of a series in the spring 2017 issue of Index on Censorship magazine that looks at situations where free speech is being restricted from multiple sides. You can read about all of the other content in the magazine here.
[/vc_column_text][/vc_column][/vc_row][vc_row][vc_column][vc_custom_heading text=”From the Archives”][vc_row_inner][vc_column_inner width=”1/3″][vc_single_image image=”89160″ img_size=”213×300″ alignment=”center” onclick=”custom_link” link=”http://journals.sagepub.com/doi/pdf/10.1177/0306422011399687″][vc_custom_heading text=”Narco tales” font_container=”tag:p|font_size:24|text_align:left” link=”url:http%3A%2F%2Fjournals.sagepub.com%2Fdoi%2Fpdf%2F10.1177%2F0306422011399687|||”][vc_column_text]March 2011
Bloggers and citizen journalists are telling the stories that the mainstream Mexican media no longer dares to report, says Ana Arana.[/vc_column_text][/vc_column_inner][vc_column_inner width=”1/3″][vc_single_image image=”89168″ img_size=”213×300″ alignment=”center” onclick=”custom_link” link=”http://journals.sagepub.com/doi/pdf/10.1080/03064220902734319″][vc_custom_heading text=”Wall of silence” font_container=”tag:p|font_size:24|text_align:left” link=”url:http%3A%2F%2Fjournals.sagepub.com%2Fdoi%2Fpdf%2F10.1080%2F03064220902734319|||”][vc_column_text]February 2009
Analysis of the culture of intimidation facing investigative journalists in Mexico — from attacks on reporters to criminal activity.[/vc_column_text][/vc_column_inner][vc_column_inner width=”1/3″][vc_single_image image=”94760″ img_size=”213×300″ alignment=”center” onclick=”custom_link” link=”http://journals.sagepub.com/doi/pdf/10.1080/03064227608532576″][vc_custom_heading text=”Guessing game” font_container=”tag:p|font_size:24|text_align:left” link=”url:http%3A%2F%2Fjournals.sagepub.com%2Fdoi%2Fpdf%2F10.1080%2F03064227608532576|||”][vc_column_text]April 1983
The unpredictability of Mexican government crackdown keeps the press guessing, making them careful with what they publish. [/vc_column_text][/vc_column_inner][/vc_row_inner][vc_separator][/vc_column][/vc_row][vc_row][vc_column width=”1/3″][vc_custom_heading text=”The Big Squeeze” font_container=”tag:p|font_size:24|text_align:left” link=”url:https%3A%2F%2Fwww.indexoncensorship.org%2Fmagazine|||”][vc_column_text]The spring 2017 issue of Index on Censorship magazine looks at multi-directional squeezes on freedom of speech around the world.
Also in the issue: newly translated fiction from Karim Miské, columns from Spitting Image creator Roger Law and former UK attorney general Dominic Grieve, and a special focus on Poland.[/vc_column_text][/vc_column][vc_column width=”1/3″][vc_single_image image=”88788″ img_size=”medium” alignment=”center” onclick=”custom_link” link=”https://www.indexoncensorship.org/magazine”][/vc_column][vc_column width=”1/3″][vc_custom_heading text=”Subscribe” font_container=”tag:p|font_size:24|text_align:left” link=”url:https%3A%2F%2Fwww.indexoncensorship.org%2Fsubscribe%2F|||”][vc_column_text]In print, online. In your mailbox, on your iPad.
Subscription options from £18 or just £1.49 in the App Store for a digital issue.
Every subscriber helps support Index on Censorship’s projects around the world.
SUBSCRIBE NOW[/vc_column_text][/vc_column][/vc_row]
