Last Friday night, the Prime Minister, Hannibal Torresrevealed, during a press conference, that the Minister council had approved submitting to Congress a bill that proposes to sanction the leaking of confidential information from tax investigations. The announcement has gathered the rejection of various associations of journalists who point out that it would be an attack against the right to information.
The National Association of Journalists of Peru (ANP) He expressed his dissatisfaction with the initiative, since it would directly affect the journalistic activity that takes place in the country, taking into account the work carried out by the press in revealing acts of corruption involving State officials.
“At a time when the trend throughout the continent is to make the processes against public administration and corruption in which those who exercise or have exercised a public function are involved as transparent as possible, what is happening in the country constitutes a frank regression”reads a statement.
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In this sense, the ANP criticized that the Government, hand in hand with Congress, intends to set aside its “rights guaranteeing role.”
“We deplore that both the Executive and Legislative Branches, in their capacity as powers of the State, abandon their role as guarantors of rights and freedoms distorting their ability, own or delegated, to legislate”, it is added.
The Federation of Journalists of Peru (FPP) has also rejected the new bill and described it as a way to coerce the action of the press.
“We reject and condemn this type of journalistic coercion and blackmail of those who report the truth. With this bill, the work of investigative journalism would be harmedin the case of being approved in the plenary session of the Legislative”, they announced in a statement.
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IPYS warns that the Executive’s project will affect tax investigations
The Institute of Press and Society (IPYS) warned that the initiative announced by Aníbal Torres would affect the development of the tax investigations and that it would seek to prevent more aspects about the former officials of the Government of peter castle who would be involved in alleged cases of corruption.
“IPYS maintains that on this occasion the Government’s intention towould affect all kinds of tax investigations, which is clearly unconstitutionaland would rather correspond to an attempt to prevent the numerous accused of the regime from being reported, ”said the entity.
