Number of LATAM projects as of February 2022
| COUNTRIES | PROJECTS | |
|---|---|---|
| ARGENTINA | 7 | |
| BRAZIL | 28 | |
| CHILE | 3 | |
| COLOMBIA | 14 | |
| ECUADOR | 2 | |
| GUATEMALA | - | |
| MEXICO | 13 | |
| PARAGUAY | 2 | |
| PERU | 2 |
Topics bills presented between August 2021 and February 2022
| Access to information | 6.9% | |
| Bullying | 10.3% | |
| Apologia | 5.2% | |
| Freedom of expression | 8.6% | |
| Equality and non-discrimination | 17.2% | |
| Internet Access | 1.7% |
| Privacy | 1.7% | |
| Protection of minors | 15.5% | |
| Reputation and honor | 5.2% | |
| Content moderation | 5.2% | |
| Gender Violence | 5.2% | |
| Indigenous rights | 3.4% | |
| Fake News | 1.7% |
Topics bills presented between August 2021 and February 2022
| Access to information | 4.8% | |
| Bullying | 9.5% | |
| Apologia | 4.8% | |
| Freedom of worship | 1.6% | |
| Equality and non-discrimination | 15.9% | |
| Official advertising | 4.8% | |
| Fake News | 1.6% | |
| Protection of minors | 14.3% | |
| Reputation and honor | 4.8% | |
| Content moderation | 4.8% |
01/02
Youtuber Fabio Yañez assaulted verbally to a journalist who asked him if he felt remorse for the attacks against the first lady. It should be noted that Fabio Yañez is immersed in criminal proceedings for discrimination against women, digital harassment and dissemination of images by making three publications during 2020 on social networks against the first lady.
FREEDOM OF THE PRESS GENDER VIOLENCE VIOLENCE AGAINST JOURNALISTS
02/02
The macrista legislator, Juan Pablo Arenaza, published a Tweet class protest against the people who attended the 1F March for the “Democratization of Justice”. The tweet generated dispute for considering that his position as a public official generates social responsibilities.
FREEDOM OF EXPRESSION EQUALITY AND NON-DISCRIMINATION
03/02
The Indec eliminated the DNI of the final Census questionnaire after several organizations and social movements presented a habeas data through which they requested the suspension of the National Census. They found that by including the DNI as a mandatory requirement, it affected the Personal Data Protection Law in that a certain amount of personal and sensitive information is collected without taking into account the express and informed consent on obtaining data that affects privacy, intimacy and self-determination of personal data.
PRIVACY PERSONAL DETAILS
04/02
The Supreme Court of Justice communicated its agenda to discuss the constitutionality of the blocking of information available on the internet, at specific URLs, that allude to the privacy of the appellants due to past events.
RIGHT TO BE FORGOTTEN
05/02
The legislator Ramiro Marra, he presented a bill that seeks to prohibit demonstrations in the streets that impede "freedom of movement" and the "normal functioning of public services" and instead proposes the creation of "particular space" that allows protests to take place without causing inconvenience.
The legislator argued that "No lawsuit is a sufficient argument to allow groups of people to carry out blockades of streets or routes, as well as acts of violence", he considers and adds that "even if the claims are legitimate, pickets cannot be carried out that end up violate other norms and affect the entire community.” The project will begin to be debated after March 1.
FREEDOM OF EXPRESSION
08/02
The Judicial Branch of Chaco was the victim of hackers who infiltrated the file management platform and other systems, taking control of the available information and demanding the payment of a ransom in exchange for the return of the material. This situation led to the suspension of terms and hearings being declared, hoping that the impact would be minimal.
ACCESS TO INFORMATION PERSONAL DETAILS
10/02
Deputy Facundo Suárez Lastra was victim of identity theft when his WhatsApp account was hacked, in a similar case, the same thing happened with the comedian Robert Moldavsky. These computer attacks are growing in recent weeks to scam people who are stored as contacts in the hacked numbers.
PRIVACY PERSONAL DETAILS
11/02
Gabriela Cerruti apologized to journalists after having a confrontation with La Nación newspaper journalist Cecilia Devanna when she consulted the government spokesperson about the president's praise for leaders of China and Russia during the recent official tour. Cerruti, in her place, decided discredit journalistic work and questioned the veracity of the sources consulted and the information.
FREEDOM OF THE PRESS FREEDOM OF EXPRESSION
14/02
There are new candidate to hold the position of director of the Agency for Access to Public Information. She would be the master Beatrice of Anchorena selected through the Chief of Staff, empowered by article 21 of the Law on Access to Public Information.
ACCESS TO INFORMATION
17/02
Like the deputy Facundo Suárez and the humorist Roberto Moldavsky, the provincial deputy Ruben Eslaiman was hacking victim on WhatsApp, Instagram and Twitter to scam people stored as contacts.
PRIVACY PERSONAL DETAILS
19/02
The Supreme Court of Justice ordered suspend the preliminary measure issued by the civil court that sought to force the journalist Santiago O'Donnell to hand over to Mariano Macri (brother of the former president), the audios of the interviews carried out in which the plot of power and business of the Macri family was narrated, as the main source of the book "Brother". The suspension was given by Judge Andrea Alejandra Imatz so that freedom of expression and the intimacy of journalistic secrecy can be studied in depth.
FREEDOM OF EXPRESSION JOURNALISTIC DATABASE
21/02
The Minister of Environment of the Nation, Juan Cabandié responded before the accusations made by the leader of the Civic Coalition, Elisa Carrió, indicating that she was the victim of fake news referring to the fires in Corrientes as "an intentional abandonment through the removal of the hydrating planes." Carrió was not the first public figure to criticize this event against the government. Patricia Bullrich and radical senator Alfredo Cornejo also criticized the government for reasons of disinformation.
FAKE NEWS
23/02
they call to declare to Mariano Macri for the statements made in the book "Brother" and that he can give a testimonial statement in the case of investigation of Mauricio Macri for spying and using intelligence and counterintelligence agents. Mariano must appear on March 21. In the same testimonial round, the comptroller of the Federal Intelligence Agency (AFI) Cristina Caamaño, the deputy Diego Santilli and the judge of guarantees of Avellaneda Luis Carzoglio, among others, were summoned.
PRIVACY SURVEILLANCE
06/01
The Public Ministry of the Federation asked Twitter for detailed information on the dissemination, on the platform, of disinformation content about the Covid-19 pandemic. The survey asks Twitter to: (i) provide detailed information on the availability, for users of the platform, of a way to report disinformation content related to the COVID-19 pandemic, which is still in progress; (ii) specifically inform why users from other countries have the option to report disinformation content to the platform, while Brazilian users do not; (iii) inform if measures are being taken so that said reporting functionality is also available to Brazilian users and, if so, what is the timeframe for its implementation on the platform; and (iv) report the criteria used by those responsible for the platform to verify the verification of users, and indicate whether, among the criteria used to deny said verification condition, is the possible involvement of the user in the dissemination of information. disinformation content on public health issues, such as those related to COVID-19, in relation to which there is already a strong consensus of health authorities around the world.
FREEDOM OF EXPRESSION ACCESS TO INFORMATION
28/01
The Chamber of Deputies approved a bill 130/20 that prohibits the dissemination on social networks or in any other digital medium of photographs or videos of the practice of very serious traffic offenses. The prohibition also extends to the dissemination, publication or dissemination of conduct that puts the physical integrity of oneself and third parties at risk or that constitutes a traffic offense and dissemination in electronic and printed media. The person who discloses these facts will be sanctioned with a fine, while the digital platforms must remove the content within 24 hours of notification by the judicial authority, if this does not happen, they will also be fined. In case of withdrawal, these companies must communicate the exclusion to the person who published it electronically, containing the identification of the measure adopted, the reason for the decision and information on the challenge procedures. In case of recidivism of these crimes within a period of 12 months, the penalties will be doubled. However, third-party postings that seek to expose these acts as a form of public utility will not be prohibited.
FREEDOM OF EXPRESSION MEDIA REGULATION
01/02
El Minister of the Supreme Federal Court Gilmar Mendes suspended, in judicial file No. 49.463, the decision of the Court of Justice of Rio de Janeiro (TJ-RJ), which prohibited Piauí Magazine from publishing on the complaints of sexual and moral harassment against the comedian Marcius Mehem. The order of August 2021 determined the prohibition for the duration of the investigations, under penalty of paying a fine of R $ 500 thousand and removal from publication. According to the Legal Consultant portal, in the decision that suspended the ban, Minister Gilmar Mendes stated that the decision of the TJ-RJ disavows a consolidated understanding of the Federal Supreme Court in the sense of prohibiting prior censorship and added that "there was censorship improper judicial action against relevant journalistic information of public interest”. Judicial file No. 49.463 remains a judicial secret.
FREEDOM OF THE PRESS CENSORSHIP
15/02
El São Paulo Court of Justice (TJSP) annulled the sentence that had sentenced Hans River, former employee of Yacows, a mass messaging company, to pay R$ 50 thousand to journalist Patrícia Campos Mello. Mello is the author of reports that denounced an irregular message shooting scheme in the 2018 elections and River was one of his sources during his investigation. During the Inquerito Parliamentary Commission on disinformation, River said that Mello would have offered sex in exchange for information that he would use in the reports.yes When judging the case, the judge considered that “the criticism directed at the author by the accused does not focus on the work. But they focus on her condition as her woman, the object of sexual domination, according to historical colonialist practices that, in the 150st century, still shape sexism”. When re-examining the case, the appellate judges, however, understood that the judge's decision did not analyze all the issues raised by River, who responded to Campos Mello's action with a counterclaim – in which he requested R$ XNUMX thousand for damages. moral for alleged damages caused by his investigative reporting.
FREEDOM OF THE PRESS
25/02
El Minister Alexandre de Moraes, of the Federal Supreme Court (STF), ordered the suspension of Telegram profiles within 24 hours. If the Russian application does not comply with the determination, the platform would be subject to "suspension of the operation of Telegram services in Brazil for an initial period of 48 hours." In addition, Moraes set a fine of R $100.000 per day per profile indicated and not blocked within the prescribed period, without prejudice to the imposition of other coercive measures.
MEDIA REGULATION
03/01
During December and January 2022, Commission No. 7 of the Chilean Constitutional Convention on Systems of Knowledge, Culture, Science, Technology, Arts and Heritage has continued its work in relation to the presentation of proposals for the incorporation of the right to communication and digital rights in the new Constitution being debated in Chile. Some of the norms proposed by conventions and that already have general approval for discussion are: right to digital connectivity, digital literacy, protection of personal data, right to communication.
February 01, 2022 is the closing date for the presentation and proposals of initiatives of popular norms through the digital platform of participation of the Convention, through which at least three other related initiatives have been added. These must obtain the support of 15 signatures of citizens to also be reviewed and debated during March 2022.
FREEDOM OF EXPRESSION ACCESS TO INFORMATION MEDIA REGULATION
05/01
A group of deputies from the Broad Front presented at the beginning of January 2022 a bill of law that seeks to regulate the digital platforms and social networks that currently exist in the country and whose objective is to “regulate transparency, adherence to human rights standards, due process and accountability in the dissemination of content, information and services through the digital platforms, in order to regulate their operation and functioning in the national territory.
The initiative was prepared by deputy Marcelo Díaz (Unir) and had the support of the parliamentarians of the Broad Front, Claudia Mix, Maite Orsini, Camila Rojas, Marcela Sandoval, Jorge Brito, Tomás Hirsch, Amaro Labra and Patricio Rosas. The project – admitted to the Commission of Culture, Arts and Communications-, regular search to digital platforms in the "formation and preservation of freedom of information and that allow the development of a true democracy, collaborating in the creation of a rich and diverse digital ecosystem, without a brake on innovation and participation in the digital economy , but ensuring respect for international human rights standards».
ACCESS TO INFORMATION MEDIA REGULATION FREEDOM OF EXPRESSION
25/01
The last week of January , the Mixed Commission of the Chilean Congress approved a norm that seeks to amend the Penal Code so that the Public Ministry can request personal data of any citizen from any provider of telecommunications and Internet services without a prior court order, in the context of ongoing investigations. Immediately after the session –project processing-, representatives of organizations from the private sector, civil society and academia published a public statement in the Chilean media to alert and point out the rejection of the initiative.
With this proposal, the Chilean Prosecutor's Office could "request personal data from any citizen to any service provider, without prior court order, transparency or accountability mechanism that allows controlling the use of a surveillance tool," says part of the public statement which was signed by the NGO Digital Rights, Protected Data Foundation and the Center for Computer Law Studies – CEDI of the University of Chile.
PERSONAL DETAILS PRIVACY SURVEILLANCE
08/02
Two serious events occurred that raised alarms about the safety of journalists in Colombia. On February 8, renowned journalist Claudia Julieta Duque returned her protection scheme to the National Protection Unit (UNP), the official entity that grants security measures to journalists, after serious complaints against the entity. According to the journalist, the UNP has been monitoring her actions and movements for months, putting her safety and that of her sources at risk. In addition, the journalist said that the UNP falsely denied having access to this information.
SURVEILLANCE FREEDOM OF THE PRESS
03/02
The Colombian Constitutional Court ruled sentences protecting the right to freedom of expression of two journalists and a well-known radio media outlet. A citizen filed a tutela action considering that the journalists and the media outlet had violated his fundamental right to a good name by pointing out that they had taken photos of the financial statement books of a company of which he is a shareholder, despite the fact that such action is prohibited. by the law. To make its decision, the Court collected some parameters set in 2019 in judgment T-155/19 to guide the judge's work when evaluating the context of the act of communication and resolving rights tensions. In accordance with this doctrine, judges must consider who communicates (qualities and role of the person who emits the expression), what or from whom it is communicated (including considerations about how the information was obtained), to whom it is communicated (characteristics of receivers of the message) and by what means it is communicated (to determine the scope of a message). Applying these criteria, the Court considered that, despite not being a case of public interest, the journalists' expressions are protected because they are opinions that cannot be rectified.
JOURNALISTIC DATABASE FREEDOM OF EXPRESSION FREEDOM OF THE PRESS
21/02
The national government launched the first Ten Year Plan for Native Languages, which will seek to protect and prevent the extinction of 68 native languages that are still alive in Colombian territories. According to the Ministry of Culture, this is a unique plan in Latin America. This plan was built with the support of leaders of indigenous peoples, gypsies, Palenqueros and Raizales.
INDIGENOUS RIGHTS
22/02
On the night of February 22, the investigative journalist Julian Martinez was the victim of an attack in the city of Bogotá, after meeting with one of his sources. As reported by the Foundation for Press Freedom (FLIP)Since 2016, Martínez has received multiple threats and harassment related to his journalistic activity.
VIOLENCE AGAINST JOURNALISTS
03/01
The frequency contests are still in the eye of the hurricane: since 2016 Ecuador has tried to carry out contests for the allocation of frequencies in both AM and FM. However, this has been severely questioned and has even caused many public officials to find themselves investigated. The 2016 contest was seriously questioned because the criteria for assigning frequencies could be easily manipulated and the assignment itself could be used as an element of political pressure or to favor certain actors who were more benevolent with the Government. This situation caused the Comptroller General of the State to make observations and a complete study that led to the nullity of many processes. In the year 2020, a contest was held again in which it was intended to solve the questions of the year 2016. Unfortunately, this did not happen and resulted in the Comptroller's Office currently conducting a validity and compliance test again. All this at the gates of the frequency contest for community stations has already begun. This scenario is critical for freedom of expression, since the allocation of frequencies is a process that can determine the structural validity of the right.
FREEDOM OF EXPRESSION ACCESS TO INFORMATION MEDIA REGULATION
16/02
The Congress of the Republic approved Decree 11-2022, which contains reforms to Decree 17-73 of Congress, Penal Code of Guatemala, in relation to crimes committed against children and adolescents through technological means (Initiative No. 5898). Criminal figures are established in order to protect the right to health, integrity and sexual indemnity of minors and adolescents. Interestingly, one of the recitals establishes that Internet access is a human right declared by the United Nations Human Rights Council and that currently, the development of technology has made it possible to universalize access to said right, which implies access to social networks, putting children and adolescents in situations that involve constant threats to their integrity, freedom and sexual indemnity, for which it is the duty of the State to promote the necessary mechanisms to protect them from said threats.
Based on this, and as part of the accessory penalties that can be committed for the commission of these new crimes (Seduction by technological means; and Sexual Blackmail by technological means), it is contemplated to prohibit the contracting of internet services, for twice the the penalty imposed, notifying the providers of said service. It is understood that this accessory penalty would apply to the person who is responsible for any of these new crimes. It is paradoxical that the law itself limits or restricts what was previously considered a human right.
PRIVACY PENAL CODE MEDIA REGULATION
21/02
The Association of Journalists of Guatemala (APG), issued on the 21st of the currents its statement 07-02-2022, entitled "The APG Urges the Nominating Commission to Choose Suitable Candidates for the Next Prosecutor". "Given the serious sociopolitical situation that Guatemala is going through, the deterioration and setbacks in the justice system, the APG considers that the process of electing the new Attorney General and Head of the Public Ministry is transcendental for the strengthening of the State of Law.” The importance of reporting on this statement is because for APG this process is more relevant in view of the increase in the criminalization of communicators, the persecution of justice operators and the informal defense of actors linked to possible acts of corruption. As previously reported, the Public Ministry has been accused of initiating spurious actions against several independent journalists, including Juan Luis Font (ConCriterio) and José Rubén Zamora (elPeriódico), who have denounced the abuses, acts and aggressions that they intend to violate the freedom of expression of journalists and citizens in general.
FREEDOM OF THE PRESS FREEDOM OF EXPRESSION VIOLENCE AGAINST JOURNALISTS
10/02
The journalist Heber López Vázquez was assassinated in Oaxaca, Mexico, becoming the 30th journalist assassinated in the government period of Andrés Manuel López Obrador. Article 19, requested the Oaxaca Attorney General's Office to carry out the investigations considering the journalistic work of Mr. Heber López Vázquez. On the other hand, the Mechanism for the Protection of Human Rights Defenders and Journalists was required to manage protection actions for relatives and colleagues of the murdered journalist.
FREEDOM OF THE PRESS VIOLENCE AGAINST JOURNALISTS
11/02
Derived from the publication of a report by journalist Carlos Loret de Mola in which information is shown that allegedly shows acts of corruption and conflict of interest of one of the sons of President Andrés Manuel López Obrador, the latter revealed what is allegedly information sensitive personnel of the journalist and has requested the National Institute for Access to Public Information and other institutions such as the Financial Intelligence Unit to make this journalist's data public, and insists that certain journalists must make their income public. In this regard, various media, specialists, journalists and politicians They have shown rejection for affecting freedom of expression.
CORRUPTION JOURNALISTIC DATABASE FREEDOM OF THE PRESS PRIVACY
15/02
R3D reports that businessman Carlos Guerrero admitted his guilt before a Federal Court in the United States of America, for the illegal sale of espionage equipment to various Mexican authorities.
SURVEILLANCE PRIVACY
17/02
Various civil society organizations They asked the Yucatan Congress to repeal the crime of defamation from their local criminal code, considering the human rights standards in the matter, and the incremental use it has had by public servants of the State of Yucatan from 2015 to date.
PENAL CODE ACCESS TO INFORMATION
18/02
civil society organizations, Civic Proposal and Article 19, condemned that the former Governor of Coahuila, Mexico, Humberto Moreira, has sued the journalist and academic, Sergio Aguayo, for moral damages, who in 2020 published a work documenting serious human rights violations during the period of government of the former Governor, and the journalist and academic referred in his podcast in 2021. This is the second lawsuit filed by the former Governor, who in 2016 sued for the first time for an amount of ten million pesos (492,000 USD).
ACCESS TO INFORMATION FREEDOM OF EXPRESSION
28/01
The police issue recommendations for the protection of personal data. Within the framework of the international day for the protection of personal data, the national police issued some advice to be applied.
PERSONAL DETAILS
30/01
The Public Ministry reported a 300% increase in investigations of child pornography cases in the country. According to the data collected by the Public Ministry, in 2019 960 cases were opened, in 2020 a total of 915, in 2021 2.796 cases were received.
CHILD PORNOGRAPHY INTERNET ACCESS
09/02
German under study for child pornography he will go to prison. The criminal judge of Guarantees Alicia Pedrozo decreed this Wednesday the preventive detention in the Tacumbú National Penitentiary of the German citizen Wilfried Rudolf Frankes, 65, accused of attempted homicide and resistance, after shooting and injuring two policemen who tried to stop him. The man is also being investigated for alleged child pornography, reported Raúl Ramírez, a journalist for Última Hora.
CHILD PORNOGRAPHY
