Freedom of Expression
Press Release 156/06
OFFICE OF THE SPECIAL RAPPORTEUR FOR FREEDOM OF EXPRESSION REGRETS DEATH OF JOURNALIST IN MEXICO AND CALLS FOR APPROPRIATE INVESTIGATION
Washington, D.C., October 31, 2006. The Office of the Special Rapporteur for Freedom of Expression of the Inter-American Commission on Human Rights (IACHR) of the OAS regrets the death of U.S. cameraman Brad Will in Oaxaca, Mexico. The Office of the Special Rapporteur urges the Mexican authorities to investigate this occurrence promptly and effectively in order to determine the circumstances of the death and duly sanction those responsible.
According to the information received by the Office of the Special Rapporteur, on October 27, 2006, Mr. Brad Will was injured by gunshots while he was filming a confrontation between sympathizers of the Popular Assembly of the People of Oaxaca (Asamblea Popular de los Pueblos de Oaxaca, APPO) and the local police. The documentarian and photojournalist, who was covering the conflict in Oaxaca for the independent media organization Indymedia, died when he was transferred to a hospital. According to the information received, the shots allegedly came from municipal police dressed in civilian clothing and personnel of the mayor’s office, who opened fire against an APPO barricade near Mr. Brad Will.
The Special Rapporteur for Freedom of Expression, Ignacio J. Álvarez, stated that “this act once again shows the vulnerability of the situation of journalists in carrying out their work, vital for the existence and development of an informed society. It is lamentable and deplorable that a cameraman who was attempting to gather images of a news story of national and international interest died during the shooting. We urge the local and national authorities to investigate this crime adequately, to determine whether the murder of Mr. Brad Will was a consequence of his work as a journalist, and to bring those responsible for this act before the courts. The lack of an effective investigation may cause the States to incur international responsibility determined by the Inter-American Commission on Human Rights and the Inter-American Court of Human Rights.”
The Office of the Special Rapporteur for Freedom of Expression recalls that according to the American Convention on Human Rights, the States have the duty to prevent, investigate, and sanction any violation of the rights recognized therein. Principle 9 of the Declaration of Principles of the IACHR states that “[t]he murder, kidnapping, intimidation of and/or threats to social communicators, as well as the material destruction of communications media violate the fundamental rights of individuals and strongly restrict freedom of expression. It is the duty of the State to prevent and investigate such occurrences, to punish their perpetrators and to ensure that victims receive due compensation.”
For additional information on the Office of the Special Rapporteur: http://www.cidh.org/relatoria