The government revokes another media licence in the Amazonas region

Reporters Without Borders today condemned as an act of political revenge the cancellation of a television station’s licence, seven months after the same action was taken against radio La Voz de Bagua Grande, also in the Amazonas region. Televisión Oriente, based in Yurimaguas in the north-east, lost its broadcast licence on 15 January on the order of the Transport and Communications Ministry (MTC). Like La Voz de Bagua, Televisión Oriente fulfilled all the legal conditions for its licence, granted in 2006. And in both cases the authorities claimed that they had not met deadlines for operational checks. This reason is obviously not valid. The last inspection of the aerials was done in 2007, and another was due between now and May, stressed Roberto Pereira, quoted by the Institute for Press and Society. The administration is obviously not observing its own deadlines and this clousure derives from low political revenge on the part of the authorities, the organisation said. Interior minister, Mercedes Cabanillas, publicly threatened to close La Voz de Bagua and Radio Oriente, for their alleged “support” for violence against the security forces after demonstrations in June by the indigenous population against mining rights granted to multinationals on ancestral lands. The government has since then been looking for culprits among the media. In another such case, Alejandro Carrascal Carrasco, editor of the weekly Nor Oriente in Bagua, was sentenced on 12 January to one year in prison for “defamation“. In reality, the journalist paid the price for his stance in favour of the indigenous population, and for whom his son, a lawyer, has taken up the case since June. (Photo: CNR)