Entities defending journalism and freedom of expression in Brazil expressed their repudiation of the aggressions suffered by reporters covering Jair Bolsonaro’s (non-party) visit to Rome during the G20 summit. This Sunday (31), professionals accredited by sheet, UOL, TV Globo, O Globo newspaper and BBC Brasil took shoves and punches from unidentified Brazilian and Italian security guards.
In an open letter to Bolsonaro published on Monday (1), the president of the Brazilian Press Association (ABI), Paulo Jeronimo, stated that the agent encourages hostility against professionals.
“With your anti-democratic behavior and constant attacks on the press and the work of journalists, you encourage these attacks. In this way, you also become responsible for them,” he wrote.
He points out that the government did not apologize for what happened. “You and the other members of your entourage, including representatives of Itamaraty, were incapable of a word of apology to the professionals who were just working. On the contrary, they continued to harass journalists.”
For Jeronimo, the attacks increase the isolation and rejection that Bolsonaro receives from the international community. “Worse, the isolation is not yours alone. It affects and shames the country you represent. You are making Brazil an outcast in the international community, President. Have your composure.”
In a statement, Abraji (Brazilian Association of Investigative Journalism) recalled that it is the duty of the press to inform society of acts of public power, including the president’s trips while in office, and that society has the right to access information guaranteed by the Constitution.
“By not condemning violent acts by his security guards and supporters against journalists who are only fulfilling their duty to inform, the President of the Republic encourages more attacks of this kind, in a dangerous and potentially fatal escalation,” he says. “Attacking the messenger is a recurrent practice of the Bolsonaro government which, like any other administration, is subject to public scrutiny.”
The Commission for the Defense of Human Rights Dom Paulo Evaristo Arns – Arns Commission informed that it will file representations with Brazilian and Italian authorities to investigate “what led officials paid by the Brazilian State to attack fellow countrymen who acted in strict compliance with their professional duty” and “to elucidate how and why Italian security agents participated in the same deplorable scenes.”
“It is appalling to see that the violence against press professionals has apparently occurred with the purpose of freeing the Brazilian president from contact with those who, as a duty of office, need to investigate and bring information to the public. It would be no different in an event of the relevance of the The G20 Summit, to which Jair Bolsonaro contributed nothing, except for his irrelevance and ability to lie about our reality,” says the organization’s repudiation note.
According to the Vladimir Herzog Institute, the episode cannot be treated in isolation. “Under the current government, Brazil has become a hostile place for the exercise of journalistic activity. Questioning the press or disagreeing with it are legitimate attitudes; trying to silence it with attacks and attempts at intimidation is another evident and serious violation of the Constitution and to the democratic rule of law, which unfortunately became common in Brazil”, states the note.
The entity reaffirmed “the commitment to promote articulations, develop new initiatives and activate all legal avenues to respond to the complex and dangerous challenges we are going through”. “Only then will we be able to stop the escalation of violations of freedom of expression and attacks on journalists and communicators across the country.”
Not Sunday, to sheet he asked the Presidency’s Secom (Secretary of Communication) who are responsible for the security of Bolsonaro in Rome, but got no answer. In a note about the episode, the newspaper stated: “The sheet repudiates the attacks suffered by reporter Ana Estela de Sousa Pinto and other journalists in Rome, yet another unacceptable attack by President Jair Bolsonaro on the professional press.”
TV Globo also spoke out, condemning the attacks and calling for those responsible to be punished. “Who hired the security guards? Who gave them the guidance to remove journalists using force? Will those responsible be punished? Globo is seeking information on the procedures necessary to request an investigation from the Italian authorities,” the company says.
“This rhetoric will not impede the legitimate work of the press. Questions will continue to be asked, the actions of the president will continue to be monitored and recorded. It is the duty of professional journalism.”
In a statement published on Monday, the BBC declared that it “strongly condemns any type of violence against the press and insists that the Brazilian government ensure the safety of journalists in carrying out their duties in public space”.
On Sunday, the ANJ (National Association of Newspapers) stated that it “repudiates with vehemence and indignation the attacks suffered by Brazilian journalists in covering the president’s activities” and that it hopes that the acts will be investigated and the guilty punished. “Impunity in this and other episodes is a sign of an authoritarian escalation.”
The Freedom of Expression Commission of the Brazilian Bar Association (OAB) also issued a repudiation note to the attacks against journalists. “It is regrettable that incidents like this occur, reflecting a frequent attitude of disrespect for the work of press professionals.”
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