The non-legal Proposition, derived from the initiative of the Foundation for Justice to submit for debate in the Human Rights Commission of Les Corts Valencianes the state of freedom of the press and expression in El Salvador, was approved last Wednesday, 1 of March.
The proposal has had the favorable votes from the PSPV, Compromís, Unides Podem and Ciudadanos; For its part, the PP abstained and Vox was the only parliamentary group that voted against. In total, there were 9 votes in favor, 2 abstentions and 1 vote against.
As an object of debate, aspects such as the political crisis derived from the security policy implemented by President Bukele since 2019, the increase in social and criminal violence or the persecution and harassment against Salvadoran journalists were of particular relevance.
A resolution that involves the Generalitat Valenciana, the Government of Spain and the European Union
With the support of the signatory groups, the resolution proposal was guided based on three pillars. In the first, the Cortes urge the Consell de la Generalitat to maintain and strengthen protection programs and initiatives for any human rights defender who is in a vulnerable situation. Likewise, the need to strengthen international cooperation policies for the defense of the rights and freedoms of the Salvadoran people is emphasized.
The second refers to the demand to the Consell to address the Government of Spain and he uses all his diplomatic capacity before the Salvadoran executive with the objective of ensuring that it abides by what is established in agreements and other instruments in favor of guaranteeing freedom of the press and expression.
It also places emphasis on strengthening its international participation to receive demands from journalists who are victims of persecution for their professional practice and prevented from doing so.
Therefore, it is urged to continue and improve asylum policies for Salvadoran refugees who request international protection and to show the Spanish commitment to Freedom of the Press and Human Rights.
Ultimately, it is urged Advise him to go to the European Union through the Government of Spain, to investigate complaints of attacks on Salvadoran journalists and use its diplomacy to insist that the government of El Salvador cease its practices of harassment and stigmatization.
Make visible and protect activism in favor of freedom of the press and expression
The testing of NLP is the result of the work that the Foundation for Justice began in October 2022 under the name 'Visibility and defense of Human Rights activists linked to freedom of expression and press in El Salvador'.
This, in turn, is framed in the Futures in Freedom Program, financed by the Department of Participation, Transparency, Cooperation and Democratic Quality of the Generalitat Valenciana. It included the presence in Valencia of three Salvadoran journalists who related the situation in their country and the possibility of extension to other parts of the planet, germ along with the rest of the Foundation's work in the last four years of the recent approval.
In figures, the Association of Journalists of El Salvador reported 173 violations of press freedom between January and August 2021 alone. The methods recorded include physical attacks, cyberbullying, restriction on journalistic practice and obstruction of access to public information.