Two armed men stormed the offices of the newspaper with the largest circulation on the coast Colombia in the Caribbean to demand the publication of a “message” from a mafia boss, a non-governmental organization alleged yesterday.
“Members of an armed group” presented themselves at its headquarters El Heraldoin Baranquias (north), where they “said they had a message from Digno Palomino, their leader, who reportedly wants to join the peace talks,” through which the government seeks to disarm and dismantle rebel organizations, far-right paramilitary groups and cartels of drugs, explained it Foundation for the Freedom of the Press (Fundación para la Libertad de Prensa, FLIP) in the press release he released.
Mr. Palomino, whom Colombian justice accuses of belonging to a drug-trafficking and extortion gang known as “Los Costenios,” was arrested in Venezuela in 2019 and extradited to Colombia in September last year. He has since been placed under house arrest in Barranquilla.
Six armed men were present, “two of whom entered and demanded to speak to the newspaper’s director, Erica Fondalvo. Three journalists came out to talk” with the gang’s emissaries, who “demanded that an interview (of Mr. Palomino) taken by the armed group itself be published,” according to FLIP.
El Heraldo, which did not publish Mr. Palomino’s message, received a call from an unknown person last week demanding that its reporters interview “El Castor,” the leader of the Los Costenios gang, according to the NGO.
According to non-governmental organization Reporters Without Borders (Reporters sans frontières, RSF), Colombia is the third most dangerous country for journalists in Latin America, behind Mexico and Brazil. FLIP recorded in 2022 a total of 200 threats against media professionals and two murders of journalists because of their work.
Source: News Beast
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