Yesterday the Ecuadorean court suspended the hearing in the latest libel case against the South American daily EL Universo. The defamation claims came from President Rafael Correa during 2011, and charged three executives and an editor from the news agency.
This day was marked by an appeal hearing between the media company and the current administration. The sentenced stipulated was three years in prison, and fines to pay of $40 million. The court was asked to step in to mediate the controversial verdict and one of the three judges was reported sick, which postponed the proceedings until further notice.
The Community to Protect Journalists (CPJ) had condemned the sentence because it was not in compliance with international standards of freedoms of the press. All of this debate stemmed from a published article that questioned the uprisings in the country’s capital following the rescue of the commander and chief.
As the CPJ stressed that “In Ecuador, defamation case could set dangerous precedent” and could weaken the press’s role for the sake of reporting on what the government does. If the court fails to overturn the charges it could be a major setback for the sake of progress and freedom of information.
“Much is at stake, including the Ecuadoran government's reputation, when the National Court of Justice finally hears the appeal from El Universo. Over the past week, disagreements betweenEl Universo and the government extended to the date of the parties' hearing before the high court and the selection of judges who'll hear the appeal.
It’s not the first time these clashes happen between the media and the left-leaning president. Previous incidents include the news anchor of Teleamazonas Jeannette Hinostroza, who was forced to issue a rebuttal over the comments made about the excessive use of power by the state.
Nevertheless, the court will play significant role in deciding the outcome of this defamation case. The country is going under a transformational change to revitalize a social revolution to supposedly redistribute the wealth for its people. This agenda has been set by no other than President Correa. However, an independent or private press always serves as another perspective to balance out the state’s propaganda.
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