Barrancabermeja journalists receives death threat while covering a local event

Jose David was on his way to the Lagos del Palmara neighborhood in the afternoon hours of  July 7, 2015 to photograph a county construction project.  To do so, Jose David asked the president and secretary of the Community Action Board (JAC) to accompany him. But they said no.

Moments after leaving the JAC secretary’s house, three men carrying firearms physically assualted him, taking with them his journalistic material and identification papers. They threatened to kill him, and then told him to leave the neighborhood, warning him that any other journalist would face the same consequence if they came to the area.

The aggressors told Jose David that journalists harmed the area. This statement appears to be related to news about police crackdowns on drug sales in some Barrancabermeja neighborhoods in the state of Norte de Santander. FLIP also found out about another case in which a journalist, after publishing an article about the police efforts, received threatening, anonymous phone calls and was pressured by neighborhood leaders to discontinue reporting on the issue.

FLIP  firmly condemns these kinds of actions, as they generate a hostile environment to practice jouranlism is Barrancabermeja. While Jose David was the direct victim in this case, the message was directed toward journalists in general. Because of this, FLIP urges the City of Barrancabermeja and the police to investigate the source of these threats and take the necessary steps to ensure the safety of journalists in all parts of the city.