Concern about future of civil liberties, human rights after OAS readmits Honduras

[Judi Lynn]

Concern about future of civil liberties, human rights after OAS readmits Honduras
Published on Tuesday 7 June 2011.

~snip~
“Virtually all the OAS members states agreed to this but not the citizens of Honduras and still less the media, journalists and human rights organization we have been supporting for the past two years,” AMARC-ALC and Reporters Without Borders said. “Our organizations had repeatedly called for significant concessions from Honduras in return for its readmission to the OAS.”

In particular, they had called for:

• An end to impunity for crimes against journalists, human rights activists and others, for the attacks and acts of sabotage against news media, and for the closures of media. And the restoration of broadcast frequencies that have been suspended or withdrawn. A total of 11 journalists and one media owner have been killed since 2010. Four other journalists and a media owner have survived targeted attacks since the start of 2011.
  
  
• The reform of broadcasting and telecommunications legislation, which has become obsolete and makes no provision for community and social media, although this is required by Inter-American legal standards.
  
  
• The access to state information about responsibility for the most serious human rights violations that have taken place since the coup.

“In our view, these points should have been a condition for Honduras’ readmission and it is important that they should be quickly taken into consideration now,” AMARC-ALC and Reporters Without Borders said.

More:
http://en.rsf.org/honduras-concern-about-future-of-civil-07-06-2011,40409.html