Mexican Journalistic Breakthrough
I found the following article to be very interesting. It relates to the Mexican Legal System and the Press I think the article clearly demonstrates
how the feudal system is still represented in Mexican Jurisprudence.
The Aztecs, Conquistadors, and the Catholic Church had the power, and often used it, to summarily execute and enslave the entire family of a person
who violated laws or committed some offense deemed significant by the ruling class. Mexican culture has evolved to deal with this sort of oppression.
Understanding this context can be very helpful for non-Mexican people trying to understand the often-confusing behavior of Mexicans.
Freedom of the Press in Mexico 2007
From The Gringo Gazette, Volume 12, #10, January, 22, 2007, State and National News, Pg. 25 continues on pg. 38 by David Flores. www.gringogazette.com
Freedom of the Press Gets a Boost
Mexican Journalism got a boost this week when a Mexico City judge threw out defamation charges against journalist and author Lydia Cacho.
Press freedom advocates generally praised the decision, and Cacho herself told the media that she felt like “a survivor of corruption and political
power.”
But as welcome as it may have been for Cacho’s peace of mind, Judge Lorenzo Medina’s ruling was a limited one. It marks the beginning, not the end, of
the Mexican media’s quest to criticize wrongdoing without fear of politically based repercussions, including jail time.
Nor does it end the confrontation between Cacho and the man who filed the defamation charges against her – Puebla textile magnate Kamel Nacif. The
Supreme Court will soon take up Cacho’s claim that Nacif and Puebla Gov. Mario Marin conspired to violate her civil rights by subjecting her to mental
and physical abuse during her 2005 arrest. To Cacho, the official harassment and the defamation accusation were two sides of the same coin – the use
of the law by the rich (Nacif) and powerful (Marin) to stifle criticism. Nacif, who was caught on audio tape arranging Cacho’s arrest with Marin, was
identifies as close to alleged pedophile Jean Succar Kuri in Cacho’s 2005 book “The Demons of Eden.” He promptly filed libel and defamation charges
against the Cancun based journalist, both criminal offenses.
The libel accusation was soon dropped, while the defamation charge stuck until Judge Medina’s decision Tuesday. Libel (calumnia) is a false accusation
in print; defamation (difamacion) is any imputation communicated in bad faith that could harm a person’s reputation, even if it is true.
But the case against Cacho was never decided on its merits. Instead, Cacho caught a break when the case was moved from Puebla (where the charge was
originally filed) to Quintana Roo (where she lives and works), and then to the capital, (where “The Demons of Eden” was published). Just months
earlier, Mexico City legislators had officially decriminalized defamation.
Mexico City is the only entity that has decriminalized defamation, meaning that any journalist outside the capital who uncovers negative information
about anybody runs the risk of criminal charges if it is printed or aired.
Free-press advocates want defamation and libel to be civil rather than criminal, with economic penalties rather than prison sentences, and a
reasonable burden of proof on the plaintiff. Otherwise, they say, the law is weapon against the press.
End of Story
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