RELE concludes technical cooperation visit to Ecuador on Mechanism for Prevention and Protection of Journalistic Work

March 5, 2025

Washington, D.C. - The Office of the Special Rapporteur for Freedom of Expression of the Inter-American Commission on Human Rights (IACHR) concluded its technical cooperation visit to Ecuador, which took place on January 14 and 15, 2025. The purpose of the visit was to strengthen dialogue with state authorities and civil society actors on the implementation of the Mechanism for the Prevention and Protection of Journalistic Work, as well as to address security challenges for the practice of journalism in the country.

The visit was part of the process of technical assistance that the Office of the Special Rapporteur has offered to Ecuador, with particular emphasis on monitoring the situation of freedom of expression and the conditions for the exercise of journalism. During the visit, the delegation held meetings with high-level State authorities, including representatives of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, the Secretariat of Communication of the Presidency, the Council for the Development and Promotion of Information and Communication, the Communication Council, the Ministries of Government, Economy and Finance, and Telecommunications, the Ombudsman's Office and the Attorney General's Office. He also held meetings with journalists, media, civil society organizations and representatives of the Articulation Board for the Protection of Journalists (MAPP).

The Rapporteurship recognizes the common will of the State and Ecuadorian society as a whole to advance in these matters, particularly the reform of the Organic Law of Communication of November 2022, which established the Mechanism for the Prevention and Protection of Journalistic Work, and the issuance of its General Regulations in August 2023. This regulatory framework is an important step in establishing a permanent technical state body with the capacity to issue binding decisions and a multi-stakeholder governance structure.

Nevertheless, the Rapporteurship continues to observe and monitor the situation of violence and risks to the safety of journalists, especially by organized crime groups. This situation has been documented in annual reports, as well as through public hearings on this issue at the 188th and 191st Period of Sessions of the IACHR, held in November 2023 and 2024, respectively.

According to the monitoring carried out by this Office, during 2024 the actions of organized crime organizations materialized in numerous aggressions against journalists, media and communication workers, including verbal aggressions, threats, attacks on social networks, stigmatizing speeches, attacks and physical attacks, judicial proceedings and cases of exile. Among the most worrisome events is the armed attack on the facilities of TC Televisión on January 9, 2024 in Guayaquil.

According to data from the Communication Council of Ecuador, since 2021, 11 communication workers were murdered. Likewise, during 2024 they received 131 alerts of aggressions and recorded the exile of at least 15 journalists in the last two years. The Rapporteurship received information on self-censorship in areas with a high presence of organized crime. According to reports, violence is accentuated against journalists who cover drug trafficking, corruption, mining or environmental issues, among other topics of public interest. Organizations and journalists report that at least 25 journalists are reportedly being followed. Several women journalists expressed concern about the increase in digital violence against them and gender-based discriminatory attacks.

During the visit, the Office also received reports of threats directed at journalists and educational centers that were threatened with the aim of forcing the dissemination of messages issued by a criminal organization. The Rapporteurship also received reports of ongoing threats and physical aggression against indigenous community journalists that worsened since April 2024 in the context of a protest in Morona Santiago (Ecuadorian Amazon) against a mining company.

The Rapporteurship is concerned about the closure of media outlets, which would be the result in some cases of attacks against them, as well as challenges of sustainability and financing. In the cases in which dismissals have occurred, the failure to pay compensation, among other legal obligations, has been observed. For journalists, these circumstances continue to generate high levels of uncertainty, job insecurity, and seriously affect the quality of journalism. Regarding the management of state advertising only with certain media, the authorities, in contrast, pointed out that the allocation of advertising is based on the objective parameters of the content to be disseminated and the greater reach of new digital media.

Regarding access to public information, the Rapporteurship recognizes the government's efforts to comply with the Organic Law on Access to Information, through policies such as the Open Government Action Plan and the National Transparency Portal. However, during the visit this Office learned of reports of alleged restrictions on requests for access to information and requests for interviews with government officials, indicating the existence of an exclusion list of journalists. In some provinces it is even more difficult to obtain information, given the extremely high risks involved in entering and the fact that there are no official spokespersons willing to talk to the press. This Rapporteurship has indicated on previous occasions how these types of restrictions have a direct effect on the safety and quality of journalistic work, limiting access to sources and generating self-censorship. According to some government entities, the reports on access to interviews are mainly due to time limitations and not to the existence of exclusion lists or a deliberate decision not to talk to the press.

The visit coincided with the opening of a public process for the assignment of radio and television frequencies throughout the country. The Rapporteurship spoke with the telecommunications authorities; it noted that the contest is taking place in parallel to an electoral process and stressed the importance of the existence of guarantees in the contest in accordance with Inter-American standards. According to the RELE, the journalistic contents will not be analyzed since the process of the contest is guided by exclusively technical guidelines.

Given the circumstances observed, the Special Rapporteur recognizes the openness and notes positively that the State of Ecuador has given course to the process of technical assistance aimed at addressing the challenges of protecting journalists, including the effective implementation of the Protection Mechanism within the Communications Council. In the same sense, it highlights the efforts of civil society around the creation of the Articulation Board for the Protection of Journalists (MAPP) in September 2023.

The Rapporteurship also recognizes the efforts made by civil society organizations to protect journalists in the face of insufficient effective state mechanisms to address threats from organized crime groups. In particular, it highlights the creation of the Mesa de Articulación para la Protección de Periodistas (MAPP) in September 2023 and the implementation of support programs for journalists who are victims of violence. However, the Rapporteurship recalls that while civil society initiatives are valuable, they do not replace the State's obligation to guarantee the protection of journalists and media workers

In view of the above, the Office of the Special Rapporteur notes that, more than two years after the creation of this Mechanism, important limitations persist in relation to:

1. The rootedness within the functional and budgetary structure of the Communications Council. In this regard, the Rapporteurship recalls that the State's obligation to guarantee the protection of journalists and communication workers emanates from the American Convention itself and cannot be subordinated to the existence of budgetary resources for its operation.

2. Insufficient inter-institutional articulation among the entities that make up the Mechanism. Particularly, regarding the decision-making competencies of their representatives and the effective coordination of their institutional mandates, essential elements for timely decision-making and the efficient functioning of the Mechanism's governance model.

3. Limited knowledge of the existence of the mechanism, both among the officials themselves and among the beneficiary population. Most of the journalists with whom RELE had the opportunity to meet and who are at risk have not activated the Mechanism, either due to lack of knowledge or lack of confidence in its effectiveness.

4. Lack of clarity and appropriation of the channels of attention and direct protection measures available to respond to risk situations. Although the Mechanism has attended to some specific cases of journalists at risk, the technical instruments and analysis criteria that allow for the assessment of the distinctive risks of journalists in relation to the exercise of their work are not known.

5. Lack of adequacy of direct protection measures. Within the framework of the visit, the Rapporteurship learned of the offer of admission to the victim and witness protection program of the Attorney General's Office for some journalists at risk. In this regard, it was reported that several people rejected the program due to its limitations for effective protection and to ensure that they could continue to perform their work. RELE observes that, although such program may be suitable in certain cases of extreme risk, it does not contemplate a wider range of protection measures, which should not be restricted exclusively to the assistance of state security forces.

6. Budgetary insufficiency. The Rapporteurship learned that the budget requests presented in 2023 and 2024 for the operation of the mechanism were denied. According to the Ecuadorian State, this is due to the fiscal restrictions with which the current government began, and to the fact that in the last two years it has managed a budget that has been carried over from the previous one, making it difficult to incorporate new budget items. However, the Rapporteurship takes note of the commitment expressed by the Ministry of Economy and Finance to carry out a budget review to strengthen the operational capacity of the Mechanism.

By virtue of the standards emanating from the inter-American human rights system, States have the positive obligation to adopt special measures for the prevention and protection of journalists who are at special risk due to the exercise of their profession; and to investigate, prosecute and punish those responsible for crimes against the press. In light of these standards and the challenges identified during this visit, the Rapporteurship, together with the respective public entities, has prioritized the following objectives as a guideline in the framework of the current technical assistance process:

1.       Strengthen the operational capacity of the protection mechanism.

The Rapporteurship considers it fundamental that the Communication Council prioritizes the effective implementation of the protection mechanism for journalists. It is important that the delegated entities that make up the Mechanism strengthen the commitment to its effective operation, within the framework of their competencies and powers, and in line with the positive obligations of the Ecuadorian State for the prevention and protection of press freedom.

In the context of available human and financial resources, the adoption and effective implementation of direct protection measures is a priority, including the activation of the emergency fund for journalists at risk. The Rapporteurship expresses its commitment to facilitate regional exchange with other protection mechanisms in the region for the identification of best practices and the incorporation of inter-American standards on protection. For example, in terms of governance models and institutional architecture, methodological tools for risk analysis with a differential approach, and the implementation of protection measures appropriate to the particularities of journalistic work.

2.       Promote the duties of public officials with respect to the right to freedom of expression and press from a preventive approach.

The Rapporteurship welcomes with gratification the commitment of the General Secretariat of Communication of the Presidency (SECOM) and the Ministry of Government to advance in the development of an instrument that compiles and establishes specific guidelines on the duty of public officials to refrain from making statements that may constitute forms of direct or indirect interference or harmful pressure on the exercise of freedom of expression, in accordance with Inter-American standards on the matter.

The Rapporteurship reiterates its willingness to accompany the Ecuadorian State in the development of this instrument, aimed at strengthening guarantees for freedom of the press and preventing risks against the press arising from the stigmatization of journalistic work.

3.       Strengthen the capabilities of the prosecution in criminal investigations of crimes against journalists.

The Rapporteurship takes note of the challenges faced by the Attorney General's Office in the investigation of crimes committed against journalists. Among these, the limitations in human resources and the risk situations faced by prosecutors in the exercise of their functions stand out, to the point that some have requested their incorporation into the protection program for victims and witnesses of the institution itself. SRFOE also notes the absence of a differentiated approach to investigations of crimes against journalists and the particularities of violence against this group of people, in addition to the need for data collection and analysis to identify patterns of attacks and aggressions.

In response to the above, the Prosecutor's Office expressed its willingness to know and apply one of the tools developed by the Rapporteurship, aimed at guidelines for intermediate activities in investigations of crimes committed against journalists. The purpose of this instrument is to guide the justice operators that carry out these investigations, through specific guidelines under the due diligence standard.

SRFOE thanks the State of Ecuador for facilitating this visit and for its willingness to engage in constructive dialogue. It also thanks the civil society organizations, journalists and media for the valuable information provided. The Rapporteurship will continue to monitor the situation and provide technical assistance to strengthen the protection of journalists in Ecuador.

The Office of the Special Rapporteur for Freedom of Expression is an office created by the Inter-American Commission on Human Rights (IACHR) to encourage the hemispheric defense of the right to freedom of thought and expression, considering its fundamental role in the consolidation and development of the democratic system.

No. R048/25

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