Baja California Governor Jaime Bonilla Valdez argued that his government is “very, very, transparent” and assured that they will not frighten or silence him.
This is in response to the request of more than 80 journalists who requested the National Commission on Human Rights (CNDH), their intervention in the face of what they consider direct attacks against media and information blockades by the governor.
Read: Stigmatized by power and with precarious working conditions, the situation of journalists in Mexico
“Most of Baja California’s journalists and media in the state are grappling with the official cancellation of the forced response to transparency inquiries, with the unilateral suspension of mandatory information publication, and with a one-way and selective information system that limits accountability, which does not allow feedback, questions, or counter-replication with state authorities,” the letter notes.
They also accused that since the beginning of Bonilla’s government, relevant information is only disclosed on their Facebook broadcasts, which hinders the journalistic exercise.
” (Bonilla) has confused his right to exercise free expression of ideas with abuse of power, when he uses official spaces, with public resources, to— without evidence, give journalistic work that is not in his government’s interest,” the letter says.
In #BC journalists come together to defend freedom of expression and access to information, in the face of the attacks of the governor @Jaime_BonillaV and the information blockades #TuViolenciaNoSilencia #YoDefiendoAlPeriodismoBC #GobiernosSeVanPeriodismoPermanece pic.twitter.com/viWR8E58Nq
— Adela Navarro Bello (@adelanavarro) July 17, 2020
On Saturday’s morning, Bonilla took advantage of much of his virtual transmission to talk about the letter sent to the CNDH.
“The misinformation of the detractors reigns (…) and then they get angry because you tell them that you can’t give them information because they move everything, then ‘ah, Human Rights’, they’re going to go complain to the galactic supreme.”
“We are not going to be frightened, I give them here (transmission) the information, here very transparent, if they do not want to write it as it is and then they will be offended, because we do not give them a chance to misrepresent the information, because that is a problem that they have to solve,” he added.
Bonilla reiterated that criticism from some media outlets in the region towards his government is because his administration does not buy them advertising.
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