The author of a book about a powerful politician has been sentenced to two years in prison. Media advocates say the case is part of a trend in which the courts are being used to punish critics. The police raided a reporter’s house after he investigated an elite Catholic society. A court-ordered journalists’ assets were frozen following a defamation complaint from a powerful figure. A sports journalist called the head of a soccer club inept and was sentenced to a year in prison.
And then, last week, a judge sentenced a Peruvian journalist to two years in prison and imposed a $100,000 fine following a defamation lawsuit brought by a powerful, wealthy politician. Media experts called the decision the most direct threat to freedom of expression in Peru in years. And, they said, it was part of a worrying trend across the region — but particularly strong in Peru — in which powerful figures are using the courts to intimidate and punish journalists who investigate them. “It absolutely sidesteps the fundamental principles of freedom of expression,” said Ricardo Uceda, who leads the Press and Society Institute of Peru, of the ruling.
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