Venezuela Journalists Face Rising Hostility: 97 Aggressions Recorded in Five Months

The National College of Journalists (CNP) in Venezuela's Capital District has sounded the alarm, reporting 97 aggressions against the press in the first five months of the year. This figure marks a stark increase from the 72 incidents recorded during the same period last year, painting a grim picture for media professionals.

Edgar Cárdenas, the CNP's general secretary in Caracas, described the current environment as critically hostile. He detailed a pattern of systematic persecution and the erosion of constitutional guarantees for free reporting. "We are witnessing a deterioration of the conditions for practicing journalism in the country," Cárdenas stated. "We have moved from a policy of isolated incidents to structural censorship, characterized by arbitrary detentions, coverage impediments, and the worrying phenomenon of deportations of foreign correspondents."

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We are witnessing a deterioration of the conditions for practicing journalism in the country. We have moved from a policy of isolated incidents to structural censorship, characterized by arbitrary detentions, impediments of coverage and the worrying phenomenon of deportations of foreign correspondents.

The CNP's Observatory for Monitoring Aggressions Against Journalists and Media documented the 97 violations between January and May. These included 18 arbitrary detentions, 16 instances of coverage being impeded, 15 deportations of foreign correspondents, 12 direct attacks, 12 instances of recorded material being erased, 10 cases of harassment, 8 of intimidation, and 4 radio station closures.

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We have moved from a policy of isolated incidents to structural censorship, characterized by arbitrary detentions, impediments of coverage and the worrying phenomenon of deportations of foreign correspondents.

Adding to the vulnerability of journalists, the report highlighted that six media professionals, though released from detention, remain under severe restrictive measures. These include regular judicial appearances, travel bans, and limitations on speaking to the media or practicing their profession, leaving them in a state of legal defenselessness.

Cárdenas also denounced the use of legal instruments such as the Law Against Hate and the Simón Bolívar Law. He argued these ambiguous statutes are deliberately employed to criminalize opinion, judicialize critical thinking, and force media outlets into self-censorship due to fear of disproportionate sanctions. Despite the persistent weakening of broadcasting following the closure of four radio stations, the CNP Caracas affirmed its commitment to defending freedom of expression.

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The journalism in Venezuela today is practiced under the threat of punitive legal instruments such as the Law Against Hate and the Simón Bolívar Law. These are ambiguous norms that are deliberately used to criminalize opinion, judicialize critical thinking and force the media into self-censorship for fear of disproportionate criminal or administrative sanctions.