The Office of the Special Rapporteur for Freedom of Expression of the Inter-American Commission on Human Rights (IACHR) condemned this Saturday the murder of journalist Roberto Figueroawhich occurred on the night of Friday, April 26 in Morelos.
“The @RELE_CIDH condemns the murder of journalist Roberto Figueroa, recorded on April 26 in Morelos,” the organization stated in a brief message on social networks.
In the position he urged the authorities to “due diligence investigate the crime, find those responsible and guarantee that the crime does not go unpunished.”
#Mexico🇲🇽 The @RELE_CIDH condemns the murder of journalist Roberto Figueroa, recorded on #26APR in Morelos. This Office urges the authorities to investigate the crime with due diligence, find those responsible and ensure that the crime does not go unpunished. pic.twitter.com/L63S0USQzJ
— Office of the Special Rapporteur for Freedom of Expression (IACHR) (@RELE_CIDH) April 27, 2024
What happened to Roberto Carlos Figueroa, the reporter murdered in Morelos?
The IACHR thus ruled on the kidnapping and subsequent murder of the journalist and content creator Roberto Figueroa, who on Friday He was found dead inside a car in the town of Coajomulco in HuitzilacMorelos.
According to local media reports, the journalist was kidnapped by armed men on Friday morning at his home when he returned from dropping his daughters off at school.
Later, Figueroa’s relatives received several phone calls, some of them from Roberto himself, who asked them to collect money to give to his captors as a gift. rescue.
After the family obtained the amount that the criminals were asking for, they gave them instructions to deliver the money and assured them that they would leave the journalist in Coajomulco.
However, and despite the fact that the relatives followed the steps agreed upon with the kidnappers, around 6:20 p.m. local time (00:20 GMT on Saturday), the National Guard, the Mexican Army, and the State Police They located the lifeless body of Figueroa inside a compact car.
After the murder of the communicator became known, the Morelos government issued a statement in which it condemned the events and called on the state Attorney General’s Office to carry out the corresponding investigations “to find the person or persons responsible.”
⚠️ ARTICLE 19 documents the murder of Roberto Carlos Figueroa, director of @AcaEnElShowoccurred yesterday.
According to the media, the journalist was deprived of his freedom and his relatives received a call demanding a ransom. Even though he was paid, he was found dead.
— ARTICLE 19 MX-CA (@article19mex) April 27, 2024
Mexico, the most dangerous country for journalists
Roberto Carlos Figuera was a member of the portal ‘Here at the Show’. One day before his murder, on April 25, she went to the UAEM to participate in an event organized by Citizen Movement (MC). I frequently tried corruption issues.
Finally, the IACHR recalled that acts of violence against journalists have a triple effect: violates the right of victims to express and disseminate their ideas, opinions and information; They generate a frightening and silencing effect on their peers and violate the rights of people and societies to seek and receive information.
The event occurs while associations such as Reporters Without Borders (RSF) have warned that Mexico is the most dangerous country without war for journalistswith at least five murdered in relation to their work in 2023, according to Article 19.
