EL UNIVERSAL

The Inter-American Press Association (IAPA) next March 28-30 is holding its half-yearly meeting in Caracas to assess both the breakthroughs and regressions of press freedom in the hemisphere, particularly in Cuba, Bolivia, and Venezuela, IAPA sources said.

IAPA executive director Julio Muñoz told Efe that during the meeting in the Venezuelan capital city they are to voice concern about the situation facing the countries where the press media are under threats and "certain" attacks.

"Obviously, we are going to delve into the situations facing each of the countries. Over the last few years, attention has focused on Cuba, where a number of reporters are in jail," Muñoz stressed.

Bolivia is also in the spotlight, as the country is going through "a very serious situation," said Muñoz, between the government and the news media.

In his view, in Bolivia the press is filing complaints with international bodies rejecting "the government aggressions in that country."

Ecuador, Nicaragua, and Venezuela will also be under close scrutiny by some 300 representatives of the news media in the hemisphere who are expected to attend the meeting.

Venezuela was at the center of the IAPA Annual Meeting held in Miami last October, after the shutdown of private television station Radio Caracas Televisión.

The oldest TV channel in Venezuela -which operated for 53 years- stopped broadcasts last May 27 at midnight, after the Venezuelan government decided not to renew the relevant license for broadcasting on open signal.

The IAPA directors hope this topic does not top the agenda of the Caracas half-yearly meeting to be held this week.

Venezuela "is one of the countries facing a difficult situation for the press, yet it is not the only one. We are not interest in shifting the focus 100 percent to Venezuela, but to review the situation in other countries as well," Muñoz stressed.

President Hugo Chávez was sent an invitation to open the IAPA meeting, but he has not confirmed his attendance. The IAPA also invited Venezuelan Communication and Information Minister Andrés Izarra.

Muñoz noticed that the IAPA hopes "to receive some kind of answer and to have some sort of representation of the Venezuelan Executive Branch in the assembly."

Translated by Maryflor Suárez R.