The death yesterday of Francisca Sandoval, who was shot in the head on May 1 while reporting on a demonstration for Labor Day, is the first in Chile of a journalist in the exercise of his work since the end of the 1990 dictatorship and democracy returned.
The young woman, who was reporting for the local media Channel 3 La Victoria, was shot in the skull during the disturbances generated in the Meiggs neighborhood by violent groups, apparently linked to the mafias that operate in the area and that take advantage of both street vending and the exploitation of migrants.
Days later, members of the State security forces arrested the alleged perpetrator of the shot, identified as Marcelo Naranjo, who remains in preventive detention and could be charged with intentional homicide.
The informant remained hospitalized for 12 days, fighting for her life, until this Thursday medical sources confirmed the death.
Consulted by Efe, the Chilean Association of Journalists assured that it has no "record of another case like this, at least not in a democracy".
About thirty murders in dictatorship
There are numerous cases of death or disappearance of Chilean journalists in office during the dictatorship of Augusto Pinochet (1973-1990), which in 17 years left 3,200 murdered and at least 1,192 detainees disappeared, but none confirmed in the more than 30 years of democracy that followed. .
According to the Ibero-American Observatory for Freedom of Expression and the Press (Oilep), a total of 37 journalists were murdered during the military regime, including several students.
The death of Jonathan Moyle, a British publisher who was found dead just days after democracy was installed in a hotel room in Santiago, where he traveled to attend the International Air and Space Fair, is also still being investigated.
During the social outbreak of 2019, a wave of massive protests for equality never seen in democracy, 138 cases of violations of freedom of expression were reported, 90 of which were attacks on journalists with riot gear, according to a report from the University From Chile.
That same year, Reporters Without Borders (RSF) called for an investigation into the death of independent photographer Albertina MartÃnez, whose body was found dead at her home in Santiago de Chile, but the sentence published this Thursday indicates that the murder was motivated by a theft.
The RSF ensures that "although freedom of the press is guaranteed in the Constitution (…) it is not always respected in practice" Y "attacks on journalists multiply"which dropped Chile from 54th to 82nd in the press freedom ranking this year.
Latin America was the scene of the murder of a dozen journalists in 2021, eight of them in Mexico, according to the International Federation of Journalists, a scourge from which Chile was safe until today.
transversal sentence
The death of Sandoval generated great commotion in Chile, to the point that the Government condemned the act and the President of the Republic, Gabriel Boric, traveled days ago to the hospital center of the Ex Posta Central to inquire about the journalist’s condition. and comfort your friends and family.
"Violence harms democracy and irreparably damages families. Our commitment is to security and justice, and we will not rest in that desire"said the president.
The Amnesty International office in Chile also lamented his death, which through a statement emphasized that the State has the duty to guarantee the protection of "journalists and communicators who are carrying out their informative work within the framework of a public demonstration".
“The work of journalists is essential to keep the population informed about events. At the same time, it plays an important role in reporting on the actions of the State and the Public Force."said Rodrigo Bustos, director of AI Chile.