Guerra v. Ruiz-Navarro

The Constitutional Court of Colombia considered that journalists Catalina Ruiz-Navarro and Matilde de los Milagros Londoño did not breach the right to honor, good name, and presumption of innocence of movie director Ciro Guerra, by publishing an article in which eight women accused him of sexual harassment and sexual abuse, nor by providing further commentary about the article in subsequent interviews. Guerra lodged a constitutional action against the journalists seeking a retraction or the removal of the article from the internet. The Constitutional Court reviewed the case and considered that feminist journalism, “escrache” (type of protest to expose perpetrators), and expression regarding gender-based violence, benefitted from special constitutional protection. Additionally, the Court considered that Ruiz-Navarro and Londoño’s investigation was truthful and rigorous and discussed issues of public relevance and interest. Moreover, the Court also considered that in light of the power imbalance between the parties and Guerra’s disproportionate claims in several judicial and extrajudicial proceedings, there were elements of judicial harassment against the journalists.

CYRILLA: Global Digital Rights Law

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