Entities condemn attempts by Rio city officials to avoid public health reports | Rio de Janeiro

The report showed that:

• by WhatsApp groups, public officials are distributed by municipal health units to do a kind of duty;
• in pairs, they try to disrupt reports with complaints about the public health situation and intimidate citizens so that they do not speak ill of the city;
• RJ had access to the content of the groups and saw that, after being programmed, they post selfies to say that they arrived at the units;
• one of the employees appears in several photos with Crivella and has a salary of more than R $ 10,000;
• when they manage to interrupt the reports, they celebrate in groups;
• the city does not deny the creation of the groups and says it does so to ‘better inform the population.

The Brazilian Press Association said that the repeated episodes at the doors of hospitals show that we are not facing isolated events, but rather a policy of the mayor to constrain reporters and citizens.

“The Brazilian Press Association (ABI) denounces another attack against democracy by Mayor Marcelo Crivella. In orchestrated actions, city officials try to intimidate journalists who work on reports with verbal attacks and threats of physical assault. about the situation of public hospitals in Rio. Threats extend to users who testify about poor care. Episodes at the doors of several municipal hospitals in recent days show that we are not facing isolated events, but rather the policy of a mayor to shame journalists and citizens. ABI reaffirms its commitment to freedom of expression and makes it clear that it will go to the extreme to defend these principles. We will not accept that Mayor Crivella tries to violate democracy and impede the work of the press, “he says the note signed by President Paulo Jeronimo.

The president of the Brazilian Association of Investigative Journalism, Marcelo Träsel, affirmed that the “strategy to constrain interviewees and reporters or prevent access to public institutions is not only an authoritarian setback, but a strategy to undermine democracy and freedom of expression. press “:” It is the duty of public authorities to render accounts to society and provide transparent information on possible failures in the health system. ”

Abraji’s president also said that the use of public servants or activating militants to prevent the work of reporters shows an inability to deal with criticism and a serious threat to press freedom.

The National Association of Newspapers regretted that Rio city officials are hampering journalistic activity and stated that the biggest losers are the citizens of Rio, to whom these employees must render their services and from whom they receive their salaries.