Columbia: CFWIJ welcomes the Supreme Court of Columbia’s decision to reverse the lower court’s ruling of the Vicky Dávila, RCN defamation case.

February 6, 2021, Bogotá: The Supreme Court of Columbia reversed a Colombian appellate court’s decision that ordered Vicky Dávila Hoyos and media outlet RCN to pay damages for reports broadcast in 2014 regarding alleged police corruption. 

In a May 2014 report for RCN owned radio station La Fem, Davila alleged that then police commander of Casanare department in eastern Colombia, Jorge Hilario Estupiñan, was involved in a series of corruption cases. Estupiñan denied the allegations but was suspended and later fired for “inefficiency” by police authorities. However, a subsequent investigation into the matter cleared Estupiñan of all charges, following which he sued Davila and RCN with a civil defamation lawsuit. 

On October 15, 2020, an appellate court ruled that Dávila and RCN pay 165 million pesos 

($43,421) in damages for besmirching the “the good name” of Estupiñan and his family. The ruling caused much disapproval amongst journalistic circles who felt that the verdict could set a dangerous precedent, discouraging investigative reporting.

On February 5, 2021, however, the Supreme Court reversed the decision claiming that the ruling went too far in determining how journalism should be practiced in the country, and the verdict against Davila and RCN was unreasonably harsh.

The Coalition For Women In Journalism welcomes the Supreme Court’s decision. A supportive infrastructure for the journalist community is essential to ensure freedom of press in a country. No court ruling should go far as to discourage journalists from covering important and risky stories.