José Rubén Zamora
Detained Since: July 29, 2022.
Charges: Blackmail, influence peddling, and money laundering.
Sentence: 6 years in prison.
Biography: José Rubén Zamora is a journalist and founder of the newspaper elPeriodico. He has been detained since 29 July 2022, Zamora was sentenced on 14 June 2023 to six years in prison on trumped-up money-laundering charges based on nothing more than an absence of documentary justification for the origin of a transfer intended to keep elPeriódico afloat. On 13 October, the Second Chamber of the Court of Appeals of Guatemala annulled the sentence imposed in June. The court ordered that the case be sent back to court and a date be set for a retrial. Zamora, who also faces charges of using false documents, must remain in detention in the meantime. During a joint mission to the country last May, RSF representatives were able to visit Zamora in detention, where he reported he had been subject to mistreatment. RSF also observed other examples of judicial harassment targeting journalists who investigate corruption or simply cover the trials of those close to power. The criminalisation of journalism in Guatemala has increased significantly in recent years. “I am a political prisoner and I have been treated as such,” elPeriódico founder and owner José Rubén Zamora said when brought to court for the start of his trial on May 2, 3023. Zamora is accused of trying to launder the equivalent of 35,000 euros that he allegedly extorted from a businessman in exchange for a promise not to publish compromising information about him. Detained since July 29, 2022, Zamora insists on his innocence and say he is being persecuted because elPeriódico exposed cases of corruption involving Guatemalan President Alejandro Giammattei and people close to him. Zamora had no legal representation at the start of his trial because two of his lawyers were arrested in mid-April for allegedly submitting false evidence. Zamora has been the target of separate judicial proceedings in recent months for allegedly obstructing justice in connection with another case of alleged money-laundering. The judge in charge of this other case says that nine of elPeriódico’s journalists – five reporters, three columnists and its editor, Julia Colorado – could be prosecuted for alleged disinformation. Eight of them have already fled the country. Zamora’s arrest in July 2022 coincided with the arrests of former anti-corruption judges while other judges fled abroad, in what was seen a major escalation in the Guatemala government’s authoritarianism.
During a visit to Guatemala with other press freedom NGOs in May 2023, Reporters Without Borders confirmed that he is being held in appalling conditions. Aged 66, he has lost 16 kilos and has been subjected to constant isolation since his arrest in July 2022. He told members of the NGO delegation that he has also been subjected to psychological torture on several occasions since his arrest.
Zamora is the recipient of the the 1995 Maria Moors Cabot Prize, the Committee to Protect Journalists 1995 International Press Freedom Award, the 2003 International Journalism Award, and the Reporters Without Borders Press Freedom Prize for Impact in 2023. He was also named one of the International Press Institute's "50 World Press Freedom Heroes of the 20th Century" in 2000.
Advocacy Partner: Reporters Without Borders
Advocate: Rep. Norma Torres (D-CA)
Updates:
- In March 2024, executives and trustees at Freedom House visited José Rubén Zamora in prison. During the visit, Zamora told Freedom House that he had regained 20 of the 37 pounds he had lost after he was initially detained. He also stated that he had requested to serve the pretrial period at home as allowed by law, but had not heard back (March 21, 2024, Freedom House).
Prior to a meeting between Vice President Kamala Harris and Guatemalan President Bernardo Arévalo on March 25, 2024, nine press freedom organizations issued a joint statement calling for the protection of press freedom in Guatemala and for the immediate release of José Rubén Zamora (March 25, 2024, Committee to Protect Journalists).
The case of José Rubén Zamora was highlighted in the Reporters Without Borders’ analysis of their 2024 World Press Freedom Index (May 3, 2024, Reporters Without Borders).
Zamora’s case was also highlighted in a New York Times Op-Ed entitled, “Protect Journalists, Everywhere,” published in honor of World Press Freedom Day 2024 (May 3, 2024, New York Times).
José Rubén Zamora was listed as one of the One Free Press Coalition’s 2024 “10 Most Urgent” cases, along with Jimmy Lai (May 3, 2024, One Free Press Coalition; Forbes).
On May 8, 2024, the Cyrus R. Vance Center for International Justice, along with lawyers from King & Spalding and Colombara Estrategia Legal law firms, submitted a petition to the Inter-American Commission on Human Rights on behalf of José Rubén Zamora. The petition described ongoing human rights violations against Zamora and called for Guatemala’s compliance in providing him with a fair trial and in the protection of his “rights and health” (May 8, 2024, NYC Bar).
On May 14, 2024, the Committee to Protect Journalists released a statement calling for José Rubén Zamora’s immediate release. They also called for Zamora to be provided with a fair trial in a timely manner (May 14, 2024, Committee to Protect Journalists).
On May 14, 2024, Zamora was awarded the 2024 Gabo Award for Excellence by the Gabo Foundation (May 14, 2024, Gabo Foundation).
On May 15, 2024, a court granted José Rubén Zamora house arrest for his case related to charges of money laundering, however he remained in prison due to the separate case against him related to obstruction of justice (May 15, 2024, Voice of America).
On June 25, 2024, an appeals court revoked the order to release José Rubén Zamora to house arrest. Zamora remained in prison for the duration of the order for house arrest due to a separate case against him (June 26, 2024, NBC).
On October 19, 2024, José Rubén Zamora was released to house arrest, pending trial (October 19, 2024, Associated Press).
On November 15, 2024, Zamora's house arrest was once again revoked by an appeals court and he was ordered to return to prison (November 15, 2024, Associated Press).
Zamora’s release to house arrest was listed as one of the “Ten key prison releases that advanced press freedom in 2024” by Reporters Without Borders (December 31, 2024, Reporters Without Borders).
On January 13, 2025, Guatemala’s Supreme Court of Justice granted José Rubén Zamora constitutional protection, blocking his previously ordered return to prison. The decision was praised by Reporters Without Borders who called for his full, unconditional release (January 14, 2025, Reporters Without Borders).
Zamora’s case was highlighted by Reporters Without Borders as one of the main examples of threats to press freedom in Guatemala during 2024 (January 22, 2025, Reporters Without Borders).
On March 10, 2025, José Rubén Zamora was ordered to return to prison following the overturning of his previously granted house arrest (March 10, 2025, Associated Press).