Ciro Guerra’s prohibition against reporting sexual misconduct is denied

In a new legal setback for Colombian director Ciro Guerra, best known for his Oscar-nominated film “Embrace of the Serpent,” a Bogota court denied an injunction filed against journalists behind an explosive 2020 report detailing anonymous accounts of alleged sex. Harassment and abuse.

In its statement, the court noted: “The journalists did not violate the applicant’s rights, but presented a report of public and political interest, which reflects a particularly protected speech that is necessary to combat discrimination against women and gender-based violence. “

“These women echo the voices of other women in society, insecure in the face of an institution that is still precarious in the face of harassment and abuse; And this, in many cases, causes additional harm to the victims,” it added.

Matilde de los Milagros Londo, co-founding editor of the Latin American feminist journal Volcanicas, said, “This ruling by the Constitutional Court proves the democratic value of feminist journalism as a form of condemnation in a judicial system that is still insufficient.”

Her colleague, Catalina Ruiz-Navarro, added: “This is a judgment that supports the testimony and courage of the victims and the rigorous, ethical and responsible work of our journalists. We have been unequally and censored by Ciro Guerra. It is a testament to the feminist cause against sexual violence. Very important precedent.”

In a statement sent by Dr diversityGuerra said: “What was important to me was that there was some kind of investigation and procedure, that the authorities would look into the matter and decide if there was any misconduct or wrongdoing on my part.”

“The sentence makes it clear that nothing has been found and there is no legal action, complaint, investigation or procedure against me. I have no desire or interest in censoring journalism, but I do believe that there should be some form of accountability; It is not right to affect livelihood and career based on wrong information, hearsay and gossip,” he added.

Vulcanicus did not name the women who alleged misconduct, but the publication noted that it conducted direct interviews with each accuser and viewed text message exchanges and recordings that detail the alleged harassment, as well as an example of the alleged assault. Forced by the court to present more evidence and support his report, Volan presented an updated version that included a ninth testimony, one more than the original eight first testified.

According to the Vulcanicus article, none of the women were willing to press charges. Their goal was to draw attention to “the normalization of sexual violence in the Colombian audiovisual industry, which hinders women’s professional growth and affects them physically and psychologically,” wrote Ruiz-Navarro and de los Milagros. The article included a transcript of their call with Guerra in which they asked him to respond to the allegations, which he denied.

The court cited this call to Guerra in which he was given an opportunity to comment on the damning report. “In this context,” it concluded: “The journalists’ opinions did not start from a vacuum but from a thorough investigation and they did not confirm in any case that Siro Alfonso Guerra had been convicted or was being investigated for any crime. Therefore, the Court of Plaintiffs It did not find material to determine that the report was intended to cause harm (from the concept of actual malice), but rather to contribute to public debate.

Guerra’s directing career has flown since the 2020 report. He is no longer represented by Paradigm since nearly two years ago. The Prime Video series, “Cortés and Moctezuma” starring Javier Bardem, which he was prepping, coincided with the advent of the Covid pandemic.

His company Ciudad Lunar Prods, which he runs with his ex-wife Cristina Gallego, is one of the main producers behind Colombia’s Oscar entry, Laura Mora’s “The Kings of the World,” which won the Golden Shell at last year’s San Sebastian Film Festival. “It was produced by Mirlanda Torres of La Selva Cine and Cristina of Ciudad Lunar, of which I am a partner. I am currently in the middle of developing several projects,” said Guerra diversity