Pakistan Press Foundation (PPF) in a letter to Juan Orlando Hernández, President of Honduras has expressed deep concern over the harassment and detention of journalist Jairo López on January 27, 2019.

PPF Secretary General Owais Aslam Ali in his letter, has condemned the harassment of the journalist and called on the authorities to investigate the matter. PPF also urged the law enforcement agencies to respect journalists working in the line of duty.

According to Comité por la Libre Expresión – C-Libre, Lopez was arrested while covering protests against the government of Juan Orlando Hernandez near El Marillal, a place in Choluteca city. Social organizations and opposition parties arranged the protests in different parts of the country.

The police officers detained journalist while he was covering the incident for broadcasting on his Facebook account under the title of “The Informant”. López was taken to PN-577 station without being informed about the reasons for his arrest.   According to the journalist, the sub-commissioner blamed him for organizing the protests.

In another incident on November 10, 2018 Lopez was arrested while he was on his way to home in the city of Choluteca, he was allegedly accused of damages against the Energy Company Honduras (EEH) which led to the closure of the television program.