The Inter-American Court of Human Rights (IACtHR) found Peru responsible for the violation of the right to freedom of expression in respect of Baruch Ivcher Bronstein. Ivcher Bronstein was the main shareholder of different media companies, among them a TV channel that hosted a show very critical of the government. To make him lose control of that company he was deliberately deprived of his citizenship by naturalization. The IACtHR considered that these acts of intimidation indirectly restricted the free circulation of news, ideas, and information. For the IACtHR freedom of expression must be guaranteed both on its individual and its social dimensions simultaneously. Moreover, the Court considers that the media are an essential way of sharing information and opinions in a democratic society. As a result, it ordered the State to provide the conditions that would enable Baruch Ivcher Bronstein to take the necessary steps to recover his rights as a shareholder of the channel.

Baruch Ivcher Bronstein, an Israeli naturalized Peruvian in 1984, was by 1986 the majority shareholder of a media company that owned Channel 2: Frecuencia Latina.

The Peruvian legislation in force in 1997 stated that the owner (or the majoritarian shareholder) of telecommunications media companies had to be a Peruvian national. At that time, Mr. Ivcher Bronstein was president and director of the company’s board and had the power to make programming editorial decisions for Channel 2.

In April 1997, the channel broadcasted investigative reports on alleged abuses, tortures, and acts of corruption carried out by the National Intelligence Service of Alberto Fujimori’s government. As a result of those reports, Ivcher Bronstein was subject to different acts of intimidation such as: “being paid visits to the Channel’s offices by the Fiscal and Customs Police and other people, who recommended that he changed the program’s editorial line; having helicopters allegedly from the army flying over his factory Productos Paraíso del Perú; and the opening of a proceeding against him by the Fiscal and Customs Police” [p. 33-34].

Furthermore, the Executive issued an executive order regulating the Nationality Act No. 26574 and establishing the possibility of revoking someone’s naturalization if they committed “crimes against the State and National Defense”, “Public Safety”, “terrorism and treason”, for committing “acts that could jeopardize National Security and State Interests”, for having “irregularly obtained the naturalization”, for “affecting Peru’s international relations with other States or International Organizations”, or for “reasons that affect public interest and the national interest”.

Following the channel’s announcement of the broadcasting of a particularly critical report, against the government’s will, Mr. Ivcher Bronstein’s nationality was revoked on July 11, 1997. Consequently, he was immediately suspended as a majoritarian shareholder of the television channel and his appointment as director was withdrawn. In addition, the journalists of the show weren’t allowed into the channel and the editorial line of the show was modified.

All internal remedies presented against these decisions were dismissed.

For the IACrtHR, the aforementioned situation was an indirect restriction to the right to freedom of expression, as well as a violation of the rights to nationality, judicial guarantees, judicial protection, and private property. Therefore, it ordered that the rights of the victim be reestablished. This case analysis will only address the infringement of the right of freedom of expression.