21 April 2004
Alberto Rivera Fernandez
Shooting
Alberto Rivera Fernández, a journalist, former member of parliament and president of the Ucayali Journalists' Federation, was assassinated on 21 April 2004, at approximately 1:30 p.m. (local time), in the city of Pucallpa, eastern Peru.
According to information gathered from local correspondents, the journalist was working in his office, which is housed within a glass store run by his family, when two unidentified individuals reportedly burst in and shot him twice in the chest.
Rivera Fernández was the host of the programme "Transparencia", broadcast daily on the Frecuencia Oriental radio station. He is survived by his wife and two sons. The journalist worked closely with Congressman Víctor Valdez and was known for his strong opposition to local and regional authorities because of profits they made from the sale of land occupied by squatters in Pucallpa. In a 21 April statement on Radio Programas del Perú network, Congressman Valdez accused Ucayali Regional President Edwin Vásquez López and the provincial mayor of Coronel Portillo, Pucallpa, Luis Valdez Villacorta, of being behind the murder. These allegations have not been confirmed to date.
