The following letter appeared in The Times of June 13: "Journalism and information media have evolved _— a so ae =
hetic statement: ’ the battle of Valmy, Goethe made the me : cares lors
j i It was here in effect. tha today that a new era begins for humanity. ; the ficek time, in a battle prefiguring Dien Bien Phu, that a classic army was crushed by one in rags. Those for whom the gathering and imparting of information isa misernpte whose mission it is to "cover history in the making" are often S nec placed in difficult situations. Accompanying the Duke of Weimar's ee a Goethe scarcely left his carriage. Today he would be called a war co # pondent. But what is his opposite number called when serving on the tener side? What is the status of a correspondent covering the precarious exist~ ence of guerrilla forces? Since coverage of both sides in a guerrilla war is an obvious necessity the status of war correspondents is an imperative for those journalists attached to irregular forces. 4n international status must protect those photographers, news cameramen and writers whose professional activities are connected with armies of irregulars. The nature of the forces to which they happen to be attached must not be used as a pretext by a government, an army or a secret police arbitrarily to arrest, torture, execute or imprison members of such professions whom they happen to capture. On April 20, Regis Debray (a Frenchman), George Roth (an Englishman) and Alfredo Fructuese (an Argentinian) were arrested in Northern Bolivia. Regis Debray, a writer and philosopher, accredited to the weekly Mexican paper Successos: entered Bolivia on a valid French passport. His fate and that of his companions, arouses the most urgent and acute concern. Since his arrest no one has been allowed to see him or commmicate with him, in spite of a writ of Habeas Corpus issued on his behalf in Bolivia. The place, indeed the country, where he is held prisoner with his companions remains secret. There are grave fears that he and his companions may die under torture. As signatories to this appeal, we demand that the guarantees listed above be accredited to Regis Debray and his fellow prisoners. French and British diplomats have been denied access to them. Their prolonged isolation, lack of legal aid, and the attested intervention in the case of interrogators and"experts" of non-Bolivian nationality amply justify the pressing urgency of this appeal. Signed by:- Lindsay Anderson, John Berger, Jeremy Brooks, Peter Brook, Basil Davidson, M.A. Donnelly, Peter de Francia, Jean Franco, Graham Greene, Christopher Hill, R.0O. Jones, A.L. Lloyd, Joseph Losey, John Mendelson, Iris Murdoch, Edna O'Brien, Rolend Penrose, Frank Pierce, George Tabori, Robert B. Tate, Arthur Terry, Kenneth Tynan. June 10 Editorial note: Bertrand Russell has also made an appeal on behalf of Debray and is now seeking to get the widest support for his efforts,