why is the U.S. denying this journalist's visa?

[Enrique]

other than the fact that he is criticizing our good friend Colombia?


http://www.dallasnews.com/sharedcontent/dws/news/world/stories/DN-colombia_11int.ART.State.Edition1.2976b99.html

BOGOTÁ, Colombia – The U.S. government has denied a visa to a prominent Colombian journalist who specializes in conflict and human rights reporting to attend a prestigious fellowship at Harvard University.

Hollman Morris, who produces an independent TV news program called Contravia, has been critical of ties between illegal far-right militias and allies of outgoing President Álvaro Uribe, Washington's closest ally in Latin America.

The curator of the Nieman Foundation at Harvard, which has offered the fellowships since 1938, said Thursday that a consular official at the U.S. Embassy in Bogotá told him Morris was ruled permanently ineligible for a visa under the "terrorist activities" section of the USA Patriot Act.

U.S. Embassy and State Department officials refused to confirm the visa denial, citing privacy laws.

"We were very surprised. This has never happened before," said Bob Giles, the Nieman curator. "And Hollman has traveled previously in the United States to give speeches and receive awards."

He said he had written the State Department to ask it to reconsider the decision.

"We're frankly shocked. We feel it's outrageous," said Joel Simon, executive director of the New York-based Committee to Protect Journalists.

He said the committee had discussed its concerns with State Department officials but was not provided with an explanation.

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