United States
Nieman Fellow at Harvard denied U.S. visaPosted Jul 21 2010
Hollman Morris, an independent Colombian journalist, won a Nieman Fellowship with Harvard University to study conflict negotiation strategies and international criminal court procedures, according to the Nieman Journalism Lab. However, on June 16, the U.S. Embassy in Bogota informed Morris his application for a U.S. student visa, to begin his fellowship, was denied. U.S. officials told him he was denied under the “terrorist activities” section of the USA Patriot Act.
According to Jameel Jaffer, an ACLU lawyer in New York, there is no public information linking Morris to terrorism. Morris is known for his in-depth coverage of the civil conflict within his country. He often criticizes President Alvaro Uribe Vélez. His visa denial has caused many human rights advocates to believe that President Uribe’s government is influencing the Obama administration’s decision. Supporters of Morris, such as Human Rights Watch and the Nieman Foundation for Journalists at Harvard, agree with Morris that the Uribe Administration organized his denial.
Many journalism organizations have admonished the act by the U.S. State Department. The Committee to Protect Journalists issued a letter expressing “deep concern” to Secretary Hillary Clinton. For more details and links to the issued statements, please visit the links on the left.