( CNN ) -- Ecuador 's highest court has upheld a conviction and a $ 40 million judgment against a newspaper in a case that pitted the paper 's directors and a former opinion editor against the country 's president . The three-judge panel ruled late Wednesday that a lower court 's decision to hold the paper accountable for the content of an opinion column that described President Rafael Correa as a dictator was correct . Correa sued El Universo newspaper , arguing the article unjustly claimed he had ordered security forces to open fire at a hospital full of civilians last September . The newspaper and press freedom advocates countered that the president was trying to crack down on critics by restricting the media . `` The truth has shined , '' Correa said after the ruling . `` We have set a precedent . This sentence and this process are historic . They demonstrate that nobody has the right to tarnish the truth , '' the president said . `` Not only is the person who wrote it responsible , but also the directors who allowed the offense and the newspaper where it was printed . '' The ruling means that the accused must pay $ 30 million , and the newspaper must pay $ 10 million , to Correa . Emilio Palacio , El Universo 's former opinion editor and author of the column , told CNN en EspaÃ±ol that the court ruling sets the wrong example . `` Of course this sets a precedent : For the first time in the history of Latin America , and I suppose , the world , a president wins $ 40 million for his pocket by manipulating justice , naming the judges he desired , and using his influence , '' Palacio said . Palacio and the newspaper 's directors argued that they were denied the opportunity to properly present their defense during the first trial , and accused Correa of influencing the selection of judges favorable to him on the high court . `` The only thing that was left under these conditions was for the ratification of this shameful conviction , '' Palacio said . The court ruling also calls for three years in prison for Palacio . He resigned from the paper in July and is now living in Miami , where he is seeking asylum . The New York-based Committee to Protect Journalists , which concluded in a special report that Ecuador 's defamation laws have been systematically used to punish critical journalists , criticized the high court 's decision . `` An editor is seeking political asylum , three executives may soon go to jail , and the country 's leading paper may go bankrupt solely because President Correa disliked an opinion piece , '' said Carlos Lauria , senior Americas Program coordinator for the organization . `` This shortsighted ruling will only keep Ecuadoran journalists from investigating powerful politicians ; it represents a serious setback for democracy in Ecuador . ''
Ecuador 's highest court upheld a libel conviction against a newspaper . The newspaper says the president had unfair influence in the proceedings . The directors and a former editor now face $ 40 million in fines .