14 February 2007
PHOTOGRAPHER GUNNED DOWN
Police in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, are investigating the murder of a freelance photographer who had received threats prior to his death, report the International Federation of Journalists (IFJ) and Reporters Without Borders (Reporters sans frontières, RSF).
Robson Barbosa Bezerra was shot dead by gunmen on 8 February 2007 as he was returning home in the district of Abolição. Police found valuables on his body, including cash, a credit card and a gold-plated ring, according to RSF. It is not known whether he was killed because of his work as a journalist.
Bezerra, 41, had reported receiving threats and being attacked a few days before his murder. However, he also had a police record, including a domestic assault charge in December 2006.
Although it is not clear whether Bezerra was killed because of his work as a photo-journalist,
reports by press freedom organisations, including the International Press Institute (IPI), indicate that Brazil is one of the more dangerous countries in the Americas to be a journalist.
Visit these links:
- RSF: http://www.rsf.org/article.php3?id_article=20987
- IFJ: http://www.ifj.org/default.asp?Index=4634&Language=EN
- RSF Report on Brazil: http://www.rsf.org/article.php3?id_article=20529
- IPI: http://tinyurl.com/yyu88g
- Committee to Protect Journalists: http://www.cpj.org/attacks06/americas06/bra06.html
- Inter American Press Association: http://www.sipiapa.com/pulications/informe_brazil2006o.cfm
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