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Alert

Journalist murdered in East Java

(AJI/IFEX) - Three days before the commemoration of World Press Freedom Day on 3 May, which is celebrated by journalists around the world, a local tabloid journalist in East Java was murdered. Herliyanto, 38, was found dead on 29 April 2006 in the forest near Tarokan, a village near the town of Banyuanyar, Probolinggo District, in East Java province. Police believe the cause of the death was stabbing. The villagers had earlier presumed that the corpse was that of a victim of an ordinary crime.

Nevertheless, the preliminary police investigation revealed that just before the murder, the journalist was followed by six people riding motorcycles. Some peculiarities were also noted; for instance, Herliyanto's motorcycle was found not far from the body, but the victim's equipment, such as his camera and notebook, were missing. There are indications that Herliyanto's murder was connected to his reporting.

According to a TV 7 television channel investigation, before the murder Herliyanto was actively reporting on corruption in the administration of subsidies for the poor and school funding in Tulupari, a village in the town of Tiris, Probolinggo district. Some of the victim's colleagues testified that they had received a brief text message, sent from Herliyanto's mobile phone, stating funds were being misused in Tulupari, which was in an area he covered for his newspaper.

The police are still conducting the autopsy and questioning witnesses.

In response, AJI's advocacy division has formed a fact-finding mission and contacted the local authorities. AJI has assigned its members in the cities of Malang and Surabaya, East Java, to conduct an investigation into Herliyanto's death. The purpose of the mission is to clarify definitively whether Herliyanto's murder was connected to his reporting or was an ordinary crime.