23 November 2005
TWO JOURNALISTS KILLED IN A WEEK
In the Philippines, two radio journalists were killed in the space of three days last week, prompting the Center for Media Freedom and Responsibility (CMFR), the International Federation of Journalists (IFJ), Reporters Without Borders (Reporters sans frontières, RSF) and the Committee to Protect Journalists (CPJ) to express concern about media safety in the country.
On 18 November 2005, Ricardo "Ding" Uy was gunned down outside his home by an assailant on a motorbike in Sorsogon City, Sorsogon province.
Uy, 49, was a radio announcer for DZRS-AM, president of the Media Reporters Association and provincial coordinator of Bayan Muna (People First), a leftist political party.
Two days later, Robert Ramos, 39, was shot and killed in front of a marketplace in Cabuyao, Laguna province. He was a reporter for "Katapat", a weekly tabloid.
The motives for the killings are not yet known. A Bayan Muna official told ABS-CBN news that Uy received threats before he was killed and that he was known as a critic of the army.
IFJ says the killings are further evidence of the highly dangerous environment in which journalists work in the Philippines.
In particular, radio journalists in rural areas, where the rule of law is weak, are being gunned down in record numbers.
A CPJ study has found that of 22 journalists murdered in connection with their work since 2000, 17 were radio commentators from rural provinces.
Government officials have been suspected of being involved in half of the murder cases. No one has been convicted in any of the murders.
Visit:
- CMFR: http://cmfr-phil.blogspot.com/
- IFJ: http://www.ifj.org/default.asp?Index=3551&Language=EN
- IFJ Report "A Dangerous Profession":
http://www.ifj-asia.org/files/a_dangerous_profession.pdf
- CPJ Report "On the Radio, Under the Gun": http://www.cpj.org/Briefings/2005/phil_05/phil_05.html
- RSF: http://www.rsf.org/article.php3?id_article=15675
- RSF Investigation into Journalists' Deaths: http://www.rsf.org/article.php3?id_article=13604
- Freedom Fund for Filipino Journalists: http://www.cmfr-phil.org/fffj.htm
- National Union of Journalists of the Philippines: http://www.nujp.org/
- NUJ List of Journalists Killed Since 1986: http://nujp.org/?page_id=12
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