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Alert

Protesting university students assault photojournalist, force another reporter to erase his photographs

(IPYS/IFEX) - On 7 June 2006, "La Nueva Prensa de Oriente" photojournalist Roberto Almeida was assaulted by university students belonging to the Black Hand Student Movement (Movimiento Estudiantil Mano Negra, MEMN). The event took place at the Oriente University in Anzoategui, northeastern Venezuela, while Almeida was covering the temporary seizure of eight public transport buses by MEMN to protest the ill-treatment of students by bus drivers. After he had taken photographs of the events, hooded individuals who identified themselves as members of MEMN demanded that he delete them. When he refused, the students hit him in the face and back and took his camera's memory stick. According to the paper's version of events, the photographer was able to escape thanks to the intervention of a municipal police officer.

According to a report published in the same newspaper on 8 June, another "La Nueva Prensa de Oriente" photojournalist, Jesús Velásquez, was forced by students to delete photographs of the event preparations.