Violence against Press: 38 journalists die this year
KARACHI (PPI): At least 38 journalists have been murdered in various parts of the world during the current years, say figures compiled by the Committee to Protect Journalists (CPJ), an independent non-profit organisation working for defending the Press Freedom world-wide.
The motive behind killings of these journalists are stated to be political, while killings of seven more journalists is also reported in various parts of the world, but the motives behind their murders are unconfirmed.
As many as eighteen of 38 journalists, whose murders are confirmed, die in Iraq, while four were killed in Philippines, two each in Russia, Somalia and Pakistan, and one each in Azerbaijan, Bangladesh, Colombia, Ecuador, Haiti, Lebanon, Libya, Mexico, Serbia and Montenegro and Sri Lanka.
According to CPJ data following 18 journalists were killed in Iraq during the current year: Raeda Wazzan of Al-Iraqiya, killed at Mosul on February 25, 2005; Hussam Sarsam of Kurdistan TV, killed at Mosul on March 14, 2005; Fadhil Hazem Fadhil of Al-Hurriya, killed at Baghdad on April 14, 2005; Ali Ibrahim Issa of Al-Hurriya, also killed at Baghdad, April 14, 2005; Saman Abdullah Izzedine of Kirkuk TV, killed at Kirkuk on April 15, 2005; Ahmed al-Rubai’I of Al-Sabah, killed in mid-April 2005 at Baghdad; Saleh Ibrahim of APTN, killed at Mosul on April 23, 2005; Jerges Mahmood Mohamad Suleiman of Nineveh TV, killed at Mosul on May 31, 2005; Maha Ibrahim of Baghdad TV, killed on June 25, 2005 at Baghdad; Ahmed Wael Bakri of Al-Sharqiyah, killed on June 28, 2005 at Baghdad; Khaled al-Attar of Al-Iraqiya, killed on July 1, 2005 at Mosul; Steven Vincent, freelance, killed at Basra on August 3, 2005; Waleed Khaled of Reuters, killed on August 28, 2005 at Baghdad; Hind Ismail of As-Saffir, killed on September 17, 2005 at Mosul; Fakher Haider of The New York Times, killed on September 19, 2005 at Basra; and Firas Maadidi, of As-Saffir, killed at Mosul on September 20, 2005.
The four journalists killed in Philippines were: Marlene Garcia-Esperat of Midland News, Killed on March 24 at Tacurong; Philip Agustin of Starline Times Recorder, killed on May 10, 2005 at Paltic; Klein Cantoneros of DXAA-FM, killed on May 4, 2005 at Dipolog City; and Rolando “Dodong” Morales of dxMD, killed on July 3, 2005 at Polomolok.
The two journalists killed in Russia were: Magomedzagid Varisov of Novoye Delo, killed on June 28, 2005 at Makhachkala; and Pavel Makeev of Puls, killed on May 21, 2005 at Azov.
Two journalists each were reportedly murdered in Somalia and Pakistan. They were: Kate Peyton of BBC, killed on February 9, 2005 at Mogadishu, Somalia; Duniya Muhyadin Nur of Capital Voice, killed on June 5, 2005 at Afgoye, Somalia; Mir Nawab of Associated Press Television News, Frontier Post, and Allah Noor of Khyber TV, both killed on February 7, 2005 at Wana Pakistan.
Other journalist killed during this year in various parts of the world are: Elmar Huseynov of Monitor, killed on March 2, 2005 in Baku, Azerbaijan; Sheikh Belaluddin of Sangram, murdered on February 11, 2005 at Dhaka, Bangladesh; Julio Hernando Palacios Snchez of Radio Lemas, killed on January 11, 2005 at Ccuta, Colombia; Julio Augusto Garc’’a Romero of La Bocina and Punto de Vista, killed on April 19, 2005 at Quito, Ecudor; Robenson Laraque of Tele Contact, killed on April 4, 2005, Petit-Goave, Haiti; Samir Qassir of Al-Nahar, killed on June 2, 2005 in Beirut, Lebanon; Daif al-Gahzal al-Shuhaibi, a freelance journalist, killed on June 2, 2005 at Benghazi, Libya; Dolores Guadalupe Garc’’ a Escamilla of Stereo 91, slain on April 16, 2005 at Nuevo Laredo, Mexico; Bardhyl Ajeti of Bota Sot, died in an Italian hospital on June 25, 2005, three weeks after being shot in Kosovo, Serbia and Montenegro; and Dharmeratnam Sivaram, TamilNet and Daily Mirror, killed on April 29, 2005 in Colombo, Sri Lanka.
Meanwhile, the seven slain journalists in “motive unconfirmed” category belonged to Haiti, Iraq, Mexico, Philippines, Serra Leone, Sri Lanka and Thailand.
They are: Jacques Roche of Le Matin, killed at Port-au-Prince, Haiti, on July 14, 2005; Abdul Hassan Khazal of Al-Hurra, Killed at Basra, Iraq on February 9, 2205; Raul Gibb Guerrero of La Opinion, killed at Poza Rica, Mexico, on April 8, 2005; Arnulfo Villanueva of Asian Star Balita, killed at Noic, Philippines, on February 28, 2005; Harry Yansaneh of For De People, Killed at Free Town, Serra Leone on July 28, 2005; Relangi Selvarajah of Rupavahini Corporation, killed at Colombo, Sri Lanka on August 12, 2005; and Pongkial Saetang of Had Yai Post, killed at Had Yai, Thailand on February 14, 2005.According to CPJ research 57 journalists were killed in the year 2004, 24 of them in Iraq, while 17 media workers were killed in that year – 16 of them in Iraq and one in Nepal.
According to the CPJ, the deadliest year in the last decade was 2004, when 57 journalists were killed. That was followed by 1995, when 51 were killed; and 2003, when 40 journalists were killed.
The deadliest country for journalists in the last decade, the CPJ says, is Iraq, where 38 journalists have been killed from the beginning of hostilities through 2004. Another 18 media support workers were killed in Iraq during that time.
Source: The Nation
Date:9/27/2005
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