Press Freedom
CPJ Updates
- Police raid Cairo offices of Turkish Anadolu News Agency, arrest at least 4
- Ugandan police harass and detain journalists covering opposition politician Bobi Wine
- Journalist Patricia Kayuni assaulted while covering protest in Malawi
- Missing radio anchor found dead in Mexico’s Michoacán state
- Sudan suspends four news outlets over alleged financial link to Bashir regime
- Colombian magazine Semana alleges military spied on its journalists
- Montenegro reporters Živković and Raičević charged with criminal incitement
- Malawi detains, charges 3 journalists seeking to cover EU delegation’s return
- Journalists threatened, assaulted while covering local politician in Sierra Leone
Reporter Without Borders
- US – RSF calls on the Senate to reverse unprecedented restrictions on the press
- Two reporters arrested in Comoros, placed under judicial control
- Reporters Without Borders, Index on Censorship and Transparency International UK urge Azerbaijan to lift journalist’s travel ban
- Sudan closes four media outlets that supported former regime
- Does crisis at leading daily mean end to investigative journalism in Estonia?
- Reporter beaten and left for dead in northern Bangladesh
- Two Iraqi journalists shot dead after covering protests in Basra
- Constitutional Court hears case against controversial snooping law
Philippines June 2, 2006
H.E. Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo
President
Office of the President
Malacanang Palace
Manila
Republic of the Philippines
Fax: (011.63.2) 735-6152
Your Excellency:
The Freedom of the Press Committee of the Overseas Press Club of America applauds your demand that the killing of media professionals in your country must stop, as expressed at the May 23 cabinet meeting. We take this as a positive step toward repairing the reputation of the Philippines as the most dangerous country for a journalist to work outside of a war zone.
As we have previously written, we hope that you will assert your leadership more vigorously than you have done in your past efforts to end the plague of killing, corruption and abuse of power. Nearly 70 unpunished murders of journalists since your country’s return to democracy in 1986 have created the inescapable impression that the Philippine solution to these problems is simply to “kill the messenger,” an expedient both barbarous and anomalous in a lawful democracy.
We note that on the heels of your May 23 pronouncement, Press Secretary Ignacio Bunye said there should be no “climate of impunity” on this issue. We can only hope that he is right, and that we will see a radical increase in the number convicted for these unspeakable crimes.
We would appreciate a reply.
Respectfully yours,
Yvonne Dunleavy
Larry Martz
Freedom of the Press Committee
cc:
Ignacio R Bunye
Office of the Press Secretary
Arlegui Guest House
Malacanang Palace Compound
Manila
Republic of the Philippines
Albert F. del Rosario
Ambassador of the Philippines to the U.S.A.
Embassy of the Republic of the Philippines
1600 Massachusetts Avenue, NW
Washington , DC 20036
Fax: (202) 328-7614
Ambassador Lauro L. Baja, Jr.
Permanent Representative
Permanent Mission of the Republic of the
Philippines to the United Nations
556 Fifth Avenue
New York , NY 10036
Fax: (212) 840-8602
Kristie A. Kenney
U.S. Ambassador to the Philippines
Embassy of the United States of America
1201 Roxas Boulevard
Manila
Philippines
Fax: (011.63.2) 522-4361
The Editor
Manila Times
E-mail: Newsboy1@manilatimes.net
The Editor
Quatorce Cebu Daily News
E-mail: joeyalarilla@gmail.com