'Maguindanao massacre pushed global media killings' tally'

MANILA, Philippines - The death of 29 journalists and 2 media workers in the November 23 massacre in Ampatuan, Maguindanao pushed the death toll for journalists worldwide to its highest level ever, the New York-based Committee to Protect Journalists (CPJ) said in its annual report.

The Committee to Protect Journalists, a nonpartisan, nonprofit organization dedicated to defending press freedom worldwide, released the report in Tokyo on Tuesday.

The CPJ report "Attacks on the Press 2009" said the death toll number of journalists killed in 2009 was the highest ever recorded, with 70 killed in total.

"No single event has claimed as many journalists’ lives in the 18 years since CPJ began compiling detailed records," the report said. "The journalists were not directly targeted for their work, but were the victims of a long-running feud between two rival political clans competing for supremacy in the area."
 
"As is the case in more than 85 percent of journalist killings worldwide, the victims in Maguindanao were local journalists pursuing a local story," it said.

The massacre "underscored the deep-seated climate of impunity in the Philippines, an atmosphere in which politicians have felt free to use deadly violence to settle scores, win office, and further personal interests," the CPJ said.

'Consistently played down' impunity problem

"While the scale of the attack was unprecedented, it was not entirely unpredictable in the often lawless context of Philippine politics," the report said in an essay by CPJ senior Southeast Asia representative Shawn Crispin, titled "Makings of a Massacre: Impunity Fostered Philippine Killings."

Despite this, Crispin said in his essay that "the nation’s leadership has consistently played down the gravity of the impunity problem."

"The mishandling of evidence, the intimidation of witnesses, the questions of official involvement, and the lack of sufficient investigative resources all fit a disturbingly familiar pattern in the Philippines, one, that over the years has allowed the killers of journalists to wiggle free of justice,” Crispin said in his essay.

"Given the Ampatuan clan’s political power, including its ties to President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo, could even these horrific killings go unpunished?" he added.

"Without a clear commitment to protecting journalists and breaking the cycle of impunity, there was no guarantee that the Maguindanao massacre would be the Philippines’ last," it said.

Beyond the massacre

Despite being overshadowed by the events of Nov. 23, 2009, the CPJ also saw some positive developments in the Philippines.

Among these are the conviction of the killer of radio broadcaster Armando Pace, who was killed back in 2006; the progress of the case of the murder of reporter Marlene Garcia-Esperat; and Supreme Court decisions to change trial venues to more neutral and secure settings.

Despite these developments, attacks against journalists "remained common, continuing an exceptional cycle of violence and impunity," citing the murders of Ernie Rollin and Crispin Perez for their reporting, and the death of reporter Jojo Trajano while covering a police raid that ended in a gun battle.

"At least 65 Philippine journalists have been murdered in direct relation to their work since 1992, with convictions obtained in just five cases, according to CPJ research," the report said.

"A handful of media murder cases moved tentatively through the justice system in 2009, slowed by both the reluctance of local judges to proceed with cases involving influential officials and the inability or unwillingness of local police to apprehend suspects," the report also said, citing the case of murdered journalist Dennis Cuesta.

The CPJ also recorded 2 assassination attempts on journalists, and 2 cases of journalists killed under unclear circumstances.

Somalia also fueled toll

Aside from the Philippine massacre, the CPJ cited the escalation of violence in Somalia as another factor for the record toll.

"The worldwide tally surpassed the previous record of 67 deaths, set in 2007 when violence in Iraq was pervasive. CPJ is still investigating 24 other journalist deaths worldwide in 2009 to determine whether they were work-related," it said.

The other trends cited by the CPJ are:

• Deaths in Iraq in a downward trend, but violence in Somalia escalated, causing the toll there to rise
• The 2009 toll is up more than 65 percent from the 42 deaths recorded in 2008
• All but three of the 2009 victims were local journalists
• Print journalists constituted 57 percent of the toll, indicating that print media continue to play a front-line role in reporting the news in dangerous situations
• Two journalists died of neglect or mistreatment while imprisoned on work-related charges

Threats and developments

Aside from the record death toll, the CPJ also cited emerging threats worldwide, among them Iran's massive crackdown on free expression.

"Iran’s Revolutionary Guards have essentially criminalized journalism in their post-election crackdown," wrote Fareed Zakaria, author and editor of Newsweek International, in the preface to this year’s edition. "Other authoritarian governments are watching, and no doubt learning from Tehran’s effort to muzzle the press."

The report also highlighted courageous reporting and advances for freedom of expression, citing Cuba's vibrant blogging culture, and Russia's reopening of investigations into unsolved journalists’ murders.

Here are other highlights from Attacks on the Press in 2009:

• In Latin America, government espionage has targeted journalists and chilled press freedom across the region.
• Media in Afghanistan and Pakistan face enormous challenges in covering a multifaceted conflict straddling a volatile border.
• The murder of a reporter in Chechnya leaves a void in human rights coverage and demands international attention.
• In African hot spots such as Somalia, high numbers of journalists are being forced into exile. Front-line news coverage is suffering.
• Fueled by the Internet, human rights coverage is growing throughout the Middle East. Now governments are pushing back.

Meanwhile, CPJ Executive Director Joel Simon noted that freelance and online journalists are more vulnerable than ever.

"While the rights of each journalist are protected by international law, few now have large media organizations that can stand behind them," he said in the introduction to the report. "Instead, their safety and security depends on the ability of press freedom organizations to generate public attention and mobilize action."

"Reported and written by the staff of the Committee to Protect Journalists, Attacks on the Press provides factual and unbiased analyses of media conditions in more than 100 countries," the CPJ said in its press release.

“Attacks on the Press” is being released at events in Tokyo, Cairo, Bogotá, Brussels, Nairobi, and New York, the organization said.