Journalists and Media Staff Killed 2000
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International Federation of Journalists Journalists and Media Staff Killed in 2000 An IFJ Report on Media Casualties in the Field of Journalism and Newsgathering CONTENTS: 1. INTRODUCTION 2. COUNTRY BY COUNTRY ANALYSIS 3. CASES OF JOURNALISTS KILLED 4. CASES OF MEDIAWORKERS KILLED 5. CASES UNDER INVESTIGATION 6. INTERNATIONAL CODE OF PRACTICE FOR THE SAFE CONDUCT OF JOURNALISM Introduction The year 2000 has been marked by a series of assassinations and targeted murders of journalists that highlight the dangers facing reporters everywhere. This annual list of journalists and mediaworkers killed during the year makes grim reading. This is the tenth year of the publication of the IFJ Killed List and according to the 2000 Report, there were 62 killings, many of them directed against media exposing corruption or expressing political dissent. The death toll speaks for itself and reveals how journalists risk their lives daily for expressing independent opinions and exposing wrongdoing. In every corner of the world journalists continue to pay a terrible price in the struggle for democracy. There have been some positive developments this year. The recent decision by a number of major media to adopt a Code of Conduct for Safety for their staff illustrates that some media are taking very seriously the need to create safe working conditions for journalists. The Code, which has been agreed by the BBC, CNN, AP, Reuters and ITN takes up some of the elements of the IFJ’s own Code of Practice for the Safe Conduct of Journalism issued some years ago. The IFJ’s report lists 37 journalists as having been killed as a result of their work, and details 20 cases as under investigation. The deaths of five media staff are also listed. The Report highlights a number of dramatic examples of assassination: In Colombia, nine journalists have been targeted by paramilitary groups in the country’s long- running civil conflict; in Spain, Jose Luis Lopez de la Calle, an outspoken critic of the terrorist group ETA, was shot outside his home; in Pakistan, Sufi Mohammed Khan, a reporter who exposed local mafia was killed after death threats; in Mozambique, Carlos Cardoso, a campaigning editor, was gunned down in a military-style ambush; in Russia, Sergei Novikov, a radio station owner who made trenchant criticism of regional political leaders, was shot by a lone killer outside his home. At the same time journalists covering war zones have continued to be in the firing line. One Palestinian journalist has been killed and about 30 injured in the Middle East conflict and two veteran reporters, Miguel Gil Moreno of AP and Kurt Schork of Reuters, were shot dead in a horrifying ambush in war-torn Sierra Leone. 2 Country by Country Analysis Country Journalists Mediaworkers Cases Under Killed Killed Investigation Bangladesh 2 Belarus 1 1 Brazil 1 Chechnya 3 Colombia 11 6 Democratic Republic of Congo 1 Federal Republic of Yugoslavia 1 1 Gambia 1 Georgia 1 Guatemala 1 Haiti 1 1 India 4 1 Iraq 1 1 Lebanon 1 Mexico 3 2 Mozambique 1 Netherlands 1 Pakistan 1 3 Palestine 1 Peru 1 1 Philippines 2 Russia 5 3 Sierra Leone 3 South Africa 1 1 Spain 1 Sri Lanka 2 Somalia 1 Tajikistan 1 Ukraine 1 1 United States of America 1 1 Uruguay 1 Zambia 1 1 Total 57 5 20 3 Regional Analysis Region Journalists Killed Mediaworkers Total Killed Africa 9 9 Americas 20 1 21 Asia 11 3 14 Europe 15 15 Middle East 2 1 3 Total 57 5 62 4 Bangladesh's southwestern border. Local sources said that at 8:00 p.m. (local time), as the journalist was Cases of Journalists Killed working at his office in the centre of Jessore, two unidentified men entered Country: BANGLADESH his office and fired two bullets at him. CASENR: 1 One bullet hit his heart and another his Name: Mir Illais Hossein head. He was alone in his office at the Nationality: Bangladeshi time. After hearing the gunshots, Profession: Publisher / Editor people rushed to his room and found News organ: Dainik Bir Darpan him in a pool of blood. He was rushed Sector: Press to Jessore general hospital where Date: 15 January 2000 doctors declared him dead. Age: Police suspect local mafia in this Source: RSF, WAN, IFEX, IPI Indian border province. The journalist Description: On 15 January, three had been reporting on the illegal masked attackers shot and killed Mir activities of a local mafia. He had also Illais Hossain in the city of Jhenaidah, investigated the Sarbahara Party, one Bangladesh. The journalist, also the of the leftist armed movements active leader of Sramajibi Mukti Andolon, a in the region. In March 1999, he leftist party, had apparently received escaped a murder attempt in Jessore. death threats a few weeks earlier from He had recently received death threats Maoist armed movements. In the by telephone. newspaper, he had regularly Additional: Shamsur Rahman Kebol denounced such underground was one of Bangladesh's senior movements. journalists. He earned his reputation as Mir Illais Hossain had recently sought an expert on Indian politics. He had a police protection after receiving death thorough knowledge of the smugglers' threats from extremist armed groups, syndicate active on the border with but this had not been provided. India. He investigated the extremist politics of the region, filed many Country: BANGLADESH stories for his paper and was the leader CASENR: 2 and an activist of the Jessore Union of Name: Shamsur Rahman Journalists (JUJ). The government Kebol recently ran a combing operation Nationality: Bangladeshi against extremist groups in the Profession: Journalist southwestern part of the country. News organ: Janakantha Shamsur Rahman Kebol received Sector: Press several death threats from the Date: 16 July 2000 smugglers' group as well as from Age: 43 extreme leftist groups. The home Source: CPJ, IFEX, EJC, OPC, affairs minister condemned this tragic Media Watch, WAN, RSF, BBC death and ordered local police to start Description: On the evening of 16 an investigation leading to the arrest of July, Shamsur Rahman Kebol, a the journalist's killers. special correspondent with the daily Janakantha and a contributor to the Country: BRAZIL Bengali service of the BBC, was shot CASENR: 3 dead in Jessore, a district town on Name: Zezinho Cazuza 5 Nationality: Brazilian problems, Yatsina was unable to move Profession: Journalist quickly. Approximately 5 kilometres News organ: Radio Xingo FM away from the village, gunmen shot Sector: Radio him dead. Date: 13 March 2000 His body has not been recovered yet, Age: slowing down the investigation Source: SINDIJOR, IFJ process. Description: Cazuza was shot and killed with a shotgun after leaving a Country: CHECHNYA party. Two days later, police arrested CASENR: 5 José Ferreira Melo. Melo confessed Name: Alexander Yefremov having killed Cazuza and handed over Nationality: Russian the weapon to the police. He also told Profession: Journalist police that he had been hired by Mayor Newsorgan: Nashe Vremya Galindo for R$ 3000 to kill Zezinho Sector: Press Cazuza. Mayor Galindo had already Date: 12 May 2000 paid Melo R$ 500. With the R$ 500 Age: Melo bought the shotgun and changed Source: EJC, Freedom Forum, two tyres on his car. The gunman has IFEX, RSF, WAN been emphatic about having been hired Description: Alexander Yefremov, a to kill the broadcaster. Russian reporter for Siberian Cazuza reported daily on his show newspaper Nashe Vremya, was about corruption and wrongdoings in travelling toward Grozny when the City Hall. jeep he was riding in was blown up near the village of Kirov. Two Russian Country: CHECHNYA police officers in the car with him were CASENR: 4 also killed. Name: Vladimir Yatsina Nationality: Russian Country: CHECHNYA Profession: Photographer CASENR: 6 Newsorgan: Itar-Tass Name: Adam Tepsurgayev Sector: News Agency Nationality: Chechen Date: 20 February 2000 Profession: Cameraman Age: 51 Newsorgan: Source: Itar-Tass, IFEX, IFJ, Sector: CPJ, EJC, The Independent, WAN, Date: 22 November 2000 COMTEX Age: 24 Description: Vladimir Yatsina was Source: EJC, AP, News24, RSF, kidnapped and taken to Chechnya in IFEX July 1999 while leaving the Ingushetia Description: Adam Tepsurgayev, a capital Nazran. A month later, freelance cameraman who worked for kidnappers contacted his family and a number of media including Reuters, demanded a ransom of two million was shot and killed in a house in the dollars. In November, they demanded town of Alkhan-Kala, ten kilometres the same amount from the TASS south of Grozny. According to management. statements by his brother, Ali According to an eyewitness account, Tepsurgayev, who was injured in the Yatsina was killed on February 20th as attack, armed men speaking a Chechen a group of hostages was being moved dialect burst into the house and started to the village of Shatoi. Due to health shooting. 6 Ali Tepsurgayev said that his brother Country: COLOMBIA had been killed as punishment for his CASENR: 8 work as a journalist. Reuters officials Name: Maria Elena Salinas in London said Mr Tepsurgayev had Gallego worked for them as a freelancer but Nationality: Colombian had not worked for them in more than Profession: Journalist six months. Newsorgan: Several months ago, Mr Tepsurgayev Sector: Radio provided video footage of a Chechen Date: 5 March 2000 rebel commander, Shamil Basayev, Age: having a leg amputated. Source: Prensa Libre, FIP, OPC, IPI, WAN, IFEX Country: COLOMBIA Description: On Sunday 5 March, CASENR: 7 journalist María Elena Salinas Gallego Name: Antonio Gomez was found dead in the correctional Gomez center, "The Capotal". The journalist's Nationality: Colombian body was found next to two guerrilla Profession: Journalist fighters from the National Liberation News organ: Ecos de la Sierra Army (Ejército de Liberación Sector: Radio Nacional, ELN) who were killed Date: 9 February 2000 during a confrontation with army Age: 60 troops.