The
International Federation of Journalists (IFJ) welcomes the release of Canadian
journalist Mellissa Fung after four weeks in captivity in Afghanistan. Although
currently undergoing medical tests at the Canadian embassy in Afghanistan,
Fung is reportedly unharmed and in good health and spirits.
Fung, a correspondent with the Canadian Broadcasting
Corporation, was abducted while on
assignment at a refugee camp on the outskirts of the Afghan capital of Kabul on October 12.
The Afghan
Independent Journalists' Association (AIJA),
an IFJ affiliate, said that Fung’s
family was kept fully informed of all developments since her abduction and were
active participants in the process leading to her release.
A
spokesman for the provincial governor in Afghanistan's Wardak province
informed the AIJA that Fung was freed after negotiations involving tribal
elders and provincial council members.
The IFJ
joins the AIJA and the Committee to Protect Afghan Journalists (CPAJ) in
calling on all sides in the Afghan conflict to honour the neutral and
non-combatant status of journalists.
“The IFJ appreciates
the fact that Fung was released without any ransom having changed hands, but it deplores the continuing trend of taking journalists
hostage whether for with a political or pecuniary motive,”
IFJ Asia-Pacific said.
For
further information contact IFJ Asia-Pacific on +612 9333 0919
The
IFJ represents over 600,000 journalists in 120 countries