21 May 2012

IFJ Outraged as Another Journalist Murdered in Pakistan’s Balochistan Province

The International Federation of Journalists (IFJ), and its affiliates and

partners within the South Asia Media Solidarity Network (SAMSN), are shocked

and outraged by the murder of Razzaq Gul, senior journalist and reporter with Express News in Turbat city in the Kech

district of Pakistan’s Balochistan Province.

According to

information received from IFJ-affiliate, the Pakistan Federal Union of

Journalists (PFUJ), Gul was seized from near his home on the evening of May 18

and soon afterwards reported missing with local police. His body was discovered

in a part of the city close to the Old Civil Hospital the next day. It bore

marks of severe torture and fifteen bullet wounds to the head and chest.

The Balochistan Union

of Journalists, a constituent unit of the PFUJ, estimates that Gul is the

twenty-first journalist killed in the province in the last three years.

PFUJ President

Pervaiz Shaukat has once again drawn attention to the alarming increase in the targeted

killing of journalists in Balochistan, which sets it apart from other parts of

Pakistan where the hazards for the media have multiplied enormously in the last

few years.

According to PFUJ

General Secretary Amin Yousuf, a campaign strategy will be formulated over the

next few days to bring pressure on the authorities to counter this alarming

spiral of violence against journalists.

“We condemn this

unspeakable brutality against a journalist whose work over the ten years has

been lauded for its high professional quality and integrity”, said the IFJ

Asia-Pacific.

“We join the PFUJ in

their demand that the authorities act firmly under the law to dispel the

climate of impunity for attacks on journalists. We underline once again that media

managements, journalists’ unions and the authorities need to work together, to

agree on urgent measures to restore security for the media profession”.

“All the belligerents

in the ongoing conflict in Balochistan and other parts of Pakistan, including

non-state actors, need to be brought into this compact to assure the security

of journalists, in accordance with all relevant international conventions”.

For

further information contact IFJ Asia-Pacific on +612 9333 0950

The IFJ

represents more than 600,000 journalists in 131 countries

Find

the IFJ on Twitter: @ifjasiapacific

Find