In a study conducted by the International News Safety Institute (INSI), a coalition of media organisations, press freedom groups and humanitarian campaigners, it was found that Iraq was the most dangerous place to be. Iraq was followed by Russia and then Columbia.
It is apalling when one tries to comprehend the number of journalists that get abducted and killed every month. The study by the above set of institutions has compiled all of this information, in order to make one realise how big the figure actually is. According to the report, more than 1,100 journalists and support staff have been killed carrying out their work in the past decade and the annual toll has jumped since 2003, the year of the U.S.-led invasion of Iraq.
In today’s age, when we so depend on journalists in all parts of the world to bring us the news we then base our opinions and views on, little do we realise how much danger these journalists actually face while doing their job. In Iraq and Afghanistan, and other such war-ravaged parts of the world, we do not even try to imagine the hardships these reporters go through. For us, reading war news sitting in the comfort of our homes or offices is very easy, but one must be aware of how much effort actually goes into every little piece of information we recieve. In fact even in our own countries, news reporters face an extreme amount of danger given the controversial nature of their jobs.
Facts of the report
Worldwide, last year was the worst for media workers with 167 killed worldwide, up from 149 in 2005 and 131 in 2004. That compares with 94 in 2003, 70 in 2002 and 103 in 2001. The report discovered that the total tally since the start of 1996 was 1,101. Nearly half were shot and the vast majority — at least 657 people — were murdered covering news during peacetime in their own country.
What is even more apalling is that in two thirds of cases the killers were not identified and convictions have been obtained in only 27 cases. This figure shows that killing a journalist is almost risk free and a miniscule number of them get identified and an even smaller number actually ever get convicted for the crime they commit. Richard Sambrook, global news director at the British Broadcasting Corporation, who led the inquiry said that
“Ongoing impunity for the killers of journalists, who put themselves in harm’s way to keep world society informed, shames not only the governments who are responsible for their own lack of action but also the democracies that stand aside in silence.”
The overall figure includes journalists, support workers such as drivers, translators, engineers and office personnel. It also includes those killed in accidents while working. With 138 deaths, Iraq was the most dangerous country for journalists. Within this figure, it was found that more than 70 percent of casualties were Iraqis. It is shocking how many local reporters are actually planned to be murdered. It is also believed that armed forces, regular or irregular, police and officials were responsible for nearly a quarter of all killings.
Russia was second after Iraq with 88 deaths over the past 10 years, followed by Colombia on 72 and the Philippines – which had the highest death toll outside Iraq in 2005 — with 55.
Action must be taken
In addition to bringing such gory details to light, the report furthermore stressed that governments should take active action regarding these killings. It is the responsiblity of the governments to protect these servicemen, and that their deaths must not go unnoticed. The report also urged institutions such as the World Bank and the International Monetary Fund not to ignore the number of journalists killed in a particular country while assessing the amount of aid that should be given out to these respective countries.
In all, assertive action has to be called upon. Journalists for us today are extremely important, they are the lifeline that hold together the global village in a sense, because they are the ones who are responsible for making sure news from one part of the globe reaches the other. We must not ignore their contributions. From my behalf, this article is an ode to all those journalists.
Via: Reuters
