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UNESCO condemns murder of Mexican journalist as attack on democracy

UNESCO condemns murder of Mexican journalist as attack on democracy

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Deploring yet another attack on the freedom of the press, the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) today called on the Mexican authorities to do all in their power to find and prosecute the murderers of a journalist reportedly linked to frequent articles on drug trafficking and corruption.

Deploring yet another attack on the freedom of the press, the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) today called on the Mexican authorities to do all in their power to find and prosecute the murderers of a journalist reportedly linked to frequent articles on drug trafficking and corruption.

Raúl Gibb Guerrero, editor of the regional daily newspaper La Opinión, which is published in the north of the Mexican state of Veracruz, was gunned down on his way home on 8 April.

The murder “is a serious attack on press freedom and freedom of expression, which are essential to democracy and rule of law,” UNESCO Director-General Koïchiro Matsuura said.

The agency’s mandate includes the defence of freedom of expression and press freedom, and it has issued numerous denunciations of violence against journalists around the world in recent years.