UNESCO chief speaks out against killing of Mexican journalist

The head of the United Nations agency mandated to protect the freedom of expression today condemned the murder of a Mexican journalist specializing in covering crime, bringing the total number of media professionals killed so far this year in the country to eight.

Hugo Alfredo Olivera Cartas, 27, was found dead in his car on 6 July near Apatzingán, a city in the western state of Michoacán.

According to the non-governmental organization (NGO) Reporters Without Borders (RSF), Mr. Olivera received a telephone call summoning him to the scene of an accident. His body was found several hours later, with three gunshots to the head, and his office was later broken into.

He was the editor of the Apatzingán-based El Día de Michoacán, a daily, and founded ADN, a local press agency. He was also a correspondent for Quadratin, a national agency.

Irina Bokova, Director-General of the UN Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO), called on Mexican authorities to find the perpetrators of the murder and end impunity.

“After this latest attack on freedom of information, Mexican justice must be given the necessary means to take action,” she stressed.

Some 200 journalists protested Mr. Olivera’s killing in Morelia, the capital of Michoacán, according to Quadratin.