Director-General condemns murder of Pakistani journalist Abdus Samad Chishti Mujahid
15-02-2008 (Paris)
Stop killing journalists
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UNESCO’s Director-General Koïchiro Matsuura condemned today the murder of Pakistani journalist Abdus Samad Chishti Mujahid, photographer and columnist for the weekly “Akhbar-e-Jehan”, who was gunned down on 9 February in Quetta, the province of Baluchistan’s capital.
“I condemn the murder of Abdus Samad Chishti Mujahid,” declared the Director-General, adding “The intimidation and murder of journalists constitutes a crime not only against the individuals targeted, but also against the whole society. I hope the authorities will do their utmost to bring to justice the perpetrators of this despicable attack on the fundamental human right of freedom of expression.”
Abdus Samad Chishti Mujahid, 55, worked for “Akhbar-e-Jehan”, an Urdu language weekly. He was shot by an unknown assailant as he came out of his house with his wife. He died of his wounds after being taken to the hospital. The crime took place in Quetta, a town close to the Afghan border and the capital of Baluchistan province. A separatist organization, the Baluchistan Liberation Army, is reported to have claimed responsibility for the murder, which has been condemned by the Pakistan Federal Union of Journalists (PFUJ) and the Baluchistan Union of Journalists (BUJ).
UNESCO is the only United Nations agency with a mandate to defend freedom of expression and press freedom. Article 1 of its Constitution requires the Organization to “further universal respect for justice, for the rule of law and for the human rights and fundamental freedoms which are affirmed for the peoples of the world, without distinction of race, sex, language or religion, by the Charter of the United Nations.” To realize this the Organization is requested to “collaborate in the work of advancing the mutual knowledge and understanding of peoples, through all means of mass communication and to that end recommend such international agreements as may be necessary to promote the free flow of ideas by word and image…”
Abdus Samad Chishti Mujahid, 55, worked for “Akhbar-e-Jehan”, an Urdu language weekly. He was shot by an unknown assailant as he came out of his house with his wife. He died of his wounds after being taken to the hospital. The crime took place in Quetta, a town close to the Afghan border and the capital of Baluchistan province. A separatist organization, the Baluchistan Liberation Army, is reported to have claimed responsibility for the murder, which has been condemned by the Pakistan Federal Union of Journalists (PFUJ) and the Baluchistan Union of Journalists (BUJ).
UNESCO is the only United Nations agency with a mandate to defend freedom of expression and press freedom. Article 1 of its Constitution requires the Organization to “further universal respect for justice, for the rule of law and for the human rights and fundamental freedoms which are affirmed for the peoples of the world, without distinction of race, sex, language or religion, by the Charter of the United Nations.” To realize this the Organization is requested to “collaborate in the work of advancing the mutual knowledge and understanding of peoples, through all means of mass communication and to that end recommend such international agreements as may be necessary to promote the free flow of ideas by word and image…”
Related themes/countries
· Pakistan
· UNESCO Remembers Assassinated Journalists: News Archives 2008
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- UNESCO Press Release No. 2008–11
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