The Director-General of UNESCO, Audrey Azoulay, urges the Slovak authorities to investigate the killing of journalist Jan Kuciak, in Veľká Mača, located 50 kilometers from the Slovak capital, Bratislava.
“I condemn the murder of Ján Kuciak,” the Director-General said. “Journalists have the right to fulfill their mission to inform without fearing for their lives. I call on the authorities to thoroughly investigate this case and bring the perpetrators of this crime to trial”.
Ján Kuciak, a 27-year-old investigative journalist, worked for the news portal Aktuality.sk. He had been investigating issues of tax fraud.
The murder of Mr Kuciak is the first killing of a journalist in Slovakia since the country became a member of the European Union in 2004.
The Director-General of UNESCO issues statements on the killing of media workers in line with Resolution 29 adopted by UNESCO Member States at the Organization’s General Conference of 1997, entitled “Condemnation of Violence against Journalists.”
UNESCO promotes the safety of journalists through global awareness-raising, capacity building and a range of actions, notably the UN Plan of Action on the Safety of Journalists and the Issue of Impunity.
See also: UNESCO condemns the killing of journalists.
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Media Contact : Sylvie Coudray, s.coudray@unesco.org, +33 (0) 1 45 68 42 12