The Director-General of UNESCO, Irina Bokova, today condemned the killing of broadcast journalist Christopher Iban Lozada in Mindanao in the Philippines.
“I condemn the murder of Christopher Iban Lozada,” said the Director-General. “I call on the authorities to investigate this case. Impunity for crimes against media workers cannot be tolerated as it constitutes one of the most serious challenges to the safety of journalists and to countries’ efforts to protect them.”
Unidentified assailants shot Christopher Iban Lozada, a journalist for dxBF Prime Broadcasting Network, as he was driving to his home in the City of Bislig, on the southern Philippines island of Mindanao on 24 October.
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.” These statements are posted on a dedicated webpage, 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
UNESCO is the 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…”