BY BULATLAT
Posted 12:20 p.m., July 3, 2008

The International Federation of Journalists (IFJ) and Reporters Without Borders (RSF) expressed outrage at the murder of Philippines news correspondent and radio host Bert Sison in Sariaya, Quezon, 100 km southeast of the capital, on June 30.

According to the National Union of Journalists of the Philippines (NUJP), an IFJ affiliate, Sison was driving home with two of his daughters when two men on a motorcycle opened fire on his vehicle.

Sison’s daughters are also news correspondents in Quezon. One of them reportedly was shot in the arm during the attack.

Sison was working as a correspondent for Regional Bulletin, a Quezon-based weekly, and was the host of the weekly Harana (Serenade) program on radio dzAT-AM in Lucena City.

He is the third journalist to be murdered in the Philippines in 2008 and the 58th since President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo’s administration came to power in 2001, the NUJP reports.

“Sison’s murder is a tragic reminder that the Philippines continues to be one of the most dangerous countries in the world for practising journalists,” IFJ Asia-Pacific said.

“The Philippine authorities can assist in ending the climate of impunity against the Philippines media by investigating fully every attack against a journalist and ensuring that those responsible for the violence are brought to justice.”

In a separate statement, RSF said, “If this murder remains unpunished, as so many other murders of journalists have, it will be another defeat for the rule of law. Combating violence against journalists and human rights activists should be a priority for the government.”

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