“Above all, it is crucial that the government recognize, rather than downplay, the dangers that Filipino journalists face every day.”

CAGAYAN DE ORO — A group of journalists acknowledged that not all media killings in the country are yet proven to be work-related, but it emphasized that these cases should be treated as such until determined otherwise.

The National Union of Journalists of the Philippines (NUJP) made the statement, disagreeing with the remarks made by Undersecretary Jose Torres Jr., executive director of the Presidential Task Force on Media Security (PTFoMS), as the latter was seemingly minimizing the scale of media killings in the country.

“Minimizing the problem does not make journalists safer,” NUJP said in a statement. “Above all, it is crucial that the government recognize, rather than downplay, the dangers that Filipino journalists face every day.”

During a memorandum of agreement (MOA) signing with the National Police Commission (NAPOLCOM) on October 24, Torres said that 73 cases out of around 200 media killings in the country since 1986 were not work-related, while there were 12 cases with unknown records.

“Although any journalist killing is saddening and a threat to press freedom, but it is not that many where the media are being killed in the Philippines,” Torres said in mixed English and Filipino, in response to a question by a reporter during a MOA signing following the recent killing of Albay-based broadcaster Noel Samar.

Samar is the eighth journalist killed since Ferdinand Marcos Jr. took over the presidency. Two of them, according to NUJP, were confirmed to be work-related, while the remaining cases are still under investigation.

Read: Media groups urge thorough probe on 8th journo killed under Marcos Jr admin

NUJP pointed out that considering every case of media killing as work-related is necessary because of the “climate of impunity” in the country, where the culprits, especially the masterminds, are infrequently identified, prosecuted, or convicted. 

“In most cases, it would take years or even decades to bring them to justice,” the group said, recounting the bloody Ampatuan Massacre in 2009 as an example, where around 80 individuals involved in the killing of 32 media workers remain on the run.

“To dismiss nearly half of the 200 media killings since 1986 as ‘not work-related’ ignores the cruel reality that justice in these cases remains elusive and that state institutions have consistently failed to hold accountable those who silence the press,” it added.

Read: 15 years later, still no justice for Ampatuan Massacre victims

The Philippines ranked 116th out of 180 countries in the 2025 World Press Freedom Index, an annual ranking by Reporters Without Borders (RSF) that assesses the level of press freedom. This made the country still a dangerous place for journalists.

In 2024, the country ranked ninth in the Global Impunity Index of the Committee to Protect Journalists, a list of the world’s top offenders in allowing murderers of journalists to go unpunished. The Philippines, with 18 unresolved media killings on the same report, has been on the list for 17 years.

Meanwhile, NUJP welcomed the agreement signed by PTFoMS and NAPOLCOM aiming to protect journalists’ rights and barring police personnel from red-tagging and threatening the media. 

According to PTFoMS, the deal establishes a case referral and investigation system, aiming to provide quick response and decisive action on incidents that involve members of the press. In addition, a joint monitoring mechanism will also be put in place to guarantee continuous and real-time sharing of information.

But NUJP said that this “must be backed by transparency, accountability, and a sense of urgency.” (RTS)