The United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization, the agency tasked with defending press freedom, condemned the killing of journalist Aresio Padrigao, the sixth media practitioner killed in the Philippines this year.
“I condemn the murder of Aresio Padrigao,” said UNESCO Director-General Koichiro Matsura. “It is essential for democracy and rule of law that journalists be allowed to carry out their investigations and voice their views and conclusions,” Matsura said.
Padrigao, 55, was shot by a man on a motorcycle as he was dropping his daughter off at school last Nov. 17 in Misamis Oriental.
Padrigao hosted a weekly radio program on dxRS Radyo Natin (Our Radio), in which he denounced cases of alleged corruption and illegal logging activities. He also wrote a column for the community newspaper Mindanao Monitor Today.
Prior to his murder, Padrigao received death threats, according to the Manila-based Center for Media Freedom and Responsibility (CMFR).
According to CMFR, Padrigao is the sixth journalist killed in the Philippines this year. – Pia Lee-Brago