| Injured | Killed |
|---|---|
| 0 | 1 |
Date: 15 June 2010
Source: http://www.sunstar.com.ph/network/radioman-shot-dead-davao
DAVAO — A brazen gunman shot and killed a radio journalist as he hosted a singing contest before shocked spectators in Manay town in Davao Oriental, police said Tuesday.
Desidario Camangyan, 52, of Sunshine FM radio based in Mati City died from a gunshot wound to the head Monday night inside the gymnasium of Manay, said Inspector Ariel Nueva, the town’s police chief.
Click here for Election 2010 updates
Camangyan, 52, was sitting on stage when the attacker shot him from behind, Nueva said.
Mati City Mayor Michelle Nakpil Rabat said the victim was invited to host the fiesta celebration program in Manay that evening when he was killed.
Police report showed that the victim was shot once at close range hitting him in his lower right ear.
The gunman escaped on foot. Police were trying to determine the motive, including if the attack was related to Camangyan’s work as a broadcaster.
Superintendent Querubin Manalang, regional police spokesman, said they have already created Task Force Camangyan, headed by Senior Supt. Jorge Cruz, to investigate the incident.
Meanwhile, the National Union of Journalists in the Philippines (NUJP) condemned the incident.
In a statement, NUJP said the incident, which was perpetrated in front of many people, “shows the perpetrators were no doubt emboldened to commit the crime in such a brazen manner because they were confident they would never be punished.”
“Camangyan’s killing is yet one more proof of the ever-existent culture of impunity in our midst, which is most felt in small and remote communities dominated by the very powerful few,” NUJP said.
On September 10, 2009, the late provincial environment officer Eulogio Baltazar was also shot and killed by armed men while taking his lunch inside a restaurant in Mati City. Authorities suspect that Baltazar’s campaign against illegal logging and illegal mining in the province was the motive behind his death.
The Philippines prides itself on having among the freest media in Southeast Asia, but it also is among the world’s most dangerous places for journalists.
In the world’s deadliest single assault on media workers, at least 30 reporters and their staff were among 57 people massacred November 30 in the southern Philippines. The victims were in a vehicle convoy targeted in political violence before the May national election.
Prior to that attack, 75 media workers had been killed in the country since 2001, according to the International Federation of Journalists. (Ben O. Tesiorna of Sun.Star Davao/AP)