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19 journalists killed in 2002
03/01/2003 12:35 - (SA)
New York - Nineteen journalists were killed worldwide in the line of duty in 2002, down sharply from 37 the year before, according to the Committee to Protect Journalists.
The total is the lowest since the group began tracking such deaths in 1985. The highest was 66, in 1994.
"While we are encouraged to see the number of deaths decrease this year, journalists are still being targeted and assassinated for doing their jobs," the committee's executive director, Ann Cooper, said on Thursday.
A factor in the decline in journalists' deaths may be the international attention paid to the kidnapping and murder of Wall Street Journal reporter Daniel Pearl in Pakistan, the group said.
"In the wake of Pearl's death, journalist safety became a priority for news organizations," the committee's report said. "Many sent their staff to hostile-environment training, and reporters were better prepared in the field."
At least two journalists survived being shot in the West Bank and two more in Venezuela because they were wearing flak jackets or bulletproof vests, the report said.
Besides Pearl, journalists killed in 2002 included three in Russia, three in Colombia and three in the West Bank or Gaza Strip.
The committee is also investigating the cases of four missing journalists and 13 others whose killings may have been related to their work.
The committee, a New York-based nonprofit organization, works to safeguard press freedom worldwide. It was founded in 1981 by a group of American journalists and is privately funded. - Sapa-AP
- SAPA
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