Advertisement
Monday, June 13, 2011

A second radio reporter is gunned down at a Philippines station

gun Four reporters have been killed in the Philippines just this year, and now another reporter becomes the victim of violence at the same radio station where a fellow reporter was gunned down 11 months ago. Police are investigating the death of 49-year old Romeo Olea, who was shot twice in the back while riding his motorcycle to the radio station by an unidentified gunman. Olea, who had received death threats for his reporting on local corruption, becomes the second reporter for DWEB-FM (99.9) in Naga City to be killed. It was last July that Miguel Belen was shot and killed in what was believed to be a politically motivated murder. Belen's execution remains unsolved. Olea hosted a talk show called "Anything Goes," which discussed issues in the local area government. The Philippines is one of the most dangerous places for journalists to work, with 145 journalists killed since democracy was restored in 1986. Many of those murders go unsolved. In 2009, the single-worst day of killing of journalists took place, when 30 reporters, a number of whom worked in radio, were among 57 people executed when a group tried to eliminate a rival politician's supporters. The Star Newspaper of Manila has more details here.

Previous and Next Stories

Advertisement
Advertisement