33 Journalists Said Killed in 1999
NEW YORK (AP) - Journalism was an often dangerous profession to
practice in 1999, with 33 journalists in 10 countries losing their
lives because of their work, according to a press freedom group.
The number of deaths increased from the year before, when 24
journalists were killed in 17 countries, the Committee to Protect
Journalists said Thursday.
In 1999, the African nation of Sierra Leone was the most dangerous
place for journalists, with 10 killed there, including Associated
Press Television News producer Myles Tierney.
Tierney and Ian Stewart, AP's bureau chief from Abidjan, Ivory Coast,
were shot last January. They were among a group of journalists
traveling - with military escort - through downtown Freetown when they
came under attack. A rebel opened fire on the AP car; Tierney died
instantly, and Stewart suffered a serious head wound.
Yugoslavia had the second-highest number of deaths, with six. Other
countries where journalists were killed included Colombia, East Timor,
Argentina, Lebanon, Nigeria, Russia, Sri Lanka, and Turkey.
All 33 journalists were killed either while on assignment or as a
direct result of their work, according to researchers at CPJ.
In December, the French media watchdog group Reporters Without Borders
reported that 36 journalists had been killed worldwide in 1999. The
discrepancy between that number and the one released by CPJ was not
immediately explained, but CPJ is still investigating the deaths of 19
other journalists that may have been related to their professions.
Many of those killed were targeted by warring factions within the
various countries, CPJ said.
``We see a clear policy, particularly in Sierra Leone, Colombia, and
East Timor, of armed factions seeking to banish or even exterminate
journalists in order to hide the truth,'' CPJ executive director Ann
Cooper said in a statement.
``Whether it's the Indonesian army or Sierra Leonean rebels, the goal
is obvious: get rid of the witnesses whose reporting can inform the
world about atrocities, corruption or killings.''
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