Another journalist is killed

The murder of Melinda “Mei” Magsino, a former Inquirer correspondent, demonstrates on very clear terms that journalists continue to be killed with impunity simply because authorities seem to be half-hearted in going after the perpetrators.

Beyond the hue and cry after every incident, and the obligatory pledge of authorities to go after the killers and masterminds, few of the perpetrators have been arrested, much less prosecuted and now spending time in prison.  

Magsino's murder is likely to be added to the long list of unsolved crimes against journalists in this country. In fact, the Philippines is among the most dangerous places in the world to be working in media. More so in the provinces, where local officials who commit crimes or steal money from the public coffers do not think twice about putting a bullet in the head of those who attack them in print or in broadcast media.

The biggest crime against Philippine media—the murder of 32 journalists in Maguindanao in November 2009 attributed to members of the Ampatuan clan—is still undergoing court trial, with several witnesses for the prosecution having been killed to silence them.  

Magsino's murder is definitely media-related although she was no longer connected with any media outfit when she was killed. She was  a known critic of the late Batangas governor Armand Sanchez when she was still in media, and had received death threats because of her hard-hitting  articles.

The killing of Magsino took place in broad daylight. The gunman, who was wearing only a sando or sleeveless shirt, was the back rider of a black and white Honda motorcycle without license plate driven by another suspect.

According to police, based on entries in Magsino’s social media accounts such as Facebook, she had made “many enemies”.

This was corroborated by a friend and former classmate of hers who said that Magsino seemed to have gathered many enemies because of the tirades she wrote for her former local newspaper and posted on her Facebook account.

Inquirer publisher, Atty. Raul Pangalangan, paid tribute to the slain journalist     and pointed out: "It falls upon us to make sure that indeed her death doesn’t become just another statistic. We need the courage and fortitude of journalists like Mei to flourish and sustain our fragile democracy."

Well said, and a timely reminder that a vigilant citizenry, coupled with sincere efforts on the part of authorities to run after the assailants, are precisely what is needed to ensure that justice is done. -END-