There have been 22 members of the media killed since 2016, according to the National Union of Journalists of the Philippines (NUJP), with more than 80 deaths recorded since 1986.
Jonathan de Santos, the chairperson of the NUJP, told DZRH in an interview that Jesus "Jess" Malabanan is the 22nd media killing since 2016.
"Bale sa count po natin, mula nung 2016 ay 22, pero since 1986 more than 80 na yata," he told DZRH.
(Based on our count, there have been 22 since 2016. But since 1986, there have been over 80 maybe.)
According to De Santos, the record is still getting updated because there are cases when some deaths were allegedly not work-related or some are not really identified by some authorities as journalists.
Out of the more than 80 cases, however, not all cases are considered resolved.
"In most cases, hindi naman po talaga umaabot sa mastermind 'yung accountability nito. Usually, yung gunman lang daw, kung may mahuhuli man," he said.
(In most cases, the accountability never reached the mastermind. Usually, it is just the gunman if someone is arrested.)
The issue of media killing returned to the spotlight after Jess Malabanan was murdered last week in Samar, sparking widespread condemnation from members of the press.
"Kasama po natin ang buong media community sa pag-kundena sa pagpatay kay Jess Malabanan," he said. "Hinihintay po natin ang mga development sa kaso na ito at sana ay mabilis din po ang resolusyon nito."
(We are with the whole media community in condemning the murder of Jess Malabanan. We are waiting for the development of the case and we hope it is quickly resolved.)
The Presidential Task Force on Media Security said it is on the case, and vowed "to stop at nothing" to achieve justice for the crime.
