Press Club Urges Mexico to Bring Killers of Journalists to Justice

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Oct 03, 2011, 12:51 ET

WASHINGTON, Oct. 3, 2011 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ --The National Press Club on Monday called on authorities in Mexico to vigorously prosecute the murders and disappearances of journalists there.

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According to the Committee to Protect Journalists, at least 30 reporters have been killed or gone missing since 2006 in a nation plagued by drug-related violence that affects all its citizens.

CPJ documented on Sept. 30 what it called the first instance of a reporter in Mexico killed for writing on social networks. Maria Elizabeth Macias Castro was found decapitated in Nuevo Laredo on Sept. 24 with earphones in her ears, a keyboard nearby and a poster next to her body that read, in part: "I am the girl from Laredo and I am here because of my reports and yours." It was signed, "ZZZZ," suggesting a link to the Zetas drug cartel, the CPJ said.

"When reporters are in jeopardy, they cannot do their jobs," said NPC President Mark Hamrick, a broadcast journalist with the Associated Press. "And without an effectively functioning press, society suffers. The killers of these reporters know that, and it is the reason they commit these heinous acts. They must not be allowed to do so with impunity."

The National Press Club, based in Washington, D.C., is the world's leading professional organization for journalists. The Club represents more than 3,200 members worldwide representing every major news organization. The Club was founded in 1908.

SOURCE National Press Club