The International Press Institute (IPI) today condemned the murder of Venezuelan journalist and opposition political activist Wilfred Iván Ojeda Peralta, whose handcuffed body was found dumped in a vacant lot with a bullet wound to the head.

Ojeda, 56, was a columnist for El Clarín newspaper in the town of La Victoria and an activist for the Democratic Action political party, which opposes President Hugo Chávez.

His body was found Tuesday in the northern city of Revenga in the state of Aragua. Authorities reportedly said that a hood was placed over Ojeda’s head and that his body showed signs of torture.

The Attorney General’s Office said yesterday that an investigation had commenced, but the office did not offer a theory as to the reason for the killing.

The murder brought to 10 the number of journalists killed in Latin America this year. The region is the second most dangerous in the world for journalists, following only the Middle East and North Africa which has seen 18 deaths.

Ojeda’s death was the first killing of a journalist in Venezuela since the January 2009 murder of Orel Sambrano. The country has not seen the level of violence against journalists that other countries in the region – such as Mexico, with 12 killings last year, and Honduras, with 10 murders – have experienced.

A former police officer was convicted in Sambrano’s murder last year, and a trial against alleged drug kingpin Walid Makled, who stands accused of masterminding the killing, began last week.

IPI Director Alison Bethel McKenzie said: “The brutal murder of Mr. Ojeda serves as a reminder of the pressure journalists face. We offer our sympathy to Mr. Ojeda’s family and colleagues, and we call on authorities to conduct a swift and transparent investigation to hold those responsible for this heinous crime accountable.”