These three stories highlight the plight of many journalists around the world on May 3, 2012, World Press Freedom Day.
The Story of Marcela Turati
‘The Majority of Mexican Journalists Have Become War Correspondents in their Own Country’
“My city finds itself in a state of panic. There is shooting everywhere. People see bodies in the streets. A curfew has been self-imposed. The drug traffickers have silenced our newspaper. We cannot publish anything because they threaten us: they have killed and kidnapped our colleagues. People are afraid and frustrated, understandably wanting their newspaper to tell them what is happening, but unfortunately we cannot…”
Read the rest of Marcela Turati’s story here.
The Story of Mohamed Ibrahim
‘We Are Worried that Journalists Will Continue to Be Targeted’
In Somalia, a nation of ever-shifting fortunes, the first few months of 2012 have been particularly deadly for the media. Four journalists have been killed in the war-weary East African state this year – one each month. Only Syria has been more dangerous.
Read the rest of Mohamed Ibrahim’s story here.
The Story of Umar Cheema
‘Instead of Bowing to Tyranny, I Decided to Stand Brave and Firm’
How precious freedom is can better be explained by those who have suffered and struggled for it. This is what my personal experience dictates. On September 4, 2010, I was abducted. Before that, I was a free man roaming around without any care or caution. Even that fateful night, I was laughing in the company of friends sitting at a hill-top café celebrating cherished memories. Then the party was over.