Manila [Philippines], November 6: A 57-year-old radio broadcaster was shot dead on Sunday by an unidentified suspect while live on air in the southern Philippines, police said.
The victim, Juan Jumalon, was broadcasting from his studio at his house in Calamba town in the southern province of Misamis Occidental, when the attack happened.
The suspect pretended to be someone who wanted to make an announcement on the victim's radio show, police said.
"Once inside, without apparent reason, [the suspect] drew his firearm and shot the victim, hitting his lower lip and piercing to the back of his head," a police report said.
The suspect fled, while the victim was rushed to hospital where he was declared dead on arrival.
Police were still determining the motive for the killing.
President Ferdinand Marcos Jr condemned the killing and ordered the police to "swiftly bring the perpetrators to justice."
"Attacks on journalists will not be tolerated in our democracy, and those who threaten the freedom of the press will face the full consequences of their actions," he said in a post on his official X account.
Jumalon was the fourth journalist to be killed under the Marcos Jr administration and the 199th since 1986, according to the National Union of Journalists in the Philippines (NUJP).
"The attack is even more condemnable since it happened at Jumalon's own home," the NUJP said in a statement.
"The killing also comes in the same week as the International Day to End Impunity For Crimes Against Journalists," it added.
According to the Committee to Protect Journalists, the Philippines is one of the most dangerous places to work as a reporter, especially radio journalists.
The South-East Asian country was eighth on the list of countries ¿¿¿¿¿¿¿with the worst records on prosecuting the killers of journalists.
Source: Qatar Tribune
