BACOLOD City – The Negros Occidental Police Provincial Office (NOCPPO) has again assured the local media of protection in light of the killing of a radio broadcaster in Misamis Occidental on Nov. 5.
Major Rhojn Darrell Nigos, spokesperson for NOCPPO, said they are currently accounting for all representatives of various media outlets in the province and will conduct threat assessments.
Nigos said police stations are also coordinating with media practitioners in the province.
So far, the NOCPPO has not received reports of harassment or threats against them, Nigos added.
On Sunday, radio broadcaster Juan Jumalon, also known as “DJ Johnny Walker” of Gold FM 94.7 Calamba, was shot dead while airing his program live via radio and social media. The unidentified gunman asked permission to enter Jumalon’s radio booth to make an announcement while another served as a lookout.
The incident renewed the call to approve Senate Bill No. 2335, or the Journalist Protection Act, which will also provide mandatory additional insurance benefits for all media personnel, including freelance journalists.
The Mindanao Independent Press Council Inc., meanwhile, is saddened by the “barbaric” killing of Jumalon. They said that attacks on journalists are a “grave assault on the fundamental principles of human rights, press freedom, and democracy itself.”
Jumalon’s killing is the 199th since 1986. (Watchmen Daily Journal, with a report from Rappler)/PN
