(RSF/IFEX) – RSF urges regional authorities to step up security measures after the offices of the weekly newspaper “Dicho y Hecho”, which has been exposing corruption, came under fire in Bejuma, a municipality located in Carabobo state of north-central Venezuela. Police found scores of impact points on the building’s façade and various bullets penetrated into […]
(RSF/IFEX) – RSF urges regional authorities to step up security measures after the offices of the weekly newspaper “Dicho y Hecho”, which has been exposing corruption, came under fire in Bejuma, a municipality located in Carabobo state of north-central Venezuela.
Police found scores of impact points on the building’s façade and various bullets penetrated into the office spaces within, but no one was hurt in the attack, which took place in the early hours of 11 May 2008.
The weekly’s editor, Ximena Escobar, said that the publication’s journalists were determined not to give way to this sort of intimidation. “They want to frighten us, but we will not shut up”, she said. “Dicho y Hecho”, which was launched in 2002, recently published a series of investigative reports on corruption in Bejuma.
“We fear that this attack may be a prelude to more serious attacks that could harm the staff of ‘Dicho y Hecho'”, said RSF.
“We hope that the investigation by the regional authorities will quickly produce results and that they will take into account the sensitive issues the newspaper has recently been covering. We also suggest that the journalists involved be provided with security”, RSF added.
