Mexico records most violent year for journalists with 18 murders so far

This year will be the most violent on record for journalists at the Mexico with 18 murders of professionals in the area so far, according to a report by the human rights organization Article 19 released this Thursday (18).

Of the 18 deaths, the NGO has identified a possible link with journalistic work in nine cases so far, the organization’s regional director, Leopoldo Maldonado, told Reuters.

“2022 could be the worst year for the press in a century,” he said.

In just over eight months, the number of deaths in 2022 has already surpassed the 13 murders recorded last year, and the 14 recorded in 2020. Article 19 found that the deaths were linked to the victims’ profession in about half of the cases in 2021 and 2020, added the director.

Meanwhile, the organization documented a total of 331 attacks against journalists in the first half of the year, most involving cases of intimidation and harassment. Some also received threats, and other cases involved alleged abusive uses of public power.

This marks an increase of 51.83% compared to the same period in 2018, when former President Enrique Peña Nieto was in power.

In addition, the organization said that four journalists were forcibly displaced within the country, while two went into exile in the first half of the year.

“The role that the authorities play in violence against the press clearly reflects a violation of the State’s obligations to guarantee the rights and integrity of journalists and the media,” the report notes.

Mexican President Andrés Manuel López Obrador has repeatedly said that his government does not attack the press and that the recent murders were committed by criminal groups.

Article 19, however, claimed that the state was behind most of the attacks on the press, with 128 cases recorded in the first half. This is “a trend that has been consistent since 2007,” the group said.