Pakistani journalist Mehmood Chandio, president of the Mirpurkhas press club and bureau chief for the Sindhi-language television Awaz, was gunned down on Sunday, according to delayed reports received by the new York-based Committee to Protect Journalists (CPJ).
Assailants knocked on the door of Chandio's home, firing two or three times when he answered, Mazhar Abbas, a former head of the Pakistan Federal Union of Journalists, told CPJ in an email message. Chandio died after being transported to the hospital.
Chandio was a prominent local figure. Soon after his death, colleagues staged a protest outside the local press club, calling for a forceful investigation into the killing. CPJ is investigating to determine whether the slaying is related to his work.
"Provincial authorities must take charge of the investigation into Mehmood Chandio's brutal slaying and bring his killers to justice," said Bob Dietz, CPJ's Asia programme coordinator. "Pakistan has one of the world's worst records of impunity in the case of journalists' deaths, with a dozen killings unprosecuted since 2002."
The International Federation of Journalists (IFJ) called on Pakistani authorities to hunt down the killers of Chandio.“This cold blooded murder must be thoroughly investigated and the killers brought to justice,” said Aidan White, IFJ General Secretary. “The journalist community in Pakistan is shocked by this latest attack and there is widespread concern that many more reporters and editors are at risk.”
After the assassination of Chadnio, the journalists’ community of Mirpurkhas, including National Press Club and Mirpurkhas Press Club members reached the hospital and protested against the killing. President Asif Ali Zardari expressed his grief and sorrow over the killing, according to Pakistan Times.
“This is tragic record and we urge the Government of Pakistan to put the protection of media higher on its agenda,” added White. “The journalists of Sind and across Pakistan are rightly angry that there has not been an effective response by the authorities to the wave of violence against journalists and media. They must act quickly to protect our colleagues and to eliminate the threat of impunity in the killing of journalists.”
CPJ's Impunity Index ranked Pakistan as the 10th worst country in solving journalist murders.
