Again, Journalist Killed In Mexico, 12th In 2022

Again, Journalist Killed In Mexico, 12th In 2022
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A Mexican reporter was shot dead on Wednesday in the violence-plagued northeastern state of Tamaulipas — the 12th journalist killed so far in a particularly bloody year for the country’s press.

In his some of his social media posts, Antonio de la Cruz, a reporter for the daily Expreso, frequently accused politicians of engaging in crimes of corruption.

The reporter was attacked as he was leaving his Ciudad Victoria house, and both his wife and daughter were hurt.

‘We must not allow more attacks on journalists and activists. These crimes will not go unpunished,’ President Andres Manuel Lopez Obrador’s spokesman, Jesus Ramirez, tweeted.

Expreso demanded, ‘justice from authorities at all levels.’

Africa Daily News, New York recalls that in 2018, another one of the newspaper’s journalists, Hector Gonzalez, was beaten to death.

This year is already one of the deadliest yet for the Mexican press, prompting calls for an end to a culture of impunity.

Doctors were fighting to save the life of De la Cruz’s daughter, State Governor Francisco Cabeza de Vaca said, urging prosecutors to ensure “that this cowardly crime does not go unpunished.”

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De la Cruz, who had been a journalist for 15 years, was also a spokesman for a political party, Movimiento Ciudadano.

Gustvo Cardenas, a state legislator for the party, described De la Cruz as “a family man, a good man” who had sought to expose alleged corruption by local authorities.

Media rights group Reporters Without Borders urged authorities to carry out “a prompt investigation” into the murder and whether it was linked to De la Cruz’s journalistic work.

The Tamaulipas prosecutor’s office confirmed the murder and said that it was investigating the case under protocols for dealing with crimes against freedom of expression.

More than 150 journalists have been murdered since 2000 in Mexico, one of the world’s most dangerous countries for the media, with only a fraction of the crimes resulting in convictions.

The United States and the European Parliament have urged Mexico to ensure adequate protection for journalists following the recent string of killings.

Africa Daily News, New York

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