Journalists reporting on environmental issues face increasing violence worldwide by state and private actors, UNESCO said Thursday, noting that 44 of those journalists were killed between 2009 and 2023.
More than 70 percent of 905 journalists surveyed by the United Nations agency in 129 countries said they had been attacked, threatened or pressured, and that violence against them had worsened, with 305 attacks reported in the past five years alone, Hina reports.
Unesco, the UN's cultural agency, reported in its report on physical attacks, injuries, arrests and harassment, as well as legal actions against journalists, including defamation suits and criminal proceedings.
At least 749 journalists, journalist groups and media outlets were attacked in 89 countries across all regions, the report said, with state actors responsible for at least half and private actors for at least a quarter.
"State actors, police, military forces, civil servants and employees, local authorities, are responsible for the majority of attacks for which information about the perpetrators is available," the report says.
These journalists covered a wide range of topics, including protests, conflicts over mining and land, logging and deforestation, extreme weather, pollution and environmental damage, and the fossil fuel industry.
Men are generally attacked more often, and women more often digitally, according to the report.
Of the 44 journalists killed in 15 countries while reporting on environmental issues, only five cases resulted in convictions. In 19 out of 44 murders, the perpetrators remained unidentified.
At least 24 journalists survived the assassination attempts.
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