In the Philippines, the desire to become a media practitioner is often equated with one'sreadiness to die. The latest murder was that of Rolando Morales, radio commentator for dxMD in General Santos City. He is the sixth journalist killed in the Philippines this year, adding up to the more than 60 media persons who were slain since 1986, when democracy was supposedly restored in the Philippines.

The numbers, which have been steadily increasing since the time of Corazon Aquino, naturally alarmed international media organizations. According to Bulatlat, the average murder rate during Marcos'14-year reign was 2.5, which jumped to 5.6 under Aquino's six-year term. The current rate under Arroyo is 4.6, with 28 journalists dead since she became president in 2001.

Last year marked the highest number of journalists slain (13) although this year has chances of topping that atrocity, having attained half the number of last year's murders while still way in the middle of the year.

Organizations such as Paris-based Reporters Sans Frontieres (Reporters Without Borders, RSF), New York-based Committee to Protect Journalists (CPJ) and the INternational Federation of Journalists (IFJ), among others, condemn the killings and have strongly criticized the Philippine government for its inability (which might turn out to be tolerance or even encouragement) to address the situation.

These organizations have sent fact-finding teams to the country to investigate the causes of the killings, one of which was the IFJ team sent last January. The findings were similar to the investigations of others groups, such as the RSF and the CPJ.

For one, journalists in the Philippines are terribly underpaid and overworked so that bribery or siding with particular political figures and other interests are common (in some cases, the journalists themselves demand that they be given "gifts"). The complications arise when they get caught in the middle of the fights of the opposing groups, according to the IFJ delegation.

Also, the murdered journalists were mostly hard-hitting commentators from the broadcast media in provinces. In these areas, communities are smaller where public issues taken personally and reporters are geographically closer to their news source, said a report from the Japan Times.

Despite their bravery to criticize local government officials, drug lords and other powerful segments in their communities, some journalists acknowledge their unprofessional manners on the job. The IFJ team suggested that the "media abuse" from practitioners ,au jave a hand in the attacks.

Nevertheless, RSF's Vincent Brossel explained that, "the local radio os sometimes very critical, attacking very harshly, sometimes on the limit of what we call normal ethical journalism, but it is not a reason to kill a journalist."

There is also a tolerance for such violence, evident in the lone case that has had suspects apprehended among the more than 60 incidents. Luis Teodoro pointed out in his website that such "failure of local police agencies...has encouraged further killings."

On a more sinister note, having a faulty police or jsutice system is not the problem's root cause. The CPJ and the RFJ say that those in danger of being exposed via the press are the ones who attack reporters. Thes include "corrupt officials, rebel organizations and criminal syndicates."

Also, National Unioin of Journalists of the Philippines (UJP) secretary general Carlos Conde said that many of the suspects in the killings are those in power - local officials themselves of drug lords who have links with the said officials.

In the Philippines, rapists are lined up for lethal injection while not a single journalist killer or attacker has been punished. Such deaths are not as publicized int his country, as if such a concern were limited to the media and media students and does not affect the country's foundation - democracy - of which press freedom plays a major role.

President Arroyo herself has acknowledged that "reporting on corruption has become a deadly occupation" and promised punishment for those who murder journalists. With the present statistics of the solved murders, her desire to protect media practitioners is overshadowed by her need to defend herself from scrutiny.

The presence of such a threat for reporters, not just of limb but of life itself, serves as a tool for self-censorship. The so-called freest press in Asia is only second to Iraq as the deadliest place for journalists, according to the IFJ.

Worse was Manila's (Malacanang's) denial of the journalist organization's claims, evading the groups during their visit in the country. Both the RSF and the IFJ concluded on a "widespread culture of violence that is tolerated and condoned by the government and officials" as the determining factor in the fatalities.

What the Philippines has then is not a government that is unable to address the killing of journalists but an entire system that refuses to eliminate injustice because of the benefits of such evil to those in pwoer. Even the United Nations was alarmed of the Killing situations but it seems that out country is too calloused to wrongdoing to demand for what is right.

The ruling elite - encompassing the government, the capitalists, even organized criminal institutions - intends to keep their power and the status quo by all means. And instead of having separate institutions for justic and administration (legislative, judiciary, executive) as mandated by law, what the PHilippines has is a system that is a mixture of everything, with those in power having clutches in all the so-called branches of the government as well as the rest of the society (that is, economically).

It is then natural for these bodies to repress those who speak against them. Though the law provides for appropriate redress for those stepped over by irresponsible journalists, killing repoters altogether is less costly compared to lawsuits.

In an RSF report, the dire economic situations have led persons to accepts offers to murder journalists for as low as PhP 20,000 (as in the case of Joel Reduca, who assailed Bulgar columnist Pablo Hernandez).

It is also more effective because of the fear it produces among media practitioners and the obvious eternal silence of these powers' opponents.

Which leads us to reconsider the kind of country we have now: this is definitely not a democracy. For mass communication students, future work in the media seems bleak; the consequence of holding fast to the ideals taught in university is being robbed of life itself.

Resources:

Bayron, Heda. Report: Philippines most dangerous place to be a journalist. 3 May 2005. http://www.voanews.com/english/2005-05-03-voa49.cfm.

Conde, Carlos. Philippines: a killing field of journalists. 25 December 2003. http://qc.indymedia.org/news/2003/12/22.php Mail comments.

Inquirer Editorial. Killing journalists. 6 May 2003. http://www.inq7.net/opi/2003/may/06/opi_editorial-1.htm.

Inquirer News Service. Slain commentator ignored wife's plea to quit program. 4 July 2005. http://www.inq7.net.

International News Safety Institute. Sixth journalist murdered in the Philippines this year. 4 July 2005. http://www.newssafety.com/.

Filipino radio broadcaster shot dead in southern province. 4 July 2005. http://wwwewssafety.com/stories/miscagencies/phil03.htm.

Nunan, Patricia. Asian countries top list as most dangerous for journalists. 3 May 2005. http://www.voanews.com.

Philippine Press Council. Statement on the killings of journalists. http://www.inq7.net/globalnation/sec_cdn/2005may/opi/com_20.htm.

Teodoro, Luis. Culture of violence. 29 March 2005. http://www.luisteodoro.com/archives.

Knowing the enemy. 5 April 2005. http://www.luisteodoro.com/archives.

Missing the point. 9 April 2005. http://www.luisteodoro.com/archives.

The Asia Pacific Media Network. PHILIPPINES: Journalism turns deadly in the Philippines. The Japan Times. 3 May 2005. http://www.asiamedia.ucla.edu/article.asp?parentid=23871.

* All sites visited on 10 July 2005.