A worrisome number of Philippine law enforcers are believed to be in cahoots with criminals. Just prior to his death, Hernandez was especially critical of an alleged drug baron in Bulacan province, north of the capital, who had masqueraded as a cop and kept newsmen in his pay. Plainly, wherever law and order has deteriorated to such a state that it is so easy to intimidate the press, then it is not just journalists who suffer, but free expression and the truth. Besides the Philippines, India and Thailand are places where press freedom is safeguarded by law, but often compromised by lawlessness. Last week, triad syndicates in Macau threatened violence against journalists who report their activities.
Crooked officials are also keen to silence critics.
The Indonesian Journalists Association is still urging that the investigation into Jogjakarta journalist Muhammad Sjafruddin's death be reopened. The international community tends to focus on state pressure on the media. Yet vindictive violence by private individuals and groups can be equally constricting. Put simply, it is one thing for journalists to keep writing when they risk a jail term or a pink slip. But the threat of death or injury is a deterrent of a different order.