Colombia warns of plot to kill high-profile journalists
Colombia warns of plot to kill high-profile journalists
Helen MurphyReuters
5:25 p.m. EDT, May 14, 2013
BOGOTA (Reuters) - Colombia's government warned on Tuesday of a plot by a criminal group to kill several high-profile journalists just weeks after the attempted assassination of an investigative reporter boosted concerns over threats to a free press in the violence-plagued Andean nation.
President Juan Manuel Santos also announced that 90 journalists are being given protection by the government. He urged Attorney General Eduardo Montealegre to investigate attacks against journalists.
"In this government, we're totally committed to get to the very bottom of the problems that undermine this fundamental right to be well-informed that all Colombians have," Santos said at an event to promote media rights.
Journalists and investigators have long been the target of attacks and threats in Colombia, allegedly carried out by corrupt politicians, drug lords, Marxist rebels and right-wing paramilitary leaders to silence coverage that may damage their interests.
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