Masked and armed men burned down radio station Radyo Cagayano dwRC 90.1 FM in Cagayan province last July 2. Local and international media organisations condemn this latest in a series of attacks on journalists and press freedom in the Philippines. Razed to the ground

Eight unidentified men, brandishing M-16 armalite assault rifles and 45 caliber handguns, bound and gagged the radio stations six staff before pouring gasoline on the stations equipment and setting the place on fire. They were wearing ski masks, combat boots, military type fatigues, and divers watches. They bound the staff with articles of clothing, injuring a few.

Radyo Cagayano, based in Baggao approximately 500 kilometers north of Manila, was recently put up through the joint efforts of the town mayor and a group of local farmers. It had also received help from congressional representatives of the Bayan Muna party.

Major setback

This is a major setback for press freedom, and the targeting of a community radio station is particularly ruthless and disturbing, International Federation of Journalists (IFJ) president Christopher Warren said. Stations such as this should be able to operate without fear of persecution, as they are an essential source of information for regional communities.

Bianca Miglioretto, a World Association of Community Radio Broadcasters (AMARC) board member, also expressed grave concern over the incident. Community radio is one way of giving voice to the voiceless, Miglioretto said at a press conference in Quezon City. If this voice is taken away by burning the peoples community radio station, it is a grave violation of their right to communicate.

The National Union of Journalists of the Philippines (NUJP) also condemned inaction by the police, who arrived on the scene three hours later. The police station was only 300 metres from the radio station.

Latest attack

The July 2 incident was the latest in a series of attacks over free media in the Philippines in the past few years. According to AMARC, since Gloria Macapagal Arroyo became president in 2001, 42 journalists have been murdered and countless others have been threatened.

In 2005 alone, according to data from the non-profit organisation Committee to Protect Journalists (CPJ), radio stations in the cities of Cauayan, Cagayan de Oro, Lucena, and Valencia, were forcibly closed down and bombed. In cases where the mayors themselves ordered the attacks against the stations, station owners claim that the officials were retaliating for their critical coverage of the local administrations. It seems they are using their local muscle to fight us, an executive at Bombo Radyo said. It is their way of challenging press freedom.

Elsewhere in the Asia-Pacific

According to the CPJ, community radio stations elsewhere in the Asia and the Pacific suffer the same persecution. In Nepal, for example, 46 independent FM stations were ordered to replace all their news programs with music and entertainment last February.

I think we had been marked, and they felt threatened by us, Radio Sagarmatha station chief Ghama Raj Luitel said. The current thinking is that FM radio stations are dangerous because theyre capable of inciting people to revolt.

In Thailand, aside from incidents of harassment on radio stations and station owners, government officials also regulate the growing number of community-based radio stations through the National Broadcast Commission, a quasi-independent regulatory body.

Radio empowers people

Radio has become an instrument of reform in countries plagued by corruption of government officials, Abi Wright of the CPJ said. In the Philippines, where 87 percent of the population reported listening to news on the radio, listeners believe that outspoken commentators give voice to their concerns.

The level of trust in the government is low, police dont work, and people are poor, Weng Carranza-Paraan, a member of the journalists union, said. Radio makes people feel empowered.


Sources:

Committee to Protect Journalists. (09 November 2005). In Thailand, criminal charges threaten community radio stations. Retrieved 09 July 2006 from <http://www.cpj.org/news/2005/Thai09nov05na.html>.

Committee to Protect Journalists. (2005). Cases 2005: Asia. Retrieved 09 July 2006 from <http://www.cpj.org/cases05/asia_cases05/phil.html>.

International Federation of Journalists. (05 July 2006). Community radio station set alight and staff members attacked in Philippines. Retrieved 09 July 2006 from <http://www.ifj.org/default.asp?Index=4028&Language=EN>.

Pacific Media Watch. (05 July 2006). Philippines: Armed men torch a community radio. Retrieved 09 July 2006 from
<http://www.scoop.co.nz/stories/WO0607/S00097.htm>.

Wright, A. (2005). As radio grows powerful, challenges emerge. Retrieved 09 July 2006 from <http://www.cpj.org/attacks05/asia05/asia05.html>.

World Association of Community Radio Broadcasters. (06 July 2006). AMARC deplores the burning down of Community Radio Station dwRC 90.1 FM Radyo Cagayano in the Philippines. Retrieved 06 July 2006 from <http://www.asiapacific.amarc.org/>.