Geneva.- Horrified by the growing number of journalists killed since the beginning of this year adding up to 90 journalists in 33 countries, the Press Emblem Campaign (PEC) sends an urgent call to all concerned parties stating the facts that despite efforts to downsize the number of victims among journalists, this year’s tally shows an worrying increase of 25 percent over the number killed last year during the same reporting period (72 journalists).

During the past 3 months 31 journalists were killed. PEC Secretary-General Blaise Lempen notes with assertion that this is a failure, there is no progress, and the situation instead is deteriorating.

Lempen called upon the media associations worldwide to become more active and that governments act in firmness to prevent crimes against journalists and fight against impunity. He stressed that it is becoming essential to launch the process concerning an international convention to protect journalists to strengthen existing laws.

According to the PEC Mexico remains the most dangerous country where 13 journalists were killed in the ongoing battles between the army and the drug cartels in 9 months; it is followed by Honduras where 9 journalists lost their lives, then Pakistan where another 9 journalists were killed.

Regionally, Latin America is the venue for the highest casualties among journalists because of the killing of 30 journalists in 9 months.

Lempen stressed that existing mechanisms for bringing the perpetrators of those crimes to trial has so far failed.

PEC President Hedayat Abdel Nabi notes with satisfaction that the Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR) in its report to the Human Rights Council’s 15th session (A/HRC/15/54), has highlighted the importance of the protection of journalists referring to the panel discussion on 4 June 2010 on the Protection of Journalists in Armed Conflict.

Hence, Abdel Nabi noted that the horrifying figures as well as the escalating nature of killings require an added attention from the international community to the global problem of the protection of journalists. Hence, the PEC calls upon the Human Rights Council to seize this matter urgently and to find room to have a follow-up to the 4th June panel before the end of this year.