Philippines: Broadcaster murdered in targeted shooting
Erwin Labitad Segovia gunned down on his way home
Authorities in the Philippines have been urged to intensify their efforts to protect journalists following the death of Erwin Labitad Segovia after his local radio show.
The broadcaster for Radio WOW FM in the Philippines’ southern province of Surigao del Sur, was gunned down in the street on his way home on 21 July after recording his morning radio show.
According to police reports, the journalist was shot in the head by a single assailant in Bislig City and was killed immediately.
On his show Segovia covered local governance and social-political issues in the region.
Segovia is the second journalist to be killed in the Philippines in 2025 and the fifth journalist to be killed for their work since Ferdinand Marcos Jr. took office in June 2022, according to the National Union of Journalists of the Philippines (NUJP).
The killing follows the murder of journalist Juan ‘Johnny’ Dayang on April 29, when an unknown gunman fired into his home in Aklan province, killing him instantly.
The NUJ strongly condemns the attacks and stands in solidarity with the NUJP, which said:
“The killing of Erwin Labitad Segovia follows a grim pattern that reflects the long-standing impunity that clouds the practice of journalism in the Philippines. If the killing is determined to be connected to his work, he would be counted as the fifth journalist murdered in the line of duty under the Marcos Jr. administration.”
IFJ General Secretary Anthony Bellanger said:
“The IFJ strongly condemns the murder of journalist Erwin Labitad Segovia and calls on the Marcos administration to take urgent and decisive action to safeguard all media workers in the Philippines, who continue to face violent attacks, threats, and intimidation for their reporting. The longstanding culture of impunity for crimes against journalists in the country must not be allowed to continue, and those responsible must be brought swiftly to justice.”
Legal Disclaimer:
EIN Presswire provides this news content "as is" without warranty of any kind. We do not accept any responsibility or liability for the accuracy, content, images, videos, licenses, completeness, legality, or reliability of the information contained in this article. If you have any complaints or copyright issues related to this article, kindly contact the author above.
