Pakistan
Pakistani journalist reflects on colleague's deathPosted Jun 14 2011
A Pakistani journalist protests against a killing of a Pakistani journalist Syed Saleem Shahzad, in Hyderabad, Pakistan on Wednesday, June 1, 2011. Hundreds are mourning a Pakistani journalist slain this week after he reported being threatened by intelligence agents. Syed Saleem Shahzad wrote about terrorism and security for the Asia Times Online and other publications. Police said the 40-year-old's body bore signs of torture when it was found Tuesday after he had been missing for two days. (AP Photo/Pervez Masih
Links
CJP's interactive world map of journalist deaths
http://www.cpj.org/killed/2010/
Pakistani journalist Umar Cheema reflects on the death of his colleague in The New York Times
http://www.nytimes.com/2011/06/12/opinion/12Cheema.html?_r=1
Umar Cheema spoke candidly about his life-threatening incident at the University of Missouri
http://www.columbiamissourian.com/stories/2011/04/21/umar-cheema/
In an opinion piece in The New York Times, Pakistani journalist Umar Cheema reflects on the torture and death of his colleague Syed Saleem Shahzad, an investigative reporter for Asia Times Online. Cheema experienced a life-threatening incident for doing his job, and writes about his reactions when he heard about Shahzad's death.
“I couldn’t sleep the night that Saleem’s death was confirmed. The fact that he was tortured sent me back to a chilly night last September, when I was abducted by government agents. During Saleem’s funeral service, a thought kept haunting me: 'It could have been me.'”
Like Shahzad, Cheema wrote stories that exposed government corruption and criticized Pakistan's government. Cheema's attackers stripped him naked, beat him and tortured him for his investigative reporting. He was dropped 100 miles outside of Islamabad and told not to speak of the incident. He faced traumatizing psychological stress and worried about the safety of his family.
“Journalists are shot like stray dogs in Pakistan — easily killed because their assassins sit at the pinnacle of power,” Cheema writes in his piece.
Pakistan is ranked as one of the most dangerous countries for journalists. In 2010, more journalists died in Pakistan than any other in the world. As of June 14, five journalists have been killed in the country this year.