MANILA, Philippines – The National Union of Journalists of the Philippines (NUJP) has established and strengthened regional safety offices for the safety and security of members of the media ahead of the midterm elections.
The NUJP said on Monday that the attacks against media practitioners are ‘unusually high’ during election period in the country.
From one safety unit in the National Capital Region, the NUJP has extended its reach to the rest of Luzon, Visayas, eastern and western Mindanao.
The group appointed a media safety officer in every regional office who will be on-call 24-7 and can be reached via the following hotline numbers:
Eastern Mindanao
Globe 09453503459
Smart 09398475242
Western Mindanao
Globe 09453503455
Smart 09398475177
Visayas
Globe 09453503456
Smart 09398475195
Luzon
Globe 09453513454
Smart 09398475174
NCR
Globe 09175155991
Smart 09398475329
One of the deadliest attacks against media in the country happened in 2009 in Mindanao.
About 99 attacks on members of the media, meanwhile, were recorded from July 2016 to October 2018 by the Freedom for Media Freedom for All.
Freedom for Media Freedom for All is composed of the Center for Media Freedom and Responsibility, Philippine Center for Investigative Journalism and NUJP. /gsg