A special enquiry by the International News Safety Institute (INSI), chaired by BBC Global News Director Richard Sambrook, reveals that 1,000 news media personnel around the world have been killed trying to report the news during the past ten years - almost two deaths per week.

"The figures show that killing a journalist is virtually risk free," said Sambrook. "Nine out of ten murderers in the past decade have never been prosecuted. This encourages more of the same. This is the most shocking fact at the heart of the inquiry.

"Ongoing impunity for the killers of journalists, who put themselves in harm's way to keep world society informed, shames not only the governments who are responsible for their own lack of action but also the democracies that stand aside in silence. Following this inquiry, the most comprehensive ever in its field, they can no longer plead ignorance of the scale and nature of the problem."

In two-thirds of cases the killers were not even identified, and probably never will be

The survey found that of the news media personnel who have died in the past ten years: only one in four journalists died in war or armed conflicts; at least 657 men and women were murdered in peacetime - reporting the news in their own countries; and in two-thirds of cases the killers were not even identified, and probably never will be.

The report's recommendations include:

Governments to pledge to live up to their responsibilities under UN Security Council Resolution 1738, which condemns attacks on journalists and other news professionals by putting an end to such practices;

Governments to pledge to respect the letter and spirit of the Resolution and ensure an end to impunity for those who harm
journalists by prosecuting those responsible for serious violations;

International development institutions, like the International Monetary Fund (IMF) and the World Bank, should include a country's record on the murder of journalists when assessing the granting of aid;

Individual governments must ensure crimes against journalists are investigated thoroughly and all perpetrators prosecuted;
all militaries should recognise the right of news media personnel to be present in the battle space;

Every military and national security entity should hold full
and open inquiries whenever a member of the news media is killed in an incident involving its personnel;

All news organisations should provide proper safety training (including those covering hostile environments) and equipment for staff.


"On World Press Freedom Day this May, we should remind the critics - but also ourselves - of the sacrifices represented by the 1,700 journalists whose names are inscribed on the Freedom Forum's memorial in Arlington, Virginia," said Sir Harold Evans in the foreword of the report.

"We should remember the common thread among the men and women of such different backgrounds, from such different cultures, who have died for
journalism.

"What was common among the desperate circumstances of their deaths? Their aspiration. They believed in the purpose of journalism. They didn't, most of them, expect to die for it."