Paris, August 29 (No.2001-89) - UNESCO Director-General Koichiro Matsuura today expressed his grave concern at the murder of Brazilian journalist Mario Coelho de Almeida Filho.

Mr. Matsuura said: “I am extremely concerned that another journalist has been murdered. This shows the need for all Member States to take the necessary measures to not only prevent such crimes, but also to investigate them and punish the perpetrators.”

Mr. Coelho, the administrative editor and publisher of A Verdade, a six-page newspaper published three times a month in the town of Magé in Rio de Janeiro State, was shot outside his house on August 16, the day before he was to testify in a criminal defamation suit brought against him by the mayor of Magé and her husband.

Although the identity of Mr. Coelho’s killers and the motive are still unknown, his colleagues believe that the murder was linked to his work. Mr. Coelho and his newspaper were renowned for investigative reporting on corruption.

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