Director-General condemns killing of journalists Andrés Eloy Nieves Zacarías and José Carmelo Bislick in Venezuela

The Director-General, of UNESCO, Audrey Azoulay, has called on the Venezuelan authorities to investigate the killings of journalists José Carmelo Bislick on 18 August in the town of Güiria, and of Andrés Eloy Nieves Zacarías on 21 August in the city of Cabimas.

The body of José Carmelo Bislick, host of a programme on radio station Omega 94.1 where he recently denounced crime and corruption, was found on the side of a road in Güiria. Bislick, who was also a teacher, had been abducted from his home the previous evening.

Andrés Eloy Nieves Zacarías, a reporter for La Guacamaya TV, died during a raid by members of the Venezuelan police on the premises of the local broadcaster. The son of the Director of La Guacamaya TV was also killed in the raid on the Director’s family home where the television studio was located.

UNESCO promotes the safety of journalists through global awareness-raising, capacity building and a range of actions, notably in the framework of the UN Plan of Action on the Safety of Journalists and the Issue of Impunity.

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• See also: UNESCO observatory of killed journalists
• Media contact: Guilherme Canela De Souza Godoi, g.godoi@unesco.org