Journalist who received death threats after uncovering local corruption found strangled in canal

Aziz Memon’s death has sparked outrage in a country where, too often, journalists are killed with impunity. Adam Withnall reports

An employee of a local television channel shows a picture of slain journalist Aziz Memon, in Hyderabad, Pakistan (AP)

A journalist in Pakistan has been found dead in a canal just months after he reported he was receiving death threats for his coverage of alleged corruption in local politics.

Aziz Memon’s body was recovered from a waterway in Mehrabpur village in the south-western Sindh province, with clear signs that he died from strangulation, hours after he went missing while travelling to cover a story on Sunday.

Memon worked as a reporter for the local Sindhi-language Kawish Television Network (KTN) and the Kawish newspaper. Police chief Mohammad Farooq said no one had immediately claimed responsibility for the abduction and killing, and that an investigation was under way.

But in a country where journalists are regularly attacked and sometimes killed with near-impunity, Memon’s death has provoked an outpouring of anger.

Shortly after news of his death emerged, Twitter users shared a video Memon filmed last year in which he said he was receiving threats for his coverage of a political rally.

Memon had reported that during a rally for politician Bilawal Bhutto Zardari, who heads the opposition Pakistan People’s Party, locals were paid bribes to turn up at the march and act like supporters of Mr Zardari.

The journalist’s brother, Abdul Hafeez, was among those pointing to the incident and the subsequent threats on Monday. The national newspaper Dawn reported that Memon had felt compelled to leave the province at the time, and that he stayed in Islamabad for his own safety.

The killing has been condemned by Pakistani politicians, journalists’ associations and international watchdogs. Mr Zardari was among those condemning the killing and calling for an investigation.

Steven Butler, Asia director for the Committee to Protect Journalists, told The Independent that the fact Memon had raised concerns and asked for protection prior to his death “makes it even more important that his murder be investigated swiftly to preserve evidence by an independent agency not subject to local political influence”.

The International Federation of Journalists (IFJ) and its affiliate, the Pakistan Federal Union of Journalists, also asked the government to investigate.

Anthony Bellanger, the IFJ’s general secretary, said the organisation “mourns the shocking death of journalist Aziz Memon” and criticised the police for not following through on the threats he had reported.

Later on Monday, journalists from various newspapers and TV stations held a peaceful protest in the southern city of Hyderabad, condemning the killing and demanding the arrest of those behind it. Hundreds attended Mr Memon’s funeral in his home town of Naushero Feroze.

Azhar Abbas, president of the Association of Electronic Media Editors and News Directors, said the media community was shocked at such a blatant act of violence and the continued attacks and killing of media personnel in Pakistan.

The CPJ’s “Global Impunity Index”, published in October, found that there had been 16 unsolved killings of journalists in Pakistan in the past decade.

“Pakistan has long been a dangerous place for reporters and the country has a terrible record prosecuting attacks against journalists,” Mr Butler said. “As a result, the murder of journalists is practically a risk-free crime in Pakistan. That needs to stop.”