Continuing support urged for three Romanians and their guide, a month after capture

One month after the abduction of three Romanian journalists and their guide in Iraq, Reporters Without Borders and its Romanian partner organization, the Media Monitoring Agency (MMA), today hailed the widespread expressions of support for these hostages that are taking shape and must continue in Europe and throughout the world. "The Romanian government, media and public must continue to work together and form a common front in the face of this unbearable situation," the two organizations said. "Everything must be done in Romania and elsewhere so that Marie-Jeanne Ion, Sorin Dumitru Miscoci, Eduard Ovidiu Ohanesian and Mohamed Munaf can return home safely as soon possible." They added: "We also urge everyone to show moderation. It is counter-productive to fuel controversy and put forward sterile hypotheses. This is not the moment for settling scores. A sustained campaign must continue. What counts is the evidence that the four hostages are still alive, and the fact that the Romanian government has established contact with the kidnappers, which is essential." The MMA will hold a news conference tomorrow in Bucharest about the solidarity campaign and the latest developments. It will call on Romanian TV stations to display a special logo with photos of the four hostages for 24 hours on 28 April, when they will have been held for exactly one month. World Press Freedom Day on 3 May will be dedicated to them in Romania. Ion, 32, a reporter with the Bucharest-based television station Prima TV, Miscoci, 30, a Prima TV cameraman, and Ohanesian, 37, a reporter with the privately-owned daily newspaper Romania Libera, were kidnapped with their guide, Munaf, on 28 March, five days after arriving in Iraq. On the evening of 30 March, the Qatar-based satellite TV news station Al-Jazeera broadcast a very short video showing the three journalists alive. A second, poor-quality video of the four hostages was broadcast by Al-Jazeera on 22 April. It showed the journalists handcuffed, haggard, barefoot and with guns pointed at their heads. Their abductors, who called themselves "The Brigade of Mouadh Ibn Jabal," said they would kill the hostages if the Romanian government did not withdraw its troops from Iraq within four days.