Radio journalist gunned down, full investigation needed

Radio Guadalajara director José Naudín Gómez was murdered in Buga, in the western department of Valle del Cauca, on 29 July, 2013. He was shot in front of passers-by as he was about to enter the radio station, located near the city’s law courts. Reporters Without Borders urges the authorities to consider all hypotheses, including the possibility that the murder was linked to the victim’s work as a journalist. Investigators too often rule this out from the start. In this case, the authorities lost no time in saying that the motive for Gómez’s murder was personal. “It is almost impossible to determine in less than 12 hours whether or not Gómez’s murder was linked to his journalistic work,” Reporters Without Borders said. “The investigation must be conducted thoroughly and impartially.” A businessman who started a second, parallel career as a radio journalist a few years ago, Gómez hosted a morning programme in which members of the public were able to express their views and criticisms. Although he had apparently not received any threats, robbery can be ruled out as a motive because the gunman took nothing from his victim. And Gómez’s son insists that his father’s business activities were completely legal. “He supported justice and equality,” the son told Reporters Without Borders. “Drug trafficking was one of the last subjects my father covered in his programme. He was against it and said he appreciated police efforts to combat it.”