Who killed Bradley Will?

In 2006 U.S. freelance journalist Bradley Will was killed along with two others while covering massive unrest in the Mexican state of Oaxaca. Since then it’s unknown who shot him and the Mexican government has been accused of mishandling of his case.

Yesterday Mexican authorities due to a lack of evidence released the man suspected of Will’s death. Juan Manuel Martinez- a protestor and member of the Popular Assembly of Oaxaca Peoples (APPO)- claimed that he was a “political prisoner” after having spent sixteen months behind bars. Moreover, human rights groups and Will’s family have argued that Martinez was innocent and a scapegoat. “This was a distraction,” said Will’s mother to the New York Times while Reporters Without Borders accused authorities of framing Martinez:

The Will family lawyer, Miguel Ángel de los Santos, told Reporters Without Borders: “We are now waiting for the investigation to resume, but this time in an objective manner.” De los Santos never thought Martínez had anything to do with Will’s murder and nor did Reporters Without Borders. Martínez was scapegoat. To protect the governor’s bodyguards, the Oaxaca authorities used the local judicial authorities to try to pin the murder on the APPO.

This episode has highlighted the incompetence or complicity of both the local and federal authorities at a time when press freedom is seriously threatened in Mexico, now the hemisphere’s most dangerous country for journalists. A recent study by Article 19 and the National Centre for Social Communication (Cencos), a Mexican NGO, blamed 65 per cent of the attacks on the press on the authorities, and only 6.15 per cent on organised crime.

The Oaxaca attorney general’s office has yet to bring charges against officials or police possibly involved in the death of Will. Last year, the Mexican Supreme Court in a non-binding ruling signaled Martinez as the lone gunman.

In the end the question still remains over who killed Bradley Will? One clue could be found via the Not Safe For Work video shot by Will as he was killed. Judge for yourself:

Online Sources- Reporters Without Borders, LAHT, YouTube, Canadian Press, The Latin Americanist

Attorney for Bradley Will claims harassment

The attorney for slain journalist Bradley Will claimed that he has endured harassment from Mexican authorities.

Miguel Angel de los Santos said that he has faced “intimidation” due to his criticism of the investigation of Will’s death. De los Santos said that he had been called to the Attorney General's Office several times after being accused of leaking material to the press yet he hasn’t been charged with any crime.

The 36-year-old Will was killed in 2006 while covering unrest in the Mexican state of Oaxaca. It was initially reportedly that he was shot by “plainclothes paramilitaries” though his family doubts that assessment:

In September, the Mexican National Human Rights Commission ruled that state and federal police failed to interview witnesses, collect relevant evidence or complete an autopsy when investigating the shooting. It also urged prosecutors to re-examine their findings that Will was shot by an anti-government protester. Will's family believes pro-government forces were behind his death, AP reports.

Image- NYC Indymedia
Online Sources – Journalism in the Americas, The Latin Americanist, WTOP, Gothamist

Daily headlines: March 26, 2007

* Will Uruguay request the extradition of former U.S. Secretary of State Henry Kissinger?

* Relatives of slain journalist Bradley Will suspect Mexican officials were behind his death last October in Oaxaca.

* Chileans are rediscovering herbal medicine from the indigenous Mapuche people, according to Reuters.

* First it was George W. Bush, now it’s Canadian Prime Minister Stephen Harper who will be touring Latin America.

* Where in the world is Che Guevara? According to an ex-CIA agent it isn’t at his supposed burial site in Cuba.

Links- UPI, Prensa Latina, The Latin Americanist, CTV.ca, Washington Post, WNBC

Image- NNDB.com