US embassy cable - 05PARIS6047

UNCLAS PARIS 006047 
 
SIPDIS 
 
FROM USMISSION UNESCO PARIS 
 
STATE FOR IO/UNESCO (COWLEY), IO/PPD (WILBUR) 
 
E.O. 12958: N/A 
TAGS: PREL, PHUM, ETRD, SCUL, KPAO, UNESCO, EUN 
SUBJECT:  UNESCO:  DG DEPLORES KILLING OF IRAQI 
REUTERS STAFF 
 
 
1.  SUMMARY:  On August 31, the UNESCO Director 
General, Koichiro Matsuura, issued a statement that 
deplored the killing of a Reuters sound engineer by 
U.S. forces in Iraq on August 28, 2005.  The 
statement, which UNESCO issued after the UN press 
office asked them to respond, did not directly 
implicate U.S. forces.  UNESCO is the only UN 
agency with a mandate to defend press freedom. 
UNESCO Secretariat staff routinely works with media 
watchdog NGOs to determine if a journalist was 
killed while practicing his profession and then 
issues statements as part of its commitment to 
promoting media freedom worldwide.  END SUMMARY. 
 
2.  BEGIN TEXT OF DG STATEMENT 
 
Director-General deplores killing in Iraq of 
Reuters sound engineer Waleed Khaled 
August 31, 2005 
 
The Director-General of UNESCO, Koichiro Matsuura 
today deplored the killing of Reuters sound 
engineer Waleed Khaled, in Baghdad on August 28, 
and the injuries inflicted on his colleague Haider 
Kadhem.  He called on all the forces present in the 
country to exercise vigilance to protect 
journalists in the exercise of their profession. 
 
"I deplore the killing of Waleed Khaled and the 
injuries inflicted on his colleague, cameraman 
Haider Kadhem," the Director-General said. "Despite 
the tense security situation in Iraq, it is 
paramount that all those willing to help establish 
democracy in Iraq be mindful of the right of the 
media to exercise their profession freely. I trust 
that the ongoing U.S. investigation will explain 
the circumstances of events fully and pave the way 
for improvements in the future. This is essential 
as the ability of the press to report freely on the 
situation in Iraq plays a key role in the future 
success of the democratic reconstruction of the 
country," Mr. Matsuura added. 
 
Both Mr. Khaled and Mr. Kadhem, Iraqi nationals 
working for the news agency Reuters, were sent to 
report on an incident in the Hay al-Adil district 
of Baghdad. 
 
END TEXT OF DG STATEMENT 
 
3.  COMMENT:  Mission notes that Matsuura's 
statement followed one from the UN Secretary 
General's spokesperson which condemned the general 
killing of journalists trying to do their work. 
Mission observes that UNESCO did not specifically 
implicate the United States in its statement, 
though most media NGOs that work closely with 
UNESCO issued tough statements that did.  Moreover, 
senior UNESCO Secretariat staff did not raise the 
issue in meetings with U.S. counterparts during the 
week of the press release. 
 
Oliver