Gauri Lankesh murder: UNESCO condemns journalist's death, calls it an attack on freedom of expression

Paris: United Nations’ culture body UNESCO on Thursday deplored the killing this week of Indian journalist and activist Gauri Lankesh, calling it “an attack on the fundamental right to freedom of expression” and urging the killers be brought to justice. [caption id=“attachment_4014989” align=“alignleft” width=“380”] File image of Gauri Lankesh. PTI[/caption] “I condemn the murder of Gauri Lankesh,” UNESCO director general Irina Bokova said in a statement. “Any attack on the media is an attack on the fundamental right to freedom of expression of each member of society,” she added. Lankesh, 55, the editor and publisher of the Gauri Lankesh Patrike, a Kannada-language weekly tabloid, and an outspoken critic of Hindu right-wing extremism, was shot dead on Monday night outside her home in Bengaluru. “I urge the Indian authorities to ensure that the perpetrators are brought to justice and this crime is punished,” said Bokova. The US has also condemned the murder as an attack on free expression.