Italy: Arson Attack On Car Of Journalist Rossella Pucio – CFWIJ Calls For Thorough Investigation
Location: Italy, Palermo
Date: April 3, 2023
Photo Credit: ANSA
Unknown man sets fire to car of freelance journalist Rossella Puccio. Latest in a series of abuse against the reporter. The Coalition For Women In Journalism demands a thorough investigation, the perpetrator must be identified and the journalist protected.
CCTV footage shows an unidentified man pouring liquid over journalist Rossella Puccio’s car before setting it on fire on April 3rd, 2023. The fire destroyed the vehicle. Police have opened a criminal investigation.
Local, national, and international press freedom and journalist organizations have condemned the attack.
Series of attacks on Puccio
In 2020, Puccio was violently assaulted by a group of people when reporting on police clearing a tent city on Barcarello beach in Palermo. She was kicked, punched, and insulted. Police eventually intervened.
Puccio recalls asking a couple for help while she was under attack. They refused and watched as she “was dragged by the hair and slammed to the ground, again and slapped in the face.”
Police identified seven attackers. They have been indicted for a trial to commence in May.
Puccio’s car was also vandalized in 2013. Her car tires were slashed. No one was arrested or charged for the incident.
It is unclear whether these series of attacks are connected.
Puccio is a freelance journalist based in Palermo. She collaborates with several publications, including Quotidiano di Sicilia. She writes a culture blog for Palermo Today.
“Aggressions like those I have suffered have a profound impact on us (journalists), on our words,” wrote Puccio. “Defending the freedom of the press, the right to report, also means taking responsibility for the wounds not only physical but psychological and emotional that a journalist suffers in the practice of his profession.”
The Coalition For Women In Journalism is deeply concerned about the targeting of Rossella Puccio. As a freelance journalist, she lacks the protection and support of an employer. We stand in solidarity with Puccio and demand that police investigate this incident, identify the attacker, and protect the journalist.
The Coalition For Women In Journalism is a global organization of support for women journalists. The CFWIJ pioneered mentorship for mid-career women journalists across several countries around the world and is the first organization to focus on the status of free press for women journalists. We thoroughly document cases of any form of abuse against women in any part of the globe. Our system of individuals and organizations brings together the experience and mentorship necessary to help female career journalists navigate the industry. Our goal is to help develop a strong mechanism where women journalists can work safely and thrive.
If you have been harassed or abused in any way, and please report the incident by using the following form.