Our Statement On Nana Peluca’s Murder

Location: Mexico, Acapulco
Date: February 5, 2019

Pamela Montenegro, also known as Nana Peluca and Pamika, was murdered in a targeted attack by two unidentified people at a restaurant owned by her family.

The 36-year-old journalist was known for her biting satire. She covered local politics in the Guerrero and Acapulco regions and had a reputation for going after politicians in the content she produced. She had a YouTube channel called El Sillón Tv, which she used to share her political opinions and interview public officials.

To make her videos, Pamela would take on a self-created character ‘La Nana Pelusa’, and would voice her opinions on the country’s politics and social life from her native city the port of Acapulco.

Pamela was also a member of the Club de Periodistas de Guerrero — a group of social media and blog reporters working to report political corruption and organised crime, as well as criminality in Guerrero, and particularly Acapulco.

Pamela had reportedly received threats from unknown sources in the past, and her murder is allegedly tied to a drug cartel. In 2016, she received death threats via narcomantas messages positioned in different parts of the port, it was reported that some of the messages accused her husband, Samuel Muñúzuri, to have connections with organised crime.

This is not the first time a journalist has been targeted in Mexico — the country has a terrible track record in terms of journalists’ safety. Mexico is one of the most dangerous places in the world for journalists, and we urge the authorities to take urgent action to find a resolution to this problem. It is unacceptable that journalists can be killed for this work in such high numbers.

Montenegro’s work will be remembered for its ability to discuss difficult subjects.

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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.

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Our website is WomenInJournalism.org and we can be reached at press@womeninjournalism.org

The CFWIJ strongly condemns the police brutality against journalists. We demand the immediate return of the press cards seized from the security forces. Policies to intimidate journalists should be abandoned, and journalism should be practiced under the criteria of freedom of the press.

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