UNESCO Director-General of UNESCO Irina Bokova has condemned the murder of a Nepalese media owner Arun Singhaniya, who was killed in Janakpur on Monday evening (March 1).  Recalling that this is the second such murder in three weeks, she also reiterated the concerns over the continuing threats facing journalists in Nepal.

Issuing a statement on Wednesday, she stressed that in Nepal, as elsewhere in the world, a pluralistic media served as a vital pillar for freedom of expression and also expressed her conviction that the Nepalese authorities would do everything possible to ensure that this crime did not go unpunished.

Arun Singhaniya was the chairman of Janakpur Today Publications, which publishes Janakpur Today, and operates Radio Today was shot dead by Several armed groups, which have claimed responsibility for the murder. Uma Singh, a journalist from the radio station was murdered 12 months ago