Malian Journalists Pay Tribute to Murdered French Colleagues
Hundreds of Malian reporters marched through the capital Bamako on Monday in silent tribute to two French journalists shot dead by suspected terrorists in the country's north.
A management team from Radio France Internationale (RFI), where Ghislaine Dupont and Claude Verlon had worked for many years, took part in the march as they made preparations for the repatriation of their colleagues' bodies.
"We organized this silent march to say 'never again' -- the perpetrators of this crime must be punished," said Makan Kone, president of the capital's media association, the Bamako Press House.
Zao Ahmed Bamba, editor of the weekly Le Coq, said he was "shocked" by the deaths of "defenders of Africa".
"These deaths are a great loss to Africa," he added, urging the authorities to find out exactly what had led to the killings.
Some journalists carried signs, one of which read: "No one will succeed in killing the conscience of the world."
Dupont, 57, and Verlon, 55, were shot dead just hours after being abducted on Saturday in Kidal, a stronghold of Mali's Tuareg rebellion 1,500 kilometers (930 miles) northeast of Bamako.
Their bodies were transferred to Bamako on Sunday and are due to be flown to Paris late on Monday.
Source: Agence France Presse
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