Mapping Where Journalists Disappear

August 30 marks the International Day of the Victims of Enforced Disappearances. Enforced disappearances are the arrest or abduction of a person by or on behalf of the state, followed by that same authorities’ refusal to acknowledge it. The move is used as a means to silence opposition and to spread terror.

The following chart looks specifically at the number of media workers that have disappeared over the past two decades. According to the Reporters Without Borders (RSF) database, at least 165 media workers have disappeared since the year 2000. This includes those who are victims of enforced disappearance as well as those who have disappeared at the hands of non-state related groups.

Syria is the country from which the highest number of media professionals have disappeared, counting 33 in total. While the majority of these (22) disappeared between 2011 and 2013, five people were recorded as having disappeared as recently as 2019.

Mexico ranks as the country with the second highest number of media professionals who have disappeared worldwide. Of the 27 listed as disappearer, 25 of them are listed as “ongoing” cases. According to RSF, Mexico has become the deadliest place for journalists in the world, with four media professionals having been killed in 2023 so far.