Mexico City, June 18 (PL-RHC) -- Mexico reported that 102 journalists were killed since the year 2000, which makes the country one of the most dangerous to exercise this profession.

Carlos Lauria, senior coordinator of the Program of the Americas of the Committee for the Protection of Journalists, considered this data alarming and described as "severe" the level of impunity with which these crimes were committed.

Local news stated that in the current six year term-started on December 1, 2012- crimes against media professionals totaled 10, a downward trend when compared to the administration of Felipe Calderon (2006-2012), when the number was 71.

To this overall figure of deaths, the disappearance of 22 reporters since 2005 is added, and still there are no clues of their whereabouts.

According to the newspaper El Universal, homicides and disappearances have been reported in 23 of the 32 states of the country, although the highest incidence is concentrated in Chihuahua, Veracruz, Tamaulipas, Guerrero and Sinaloa with 62 murders, making 60.7 percent of the total.

Lauria, a recognized expert in the investigation of this phenomenon, warned that in Mexico there is a crisis of freedom of expression which endangers democracy.

He noted that in many regions, in addition to the disappearances and deaths, journalists and mass media face a climate of threat and intimidation, in a context of violence which makes it impossible to report on sensitive issues concerning the society.