A/HRC/19/55 writing, 90 responses had been received, of which 80 could be considered substantive responses, which indicates a response rate of less than 40 per cent. Of the 206 communications sent, 56 communications were sent to the Middle East and North Africa region (27 per cent), 43 communications were sent to the Asia Pacific region (20.8 per cent), 39 communications were sent to the African region (18.9 per cent), 36 communications were sent to the Americas (17.4 per cent) and 32 communications were sent to Europe and Central Asia (15.5 per cent). 36. Based on the allegations received during the reporting period, the mandate holder sent communications on violations against journalists and media workers who tried to exercise their right to freedom of opinion and expression, for instance, through the publication of letters on the national health system; the use of photojournalism as a means to express their opinions; or their participation in protests and conferences. 37. Journalists and media workers have been targeted because of their reports on human rights violations or because they were witnesses to human rights violations themselves. The mandate holder has received information on investigative journalists and media workers targeted for their research on topics such as crime, corruption, trafficking, torture, impunity, environmental issues and forced evictions. Often, journalists and media workers have been arrested and detained for monitoring demonstrations. Other journalists and media workers were targeted for participating in non-governmental organizations (NGOs), their democratic activism or working and advocating for the rights of certain groups of people, such as minorities. 38. According to the information received by the mandate holder, there are certain contexts in which journalists and media workers seem to be more exposed to violations, such as armed conflicts (Colombia, Somalia); situations of unrest in connection with a coup d’état (Honduras); and during and in the aftermath of elections (Belarus, Ethiopia, Islamic Republic of Iran, Tunisia). Other journalists and media workers who suffered violations and abuses were trying to promote and defend human rights in the context of peacebuilding in post-conflict societies (Democratic Republic of Congo and Iraq). 39. Journalists and media workers have also been attacked when their activities include investigations of abuses by powerful non-State actors, such as organized crime (Italy, Mexico) and oil interest groups (Nigeria). Others have also been targeted as a consequence of monitoring preparations for landmark events, such as the Olympic Games (China). 40. According to the information received by the mandate holder during the reporting period, journalists and media workers active on human rights issues were subject to killings, attacks, disappearance, abduction, torture and ill-treatment. Of the 206 communications sent, 24 cases referred to killings (Americas 10, Europe and Central Asia 5, Middle East and North Africa 3, Africa 3, Asia 4) and 33 to physical attacks, including attempted killings, excessive use of force during demonstrations and physical abuse (Asia Pacific 10, Americas 6, Europe and Central Asia 6, Middle East and North Africa 6, Africa 5). A number of communications dealt with journalists and media workers who were abducted or disappeared. 41. During the period, the mandate holder sent 21 communications with allegations of torture and ill-treatment of journalists and media workers acting as human rights defenders (Middle East and North Africa 9, Asia Pacific 6, Africa 5, the Americas 1). In some instances, torture not only implied physical abuse, but also included denial of medical treatment by the authorities. 42. Other journalists and media workers were subjected to arrest, detention and interrogation. During the period, 68 communications reported the use of arrest, often arbitrarily, as a tool to silence their voices (Middle East and North Africa 29, Africa 19, Asia Pacific 12, Europe and Central Asia 7, the Americas 1). Of these communications, 16 8