JOURNALISTS could be targets of election violence with the heat of the May polls in the air and the Presidential Task Force on Media Security (PTFoMS) is supporting suggestions to arm members of the press against threats.

“If pressed against the wall, we need to fight back because that’s the natural instinct of a person,” PTFoMS executive director Joel Egco said during the virtual launching of the Media Security Vanguards yesterday.

Read: ‘MEDIA SECURITY VANGUARDS’ TO PROTECT JOURNOS VS. POLL VIOLENCE

The New York-based Committee to Protect Journalists (CPJ) reported that the Philippines remains one of the deadliest countries for journalists in the world.

Egco said the PTFoMS had requested the Commission on Elections to exempt media workers from the gun ban imposed by the poll body during the election period.