FRANCE

(NO COUNTRY SUMMARY)

June 17

Nicolas Giudici, Nice-Matin and Corse-Matin
KILLED (motive unconfirmed)

Giudici's body was found in some bushes on the edge of a dirt track near the village of Piedriggio in northern Corsica on the morning of June 17. Giudici, 52, had been shot three times, in the left arm, chest and right hip, according to local reports. His torched car was found 50 kilometers (30 miles) away at the bottom of a ravine near the town of Cervione.

Guidici frequently covered the separatist movement on the French island of Corsica as a reporter for the regional weekly Nice-Matin and the daily Corse-Matin. He was also the author of Le Crépuscule des Corses (Twilight of the Corsicans), a critical assessment of Corsican society that was published in 1997.

Local police launched an investigation into Giudici's murder, according to The Associated Press, but by year's end the inquiry was virtually at a standstill. Several possible motives, related both to Guidici's private life and his profession, were listed in local newspapers—including a possible connection to a local theft of rare paintings that concerned Guidici, who was a collector.

Political and criminal violence are part of life in Corsica. But Guidici's colleagues were unaware of any politically sensitive work that might have led to his murder.