Karen Lema of Reuters speaks to a resident of Marawi City, among the hundreds who were allowed to briefly return to their homes for the first time since the Muslim-majority city was over-run by militants loyal to Islamic State in May 2017. After almost daily aerial bombardments and artillery fire, large parts of the picturesque, lakeside city have been devastated.
Karen Lema was appointed Reuters Philippines Bureau Chief in July.
In an announcement, Reuters said: “Karen joined Reuters in 2006 as a contractor before becoming a staff treasury correspondent in 2008. As acting bureau chief previously, Karen led the team during a period that saw the fallout from the $81 million Bangladesh Bank cyber heist and the meteoric rise of Rodrigo Duterte to the presidency in the 2016 election. Karen has also been central to the bureau’s coverage that won a Pulitzer Prize for its reporting on Duterte’s bloody war on drugs.”
FOCAP congratulates Karen on her promotion!
