JUNE 2005
Posted: July 21, 2005
Jose Jaime Espina, ABS-CBN
THREATENED
Espina, a contributor to the online news site ABS-CBN Interactive and chairman of the Correspondents, Broadcasters and Reporters Association-Action News Service, or COBRA-ANS, received threatening messages on his mobile phone in late June, according to local journalists.
The reporter, based in Bacolod City, provincial capital of Negros Occidental on the northwest coast of Negros, received the threats after an interview at a local radio station, Aksyon Radyo. In the interview, Espina had criticized military actions nationwide and cited the comments of a local military officer, the Visayan Daily Star reported.
The text messages stated that Espina’s family would be killed, and that he would have to report their deaths, according to local news reports. Espina was not sure who was responsible for the threats, but believed they were related to his journalism, according to the Manila-based Center for Media Freedom and Responsibility.
Espina and a local media group have filed complaints with the police.