‘Red-tagging’ of journalists looms over Philippine elections
As Philippine presidential candidates wind up their campaigns before the May 9 election, journalists in the country are demanding that whoever succeeds President Rodrigo Duterte put an end to “red tagging” – the labeling of individuals as rebels or supporters of the communist insurgency – that helped put their colleague Frenchiemae Cumpio behind bars. Cumpio, the 23-year-old executive director…
Philippine anti-communist task force threatens Rappler with legal action
Bangkok, February 8, 2022 – Philippine authorities must drop their legal threats against the independent news outlet Rappler and allow the press to work without fear of legal harassment, the Committee to Protect Journalists said Tuesday. On Saturday, February 5, Lorraine Marie T. Badoy, a spokesperson for the National Task Force to End Local Communist…
Three Philippine media outlets face latest in a string of cyberattacks
Three Philippine news websites, ABS-CBN News, Rappler, and Vera Files, publicized separate distributed denial-of-service (DDoS) attacks between December 11 and 23, 2021. The attacks flood websites with requests to prevent them from functioning, and the sites were periodically forced offline by huge spikes in traffic coinciding with political news coverage. All three sites have been…
#HoldTheLine Coalition calls for criminal tax charge to be dropped as Maria Ressa returns to court
The #HoldTheLine Coalition demands the Philippines authorities drop a barrage of bogus tax and foreign ownership cases against internationally celebrated journalist Maria Ressa and Rappler – the news organisation she founded. “The prosecution of baseless financial charges and cases represents an attempt to use tax law and foreign ownership regulations as another weapon to criminalise…
CPJ calls on Philippine authorities not to contest editor Maria Ressa’s cyber libel appeal
Bangkok, June 15, 2020 — Philippine authorities should not contest the appeal of journalists Maria Ressa and Reynaldo Santos, and should reform the country’s libel laws to ensure that members of the press do not face jail time for their work, the Committee to Protect Journalists said today. This morning, Branch 46 of the Manila…
Rappler editor Maria Ressa convicted of cyber libel by Philippines court
Bangkok, June 15, 2020 — In response to the guilty verdict in the cyber libel case against Rappler editor Maria Ressa in the Philippines, the Committee to Protect Journalists issued the following statement: “Today’s conviction and sentencing of Maria Ressa of up to six years in jail is an outrageous crime against press freedom,” said…
Rappler-CIA plot claim is attempt to cut funding, Philippine journalists say
First were the politically motivated state charges that funding provided to the news website Rappler by a U.S. philanthropic foundation represented a violation of constitutional provisions barring foreign control or ownership of Philippine media.
Philippine news and human rights organizations accused of ‘plot’ against Duterte
Washington, D.C., April 24, 2019 — The Committee to Protect Journalists today expressed concern over Philippines President Roderigo Duterte providing information to The Manila Times, a local daily, alleging that media and legal groups orchestrated a “plot” to discredit and oust him.