VICE President Maria Leonor “Leni” Robredo and several lawmakers have condemned the conviction of Rappler executive editor Maria Ressa and former researcher-writer Reynaldo Santos Jr., saying it is a government tactic to silence critics and dissenters.
In a statement, Robredo warned that the conviction of Ressa and Santos is a threat to every Filipino’s freedom.
“A threat to the freedom of even a single Filipino is a threat to all of our freedoms. If the law and our government institutions can be brought to bear upon Ms. Ressa, then we should be wary of what this means to the freedoms of ordinary citizens,” Robredo said.
“We must remember that this is merely the latest instance of law being utilized to muzzle our free press. Silencing, harassing, and weaponizing law against the media sends a clear message to every dissenting voice: keep quiet or you are next,” she added.
Senator Francis “Kiko” Pangilinan said it would have been more surprising had Ressa and Santos been acquitted as the government has been silencing its critics for three years now.
“If they think this conviction and the effort to stifle dissent will silence those critical of this Administration then I say to them, No way,” Pangilinan said.
“Unless we stand up, speak out. and vigorously oppose the tyranny in our midst, their conviction will not be the last,” he added.
For detained Senator Leila de Lima, the conviction of Ressa and Santos is “another demonstration of the Duterte government’s weaponization of (the) law.”
De Lima likened the government’s move to her arrest in 2017.
“Jailing me for over three years now is only one of the thousand sinister ways they are causing fear in the hearts of Filipinos who fight for what is just and right,” she said in a separate statement.
The senator is currently detained at the Philippine National Police (PNP) Custodial Center in Camp Crame for alleged involvement in the illegal drug trade in the New Bilibid Prison when she was Justice secretary from 2010 to 2015.
“They will not stop at going after critics and human rights defenders. To them, journalists too must be silenced. But we will not allow it,” De Lima said.
Senator Risa Hontiveros also slammed the conviction of Ressa and Santos, saying the government is weaponizing the law “against a journalist doing unbiased reporting on extrajudicial killings in the country.”
"First, they came for the journalists. We don't know what happened after that. The attacks on the free press and journalists are a danger to our democracy and to us Filipinos,” Hontiveros warned.
“Today's conviction sends a chilling message to all: kung kritiko ka, pwede kang ipasara at pwede kang patahimikin,” she said.
“I urge everyone to speak out. Dumarami tayo. We are complicit if we are silent. Takot sila, kaya nila tayo pinapatahimik,” she added.
For Albay 1st District Representative Edcel Lagman, Ressa and Santos’ conviction is “a tragic commentary on the judiciary’s succumbing to the repressive campaign of the Executive.”
Lagman said Ressa is prosecuted for her critical advocacy of the Duterte administration’s “flawed policies.”
“Now the cruel price of free speech and press freedom is impending incarceration. What would be imprisoned with Ressa are critical reportage and legitimate dissent even as it would hold hostage press freedom,” the lawmaker said.
ACT Teachers Representative France Castro likewise condemned the conviction saying the move was the administration’s way of attacking freedom of speech.
“This guilty verdict of Ressa sends a chilling effect to journalists and a clear message from the Duterte administration to the people that they will use all their powers to persecute and silence those who continue to voice out criticisms against his administration,” Castro said.
She warned that even ordinary Filipinos who air their concerns on social media may be the next “victims of this administration’s attempt to silence all critics, dissenters, and anyone who is not satisfied with the policies of the Duterte administration.”
For House Deputy Minority Leader and Bayan Muna Representative Carlos Zarate, the conviction is "another nail on the press freedom coffin."
“This decision is another nail on the press freedom coffin and is very dangerous not just for journalists but for everybody who uses social media platforms like Facebook, Instagram and Twitter,” Zarate said.
“This verdict can be used to haul into court and jail anyone who exposes wrongdoing in government,” he added.
The Manila Regional Trial Court Branch 46 found Ressa and Santos guilty of cyber libel for an article that online news site Rappler published in 2012 and updated in 2014.
Ressa and Santos were sentenced to six months and one day to six years prison time, but they were allowed to post bail.
The court also ruled that they must pay a total of P400,000 in damages to businessman Wilfredo Keng. (SunStar Philippines)