RTC Branch 74 dismissed terrorism financing charges against 27 former and active Cernet members, ruling their alleged 2012 acts did not constitute a crime under the law in force at that time.
Pairing Judge Van Russel Inopiquez ruled the CPP-NPA lacked official domestic designation and statutory publication when prosecutors alleged the accused failed to prevent a 135,000-peso transfer to the group.
Cernet called the dismissal a victory against state harassment, while the accused announced plans to pursue criminal, administrative, and civil cases against the individuals and agencies involved in the prosecution.
THE Regional Trial Court (RTC) Branch 74 has dismissed a terrorism financing case against 27 former and active members of the Community Empowerment Resource Network (Cernet), ruling that the alleged acts did not constitute a crime under the law at the time they were committed.
In an order dated May 15, 2026, RTC Branch 74 Pairing Judge Van Russel Inopiquez said the case should be dismissed “on the ground for lack of statutory publication requirement and that the acts charged do not constitute a crime under the law in force at the time of their commission.”
Inopiquez, in his ruling, said the Communist Party of the Philippines-New People’s Army (CPP-NPA) had not yet been officially designated as a terrorist organization when Republic Act (RA) 10168, or the Terrorism Financing Prevention and Suppression Act of 2012, took effect in June 2012. He noted that Proclamation 374 declaring the CPP-NPA a terrorist organization was issued only in December 2017, while Anti-Terrorism Council Resolution 12 was released in December 2020.
Timeline
In May 2024, the Department of Justice filed charges against 27 Cernet directors and staff members for allegedly violating RA 10168. Prosecutors claimed the accused committed gross negligence by failing to prevent the transfer of P135,000 to the CPP-NPA in Dumaguete City in September 2012.
The offense carried a maximum penalty of reclusion perpetua and a fine of up to P1 million. Prosecutors initially recommended no bail, although the court later allowed it.
Cernet is a Cebu City-based network of humanitarian and development non-government organizations operating across the Visayas. The group supports marginalized communities through small project grants promoting economic, social and cultural rights.
Reasons behind the dismissal
In dismissing the case, Inopiquez stressed that Section 15 of RA 10168 requires the Department of Foreign Affairs or the Anti-Terrorism Council to officially publish the list of designated persons or groups before the designation can take legal effect in the Philippines.
“The law is crystal clear that the Department of Foreign Affairs shall publish the designation of the CPP-NPA as a terrorist organization. Official publication is a statutory requirement to bring the status of the ‘designation’ into legal existence,” part of the order read.
Inopiquez noted that while the United States, European Union and New Zealand had designated the CPP-NPA as a terrorist organization between 2002 and 2010, the Philippine government issued no official domestic designation until years later.
Due process issues raised
Inopiquez also rejected the prosecution’s argument that newspaper reports published in 2002 about foreign terrorist designations satisfied the publication requirement. It ruled that news articles do not constitute official publication under the law.
Citing jurisprudence, Inopiquez said laws and government issuances must first be officially published before they can be used as the basis for criminal penalties. Because no operative designation existed in September 2012, the court said a key element of the offense was absent.
Inopiquez also dismissed the prosecution’s claim that the defense motion was a prohibited second motion to quash. It ruled that under the Revised Rules of Criminal Procedure, the argument that the facts charged do not constitute an offense may be raised at any stage of trial.
Legal action
In a Facebook statement released Monday, May 18, Cernet described the dismissal as “a major victory for human rights defenders” and civil society groups facing alleged harassment and legal persecution by state forces, including the National Task Force to End Local Communist Armed Conflict.
The accused said they plan to pursue criminal, administrative and civil cases against the agencies and individuals involved in the prosecution.
“Those who orchestrated, enabled, and perpetuated these baseless accusations must be held accountable under the law,” said Oliver Gimenez, chairperson of the Cernet board of trustees and one of the accused.
Nancy Estolloso, another accused, said accountability should also apply to “public officials and State actors who abuse legal processes to persecute dissenters and development workers.”
Estrella Flores Catarata, also an accused, credited the ruling to support from human rights defenders, pro bono lawyers, embassies and international agencies. Civil society groups, however, said threats to civic space remain, citing pending measures such as the proposed “terror-grooming” bill filed by Sen. Ronald dela Rosa. / CDF
