In the Philippines, the Court of Appeals has ruled in favor of news agency Rappler in their fight against a 2018 shutdown order. The decision, made public on Friday, is seen as a legal victory for journalists who had reported critically on former President Rodrigo Duterte’s crackdown on illegal drugs and human rights record. The court ordered the Securities and Exchange Commission to reinstate Rappler’s certificates of incorporation, founded by Maria Ressa, a 2021 Nobel Peace Prize co-winner, in a ruling issued on July 23.
Despite the closure order, Rappler has continued its operations during the legal battle. The news agency was accused of violating a constitutional ban on foreign investments in local media by receiving funds in 2015 through Philippine depository receipts from the Omidyar Network, a philanthropic organization supported by eBay founder Pierre Omidyar. The government alleged that this funding gave Omidyar some level of control over Rappler. However, Rappler denied that Omidyar exercised any control and later donated the financial receipts to its employees.
The court deemed the 2018 shutdown order, one of several legal challenges faced by Ressa and Rappler under Duterte’s administration, as having been made with “grave abuse of discretion” and in violation of established procedures and legal guidelines.
While Duterte and other officials have maintained that the legal actions against Ressa and Rappler, including tax-related lawsuits, were not related to press freedom but rather part of standard judicial processes, the president was known for openly criticizing journalists and media outlets that scrutinized his anti-drug campaign. This included ABS-CBN, the country’s largest TV network, which was forced to shut down in 2020 after lawmakers allied with Duterte declined to renew its license.
The Philippines has a reputation as one of the most perilous places for journalists worldwide. In 2009, a powerful political clan and their associates carried out a mass shooting in southern Maguindanao province, resulting in the deaths of 58 individuals, including 32 media workers. This incident, the deadliest attack on journalists in recent history, highlighted the dangers faced by media personnel in the country. Factors such as the proliferation of unregistered firearms, private armies controlled by influential clans, and inadequate law enforcement in rural areas contribute to the security risks encountered by journalists in the economically disadvantaged Southeast Asian nation.
