The Philippines has introduced yet another law restricting freedom of speech, causing the Human Right Watch (HRW) to call for an appeal. The Cybercrime Prevention Act, which was signed into law by President Aquino earlier this September, drastically increases punishment for criminal libel, raising the minimum sentence twelve-fold, from six…
Category: Philippines
PHILIPPINES: A Country Less Open Than It Seems
For a country touted as a free-wheeling democracy offering a vast array of non-governmental media, the endless debate over how much press and information it needs is profoundly depressing. It has been two and a half decades since the last dictatorship and yet some fundamental media issues remain to be…
CHINA versus PHILIPPINES: Media Reports of Tension
Since April, China and the Philippines have been involved in a tense dispute over Huangyan Island in the South China Sea, and the Filipino media has been quick to defend its nation’s legitimacy in the region. The quarrel was initiated with the recent Philippine harassment of Chinese fishermen who sought harbor on the…
PHILLIPINES: Does Right of Reply LIMIT Freedom of the Press?
As the proposed ‘Freedom of Information’ (FOI) law is pending before the Philippine Congress, its hotly contested provision – the “Right of Reply” – is being openly opposed by GMA Network Inc., one the largest media networks in the country. GMA argued in a letter to the chairman of the…
PHILIPPINES: The Case of Environmentalist-journalist Gerry Ortega’s Murder Gets Hotter
Two separate bombs hit the Palawan province on Holy Thursday, injuring 3 people but causing no fatalities. The blasts targeted a bus station and a resort, both popular tourist destinations. The two blasts were set off 10 minutes apart and appear to be related in a complicated way to the…
PHILIPPINES JOURNALIST DEATH WATCH: The Bloody Assault on Journalists Continues
Fernan Angeles, reporter for the Daily Tribune, was seriously injured after being shot six times on March 11 near his home in Pasig, located in Manila. According to his wife, Gemma Angeles, the reporter was dragged into an alley by three men, beaten, and then shot with a 45-calibre handgun. The…
PHILIPPINES: Another Legendary Journalist Dead, Though Not By Violence
Isagani Yambot, publisher of the Philippine Daily Inquirer newspaper, one of the Philippines’ leading newspapers, passed away on March 2 at the age of 77 after an unsuccessful cardiac bypass surgery. Yambot was an active journalist from the days of the Marcos regime and continued to mentor young journalists, emphasizing…
PHILIPPINES: Tittering About General’s Twitter
Amidst raging pop stars and celebrity gossip queens, Armed Forces Chief Lieutenant General Jessie Dellosa jumped on the Twitter bandwagon after encouragement from his children. His account @CSAFP gained over 60 followers within hours. Dellosa’s first tweet reads, “This is the official twitter account of the Chief of Staff, AFP.…
PHILIPPINES: How the Media Can Help the Police Get Their Man!
Forget about the old-fashioned police sketch artist! Student iGeeks come to the rescue. The Bank of the Philippines Islands Department of Science and Technology awarded a student team in St. Louis University (SLU) in Baguio with Best Project of the Year for 2012 in a competition that recognizes the excellence…
PHILIPPINES: Is Aquino Finally Taking Assassinations Seriously?
Speaking of extremely dubious distinctions … Christopher Guarin, publisher of Tatak News Nationwide and presenter for radio station dxMD, was shot dead earlier this month in General Santos City, making him the first Asian journalist to be killed in 2012.
PHILIPPINES: Gunning for Journalists?
This past week marks the two-year anniversary of the massacre in the town of Ampatuan in northern Mindanao. Fifty-eight people were killed in the massacre, thirty-three of them, journalists.
PHILIPPINES: Radio Station Latest Target in Wave of Media Attacks as Government Falls Asleep
Nearly two years after the Maguindanao massacre in which 32 journalists were murdered, the Catholic-run radio station dzVT in Luzon has been hit with an arson attack that destroyed 10 million pesos (about 230 thousand USD) worth of transmission equipment. The police believe the fire started in the dead of night and found…