Independent Filipino news outlet Rappler is under legal fire yet again, this time under a "cyber libel" charge. Free press advocates say this latest criminal case lodged by the government amounts to official harassment.
When asked about the upcoming results of her latest criminal trial, Maria Ressa almost brushes off questions, instead turning to the bigger-picture questions on her mind.
«I never wanted to fight the government,» said Ressa, founder and CEO of Rappler, a Filipino media outlet based in Metro Manila. Other charges filed against Ressa in 2019 include alleged crimes in how Rappler itself is run, including charges of tax evasion and violation of the anti-dummy law, a statute to prohibit foreign ownership in certain economic sectors.
She went on to open CNN’s Manila bureau in 1987 and its Jakarta bureau in 1995. Later, for six years, she headed up the largest news group in the Philippines, ABS-CBN.
«I never wanted to fight the government,» said Ressa, founder and CEO of Rappler, a Filipino media outlet based in Metro Manila. Other charges filed against Ressa in 2019 include alleged crimes in how Rappler itself is run, including charges of tax evasion and violation of the anti-dummy law, a statute to prohibit foreign ownership in certain economic sectors.
She went on to open CNN’s Manila bureau in 1987 and its Jakarta bureau in 1995. Later, for six years, she headed up the largest news group in the Philippines, ABS-CBN.
If the government won’t tell us how they’re dealing with it, we will ask the questions, we will try to get to what the solutions can be
This article was written by Samantha MCcabe
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