It has been eight years since Rappler published a story about former chief justice Renato Corona using a vehicle allegedly registered under businessman Wilfredo Keng’s name. Keng, according to previous Rappler reports and intelligence reports cited by then-researcher and writer Rey Santos Jr., has alleged links to illegal drug trade and human trafficking. Keng has denied these allegations.
Today, at the Manila Regional Trial Court Branch 46, Ressa and Santos were convicted of cyber libel for that same story, which came out months before the Republic Act (RA) No. 10175 or the Cybercrime Prevention Act of 2012 was signed into law.
The trial, originally scheduled for Apr. 3, was moved to today Jun. 15 due to the coronavirus pandemic.
In a courtroom with only three reporters present with the defendant and the accused accompanied by their counsel, Judge Rainelda Estacio-Montesa ruled that Ressa and Santos are guilty of cyber libel charges filed by Keng. The court sentenced Ressa and Santos to six months and a day to up to six years in jail.
What’s next?
According to Ressa and Santos’s lawyer Atty. Ted Te, the court allowed his clients to remain free on bail. “We are now looking at a motion for reconsideration or appeal but no decision yet. 15 days from today to make decision,” Te told reporters minutes after stepping out of the courtroom.
Ressa said of the decision, “Taken alone, the decision is devastating because it says that Rappler is wrong. But this is not unexpected; we will keep fighting. It’s a blow to us, but we will stand up against any kind of attacks against press freedom.”
The veteran reporter and CEO also urged journalists and Filipinos to protect their rights. “We are meant to be a cautionary tale. We are meant to make you afraid. Protect your rights. We shouldn’t be momentarily giving up for our rights.”
DECISION: Maria Ressa, Rey Santos Jr convicted of cyber libel#CourageON #HoldTheLine #DefendPressFreedom https://t.co/Q2ROe27aOh pic.twitter.com/3LksR3k8Ph
— Rappler (@rapplerdotcom) June 15, 2020
In a copy of the disposition ABS-CBN obtained from the court, Ressa and Santos were charged with P200,000 for exemplary damages and another P200,000 for moral damages. A report by Rappler released minutes after the trial said “Ressa and Santos won’t have to go to jail because the conviction is appealable all the way to the Supreme Court. Ressa and Santos are entitled to post-conviction bail while they exhaust legal remedies in higher courts.”
“This is a pivotal moment for the Philippines, not just for our democracy, but for the idea of what a free press means,” Ressa said.
What happened before?
The story written by Santos came out on May 29, 2012. Two years after, the story was updated to reflect the correct spelling of the word “evasion” and the updated URL of images.
In October 2017, three years after the investigative story was published, Keng filed a libel complaint with the National Bureau of Investigation’s (NBI) cybercrime division, claiming that “the article was published by Rappler without observing the ethical standards of journalism. It contained malicious imputations of crimes, with bad intentions, purposely to malign, dishonor and discredit my character and good reputation.”
The following year, Rappler’s legal team succeeded in having NBI junk the complaint by filing counter-affidavits arguing against the libel case. They argued that no criminal law is retroactive and therefore, no cyber libel took place as the investigative report was published four months before the enactment of the Cybercrime Prevention Act of 2012.
But Keng, citing Section 4(c) of the Cybercrime Prevention Act of 2012, filed a supplemental affidavit saying “the prescriptive period for crimes falling under Section 4(c) (4) [of the Cybercrime Prevention Act of 2012] is 15 years” and not one year contrary to the NBI’s previous finding.
After many back and forths regarding the coverage of the law, Ressa was issued a warrant of arrest in February 2019 by Presiding Judge Rainelda Estacio Montesa of Manila RTC Branch 46. Ressa was detained at NBI for a night and released on bail the next day after the same court allowed her to post bail.
Prior to the decision handed down today by Manila RTC Branch 46, Ressa was arraigned for one count of cyber libel in May 2019. The trial proper began in July and winded down in December. Earlier this year, the courts said it will hand down the verdict on Apr. 3 but rescheduled it due to the coronavirus.
Header photo courtesy of Niño Jesus Orbeta/Inquirer
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