MANILA: The Philippines government on Thursday denied that the arrest of a prominent journalist was linked to her news outlet’s criticism of President Rodrigo Duterte’s policies, amid mounting accusations that the media and other government critics were being silenced.
Maria Ressa, 55, chief editor of news website Rappler, was taken into custody by agents of the National Bureau of Investigation (NBI) on cyber libel charges late Wednesday, preventing her from posting bail because courts were already closed.
She spent the night at the NBI headquarters, but her lawyers were hoping to post bail on Thursday.
Presidential spokesman Salvador Panelo said the administration respected the judiciary and did not meddle in how it handles cases in courts.
“Ms Ressa being a media practitioner and a high ranking officer of a media outfit critical of the president’s programmes and policies has nothing to do with the present circumstances she is currently in,” he said.
“Freedom of expression, as critics of this administration erroneously suggest, is absolutely unrelated with Ms Ressa’s probable violation of the country’s laws,” Panelo added.
Human rights groups and press freedom organisations denounced the arrest, saying it was indicative of the vindictive nature of the government of Duterte, who has openly expressed his dislike for Ressa and Rappler.
“The arrest and detention of Ressa is the latest in the multitude of examples of the authoritarian path treaded by the Duterte regime,” said human rights group Karapatan.
“Our only recourse is to fight back, online and offline, to defend and uphold our basic rights and freedoms,” it added. – dpa/Bernama
UPDATE
Filipino journalist Maria Ressa released after posting bail.
