Philippines: RSF and the Hold The Line Coalition welcome the restoration of Rappler’s licence
Reporters Without Borders (RSF) and the Hold the Line Coalition (HTL) welcome the recent decision by the Philippine Court of Appeals to overturn the order to close Rappler, an online news website founded by Nobel Peace Prize laureate Maria Ressa. RSF urges the Philippine judiciary to drop the remaining two court cases against Rappler and Ressa without delay.
In a decision dated 23 July and made public on 9 August, the Manila Court of Appeals overturned the order to close Rappler, the news website founded by Filipino journalist and Nobel Prize laureate Maria Ressa, ruling that the order was "arbitrary" and contrary to the Constitution.
The media outlet had been ordered to close in June 2022, confirming a decision taken in 2018, under the administration of former President Rodrigo Duterte, due to allegations that Rappler had violated restrictions on foreign ownership in the media. The site had been able to continue operating due to the suspensive nature of the appeal process.
The Hold the Line coalition steering committee, comprised of RSF, the Committee to Protect Journalists, and the International Center for Journalists, issued a statement welcoming the decision:
“RSF and the Hold the Line coalition welcome the Philippines Court of Appeals decision to void the shutdown order against Rappler, restoring its certificate of incorporation and eliminating the possibility of forced closure. This decision, though long overdue, represents another victory for Rappler and for press freedom in the Philippines. We call again for the remaining cases against Rappler and its CEO, Maria Ressa, to be closed without further delay, and for the years-long pressure against them to be permanently ceased.”
"It's a vindication after a tortuous eight years of harassment," the news site's team declared in a statement. Since 2018, Rappler and Ressa have been the target of an intense campaign of online violence and judicial harassment, with 23 different vexatious cases opened against them.
“We are hugely relieved that Rappler will no longer have to operate under the threat of forced closure, and welcome this latest victory in the many legal battles Rappler and Maria Ressa have faced over the past several years. We will continue to support their fight to hold the line for journalism and press freedom in the Philippines until every last court case against them is closed. The country’s judiciary must demonstrate resolutely that it can no longer be instrumentalised to silence independent reporting by closing the remaining two court cases without delay.
Two cases remain open against Rappler and its CEO: an anti-dummy case against Rappler, and a cyber libel case against Maria Ressa, still awaiting review by the Supreme Court of the Philippines, and in which RSF and two other press freedom organisations submitted an amicus curiae brief in June 2024. In that case alone, Ressa and her former Rappler colleague Reynaldo Santos face possible prison sentences of up to six years and nine months.
The Philippines is ranked 134th out of 180 countries in RSF's 2024 World Press Freedom Index.
