Senator Risa Hontiveros on Tuesday filed a invoice in search of to decriminalize libel — the identical day a Quezon City courtroom convicted journalist Frank Cimatu of cyber libel.
In submitting Senate Bill 1593 or the Decriminalization of Libel Act, Hontiveros desires to repeal the Articles 353, 354, 355, 356, 357, 360, 361, and 362 of Act No. 3815 or the Revised Penal Code and Republic Act No. 10175 in any other case referred to as the Cybercrime Prevention Act of 2012.
The senator stated in her explanatory be aware that the rise and prevalence of social media as a main medium of communication has led to the additional weaponization of libel legal guidelines and that the avalanche of cyber libel circumstances has solely resulted within the clogging of the nation’s courtroom dockets.
“Our libel laws have been weaponized to stifle very basic fundamental rights. These laws have been used to constantly attack many of our freedoms, particularly the freedom of the press. We need to decriminalize libel if we are to truly defend press freedom,” she stated.
Quezon City Regional Trial Court Branch 93 earlier discovered Cimatu responsible past affordable doubt of cyber libel over a Facebook submit involving former Agriculture secretary Emmanuel “Manny” Piñol.
Cimatu is sentenced to a minimal imprisonment of six months and in the future and a most imprisonment of 5 years, 5 months, and eleven days and was ordered to pay Piñol P300,000 as ethical damages.
Apart from Cimatu, the legislator stated libel was additionally getting used towards different journalists together with Nobel laureate and Rappler CEO Maria Ressa, and her former colleague Reynaldo Santos who have been each convicted of cyber libel in 2020.
“These journalists have wasted years of their lives facing charges for basically doing their jobs. Gamit na gamit na ang cyber libel para patahimikin ang ating mga mamamahayag. Kung hindi natin maiwasto ito, patuloy na gagamitin ang libel para kitilin ang ating kalayaan,” stated Hontiveros.
(These journalists have wasted years of their lives going through expenses for mainly doing their jobs. Cyber libel is getting used to silence our journalists. If we can not keep away from it, the regulation will likely be used repeatedly to stifle our freedom.)
“Trabaho ng mga reporter ang magbahagi ng mga impormasyon para sa kaalaman ng publiko. We need the press to vet information and continue to be the safekeepers of facts. Sa pagbaha ng fake news sa social media, mas lalong kailangan nating maprotektahan ang propesyon nila. If we fail to do so, if we allow our laws to punish rather than protect the press, we chip away at our Constitutional rights. This will cost us our democracy,” she stated.
(It is the journalists’ job to share info with the general public. We want the press to vet info and proceed to be the secure keepers of details. Amid the unfold of pretend news in social media, we have to shield their jobs. If we fail to take action, if we enable our legal guidelines to punish fairly than shield the press, we chip away at our Constitutional rights. This will value us our democracy.)—Sundy Locus/AOL, GMA Integrated News
