Connect with us

Hi, what are you looking for?

World

Philippines govt defends press freedom after critic wins Nobel Peace Prize

Philippines' Nobel Prize winner Ressa says 'nothing is possible without facts'
Philippine journalist Maria Ressa expressed "shock" at her Nobel Peace Prize and said Rappler, the news outlet she co-founded, "would just keep doing what we're doing" - Copyright AFP/File TED ALJIBE
Philippine journalist Maria Ressa expressed "shock" at her Nobel Peace Prize and said Rappler, the news outlet she co-founded, "would just keep doing what we're doing" - Copyright AFP/File TED ALJIBE

A top aide to Philippines President Rodrigo Duterte said Monday the awarding of the Nobel Peace Prize to journalist and government critic Maria Ressa was proof that “press freedom is alive” in the country.

Ressa, co-founder of news website Rappler, and Russian journalist Dmitry Muratov were awarded the prize on Friday for their efforts to “safeguard freedom of expression”.

Since Duterte took power in 2016, Ressa and Rappler have faced a series of criminal charges and investigations in what media advocates describe as state harassment over their reporting, including on the government’s deadly drug war. 

Duterte has called Rappler a “fake news outlet”, and Ressa has been the target of abusive messages online.

“It’s a victory for a Filipina and we’re very happy for that,” Duterte’s spokesman, Harry Roque, told a regular briefing. 

“Press freedom is alive and the proof is the Nobel Prize award to Maria Ressa,” Roque said, in the presidential palace’s first public comments on the award. 

Philippine press groups and rights activists have hailed Ressa’s prize as a “triumph” in a country ranked as one of the world’s most dangerous for journalists.

Ressa, 58, told AFP in an interview Saturday that she was still battling seven court cases, including an appeal of a cyber libel conviction, for which she faces up to six years in prison.

Two other cyber libel cases were dismissed earlier this year.

Ressa, who is also a US citizen, said she hoped the prize would help shield her and other journalists in the Philippines against physical attacks and online threats.

“This ‘us against them’ was never the creation of the journalists, it was the creation of the people in power who wanted to use a type of leadership that divides society,” Ressa said.

“I hope… this allows journalists to do our jobs well without fear.”

Roque denied the government had created a “chilling effect” for media outlets, saying anyone who claimed that “should not be a journalist”.

He also rejected suggestions Ressa’s Nobel Prize was “a slap” for the government, insisting “no one has ever been censored in the Philippines”.

“Maria Ressa still has to clear her name before our courts,” Roque said, calling her a “convicted felon”.

“We leave it to our courts to decide on her fate.”

AFP
Written By

With 2,400 staff representing 100 different nationalities, AFP covers the world as a leading global news agency. AFP provides fast, comprehensive and verified coverage of the issues affecting our daily lives.

You may also like:

World

Calling for urgent action is the international medical humanitarian organization Doctors Without Borders/Médecins Sans Frontières (MSF)

World

Immigration is a symptom of a much deeper worldwide problem.

Business

Saudi Aramco President & CEO Amin Nasser speaks during the CERAWeek oil summit in Houston, Texas - Copyright AFP Mark FelixPointing to the still...

Business

A recent article in the Wall Street Journal infers that some workers might be falling out of the job market altogether.