Philippines / Asia

  

‘A long fight’: Family of murdered Philippine journalist Gerry Ortega on their 13-year battle for justice

Philippine journalist Gerardo “Gerry” Ortega vowed he wouldn’t let the death threats stop him from using his radio show to expose corruption on the country’s idyllic tropical island of Palawan. “I am like a lone flame of a candle in a big dark room. I can’t light the whole room but I light a small…

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Philippine journalist Joann Manabat was threatened by armed gunmen on March 12 while covering a land dispute in Anunas village, Angeles City. (Screenshot: Rapper/YouTube)

Armed men harass, threaten to shoot two reporters covering land dispute in Philippines

Bangkok, March 13, 2024—Philippine authorities must swiftly identify and prosecute those behind the shooting threats and harassment against Rappler reporter Joann Manabat and K5 News FM Olongapo reporter Rowena Quejada, the Committee to Protect Journalists said Wednesday. On March 12, armed men dressed in red and white shirts with Clarkhills Properties Corporation verbally barred Manabat…

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Philippines' President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. in Tokyo, Japan on December 17, 2023.

CPJ, partners urge Germany’s Scholz to press Philippine leader on journalist’s killing during visit

March 11, 2024 – German authorities must prioritize the Philippines’ abysmal record of impunity in the murder of journalists during the official visit by Philippine president Ferdinand Marcos Jr. scheduled for  March 11-13, a coalition of three international press freedom organizations said on Monday. German Chancellor Olaf Scholz should make press freedom and specifically the…

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CPJ, partners offer new leads in murder case of Philippine journalist Gerry Ortega

Manila, March 1, 2024—The “A Safer World for the Truth” initiative—a coalition of three international press freedom organizations—met with the Philippine Department of Justice (DoJ) and the Philippine National Police (PNP) to provide new and actionable information that could lead to the arrest of the alleged mastermind behind the 2011 murder of radio journalist Gerry…

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People call for the protection of media workers at a rally following the killing of Filipino radio journalist Percival Mabasa, in Quezon City, Philippines, on October 4, 2022.

Filipino radio journalist Juan Jumalon shot dead while live broadcasting

Bangkok, November 6, 2023—Philippine authorities must launch a swift and thorough investigation into the killing of radio journalist Juan Jumalon, determine if he was targeted for his work, and bring the perpetrators to justice, the Committee to Protect Journalists said Monday. On Sunday morning, an assailant entered Jumalon’s home-based radio station pretending to be a listener and shot him twice during his…

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Faces of impunity across the world

CPJ’s 2023 Global Impunity Index lists the top 12 countries where the murderers of journalists go free. But impunity knows no borders. The mosaic below shows the faces of slain journalists around the world. Beneath each journalist’s photo is the location of their death. Click the images for more details about these unsolved cases. (Photo grid by Geoff McGhee)

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Haiti joins list of countries where killers of journalists most likely to go unpunished

By Arlene Getz/CPJ Editorial Director The persistent lack of justice for murdered reporters is a major threat to press freedom. Ten years after the United Nations declared an international day to end impunity for crimes against journalists – and more than 30 years after CPJ began documenting these killings – almost 80% of their killings…

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Hold The Line Coalition welcomes acquittal of Maria Ressa and Rappler, calls for dropping of remaining cases

September 12, 2023, Manila—The Hold the Line Coalition (HTL) welcomes Tuesday’s Regional Trial Court verdict acquitting Nobel laureate Maria Ressa and her news outlet Rappler on the final criminal tax charge leveled against them by the regime of former President Rodrigo Duterte. The judgment comes after a legal battle lasting nearly five years. If they…

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Cyberattackers used US company RayoByte in efforts to crash media sites

The cyberattack against the Somali Journalists Syndicate could not have come at a worse time. A distributed denial-of-service attack, known by its acronym DDoS, flooded the local press freedom group’s website with traffic in early August and knocked it offline. Days later, authorities arrested SJS staff member and Kaab TV editor Mohamed Ibrahim Osman Bulbul…

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Unidentified attackers shoot Philippine journalist Joshua Abiad and family

Bangkok, June 30, 2023—Philippine authorities should thoroughly investigate the shooting of journalist Joshua Abiad, determine if the attack was related to his reporting, and bring the perpetrators to justice, the Committee to Protect Journalists said Friday. On Thursday, June 29, unidentified gunmen shot Abiad while he was driving with his family in Quezon City, Metro…

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