Philippine journalist Maria Ressa found guilty of cyber libel
A court in Philippines on Monday convicted journalist Maria Ressa of cyber libel, AP reported. Ressa is the chief executive officer of Rappler, a news website critical of the Philippines government led by Rodrigo Duterte. A former writer for the news website was also convicted.
The decision was given in a case filed in 2017 against Ressa and Reynaldo Santos Jr after a businessman disputed an article reported by Rappler that he claimed inaccurately linked him to a former judge of the country’s Supreme Court. The story, published in 2012, cited an unspecified intelligence report linking him to a murder, drug dealing, human trafficking and smuggling.
The journalist was charged under the country’s controversial “cyber-libel” law, which came into force in September 2012, four months after the article in question was published.
A court in Manila found Ressa and her employee guilty of libeling the businessman. Both of them were sentenced to up to six years in jail over the charges but were not immediately taken into custody. Ressa posted bail for the case last year, and her lawyer said they will appeal the verdict.
