CEO of Rappler Maria Ressa might have been named Time’s 2018 Person of the Year for fighting the “War on Truth,” but not everyone agrees with that. Late last night, she was arrested “in connection with a cyberlibel complaint filed against her by a businessman.” Her lawyer JJ Disini said, “She’s supposed to bail tonight but we are unable. So the option is I guess she is to spend the night at the NBI.”
According to Inquirer.net, Ressa said, “People should know that a line was crossed. We are going to new lows… We should be worried.” And worried we are. When news broke last night, I saw many people start posting their reactions on social media. If journalists are going to be silenced for speaking the truth, what will happen next?
Presidential spokesperson Salvador Panelo spoke up, “The case against Maria Ressa is not based on any violation of press freedom. Simply, she committed a crime and the court finds probable cause.” Sorry, but people are not buying this. Netizens even started posting with the hashtag #DefendPressFreedom.
Let us know your frustrations about this whole issue in the comments section below. We’d love to hear what you have to say.
Photo courtesy of Digital Forensic Research Lab’s Instagram account
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