(Eagle News) — Rappler’s chief executive officer Maria Ressa was arrested on Friday, March 29.
Ressa was apprehended upon her arrival at the Ninoy Aquino International Airport at 6:30 a.m.
Ressa had been allowed to attend several conferences abroad despite her pending cases.
The arrest was by virtue of a warrant of arrest issued by Branch 265 of the Pasig Regional Trial Court in connection with her alleged violation of the Anti-Dummy Law.
Apart from Ressa, charged in connection with this were managing editor Glenda Gloria, and members of the board of Rappler in 2016— Manuel Ayala, James Bitanga, Nico Jose Nolledo, James Velasquez and Felicia Atienza.
Ayala, Nolledo, Gloria, Bitanga, Atienza and Velasquez have posted bail of P90,000 each.
“What can I say? Obviously this is yet another abuse of my rights. I’m being treated like a criminal when my only crime is to be an independent journalist,” Ressa said in an interview with ABS CBN posted on the ABS CBN News Channel Twitter account.
“Let’s figure out what’s next. Alice in Wonderland and let’s hope the world turns upside down,” she added.
The information was filed in court after the Securities and Exchange Commission found Rappler guilty of violating the said law when it allowed “disqualified foreigners” from Omidyar Network to intervene in the media outfit’s operations via the Philippine Depositary Receipts Rappler issued in 2015.
The SEC said Rappler violated the constitutional restriction on foreign ownership of mass media when it issued the PDRs, and ordered its incorporation papers revoked.
The Court of Appeals has denied Rappler’s appeal of the SEC decision, but ordered the commission to probe the effects of the subsequent donation by Omidyar of the PDRs to Rappler managers.