MANILA, Philippines (AFP) — A Philippine news site co-founded by Nobel Peace Prize winner Maria Ressa has been ordered to shut down, the company said Wednesday, a day before President Rodrigo Duterte — its arch-nemesis — leaves office.
Ressa has been a vocal critic of Duterte and the deadly drug war he launched in 2016, triggering what media advocates say is a grinding series of criminal charges, probes and online attacks against her and Rappler.
The latest blow was delivered by the Philippine Securities and Exchange Commission.
In a statement Wednesday, it confirmed the “revocation of the certificates of incorporation” of Rappler for violating “constitutional and statutory restrictions on foreign ownership in mass media”.
Rappler said the decision “effectively confirmed the shutdown” of the company and vowed to appeal, describing the proceedings as “highly irregular”.
“We have discussed all possible scenarios with Rapplers (staff) since SEC issued its first order in 2018,” Glenda Gloria, executive editor and co-founder of the site, told reporters.
“Nothing ever sufficiently prepares an organization for a ‘kill’ order.”
Rappler has had to fight for survival as Duterte’s government accused it of violating a constitutional ban on foreign ownership in securing funding, as well as tax evasion.
It has also been accused of cyber libel — a new criminal law introduced in 2012, the same year Rappler was founded.
Duterte has attacked the website by name, calling it a “fake news outlet”, over a story about one of his closest aides.
The news portal is accused of allowing foreigners to take control of its website through its parent Rappler Holdings’ issuance of “depositary receipts”.
Under the constitution, investment in media is reserved for Filipinos or Filipino-controlled entities.
The case springs from the 2015 investment from the US-based Omidyar Network, which was established by eBay founder Pierre Omidyar.
Omidyar later transferred its investment in Rappler to the site’s local managers to stave off efforts by Duterte to shut it down.
Ressa, who is also a US citizen, and Russian journalist Dmitry Muratov were awarded the Nobel Peace Prize in October for their efforts to “safeguard freedom of expression”.
-Rappler’s Ressa to appeal decision-
Ressa is fighting at least seven court cases, including an appeal against a conviction in a cyber libel case, for which she is on bail and faces up to six years in prison.
“We are entitled to appeal this decision and will do so, especially since the proceedings were highly irregular,” she said during the opening day of the International Media Conference in in Honolulu, Hawaii.
It was there that Ressa announced the Philippine government’s shutdown of her company.
“In an order dated June 28, our Securities and Exchange Commission affirmed its decision to revoke the certificates of incorporation of Rappler Inc and Rappler Holdings Corporation. We were notified by our lawyers of this ruling that effectively confirmed the shut down of Rappler,” Ressa said in slides she presented during the event.
Ressa also shared with the audience her guidance to her own staff in light of the latest development.
“We have existing legal remedies all the way up to the highest court in the land. It is business as usual for us since in our view, this is not immediately executory without court approval.”
“Clarity, agility, sobriety. Review our drills and the tasks assigned to you. Meantime, it is business as usual for us. We will adapt, adjust, survive, and thrive,” she said.
The Rappler boss is among the roughly 300 participants from 35 countries taking part in the said media forum, which the University of Hawaii’s East-West Center hosts every two years.
Meanwhile, the International Center for Journalists has urged the Philippine government to reverse its order to shut down Rappler.
“This legal harassment not only costs Rappler time, money and energy. It enables relentless and prolific online violence designed to chill independent reporting,” ICFJ said in a statement posted on Twitter.
(Agence France-Presse with a report from EBC Hawaii Bureau’s Alfred Acenas of Eagle News Service)
