The Philippines upholds order to shut down Rappler, sullying press freedom

It’s no secret that Southeast Asia is perhaps one of the hardest places in the world to practice true press freedom. While most democracies in this region claim to be, well, democracies, there are always certain restrictions put in place to control the dissemination of information. Even the region’s golden child – come on, we all know it’s Singapore – has its own draconian media laws that forbid some form of dissent or criticism.

But perhaps no one is more familiar with the struggles of lax press freedom than the staff of Rappler, a Philippines-based media organization founded and led by Nobel Peace Prize laureate Maria Ressa. And unfortunately, their days as an operational media outlet seem to be numbered, at least in the eyes of the country’s Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). Of the few Philippines-based media outlets that are critical of outgoing President Rodrigo Duterte, Rappler had constantly been the subject of attempted silencing and harassment by the Duterte administration.

If their coverage of the president’s so-called “war on drugs” is of any indication, one can see why such a temperamental (and perhaps slightly unhinged) political figure would put a target on Rappler. SEC’s ruling comes at ‘perfect’ timing too, considering that June 30, 2022 is Duterte’s last day in office. It’s also what many people see as the outgoing president’s last attack on the press before he becomes a civilian again, emptying his seat for President-elect Ferdinand ‘Bongbong’ Marcos Jr.

“Because we have acted in good faith and adhered to the best standards in a fast-evolving business environment, we were confident that the country’s key business regulator would put public interest above other interests that were at play in this case… we were wrong,” a statement on the Rappler website says. “What this means for you, and for us, is that the Commission is ordering us to close shop, to cease telling you stories, to stop speaking truth to power, and to let go of everything that we have built – and created – with you since 2012. ” Despite the SEC’s ruling, though, Ressa affirmed that Rappler wouldn’t just shut itself down like that.

“We will continue to work and to do business as usual,” Ressa said. “We will follow the legal process and continue to stand up for our rights. We will hold the line.

” According to the SEC, the decision to revoke Rappler’s license to operate and uphold it – a case that’s been ongoing since 2018 – was due to the media outlet’s funding model supposedly being unconstitutional. The SEC alleges that Rappler is not Filipino-owned. Instead, they believe the outlet breached foreign ownership restrictions, citing funding received from philanthropic investment firm Omidyar Network in 2015 via the media outlet’s Philippine Depository Receipts (DPRs).

If that name sounds familiar to you, that’s because it’s run by Pierre Omidyar, the billionaire founder of eBay. Refuting that allegation, Rappler explained that PDRs don’t indicate ownership. Merely investments.

“This means our foreign investors, Omidyar Network and North Base Media, do not own Rappler. They invest, but they don’t own. Rappler remains 100 percent Filipino-owned,” Rappler said.

In 2021, Ressa was awarded the Nobel Peace Prize for using freedom of speech to “expose the abuse of power, use of violence, and growing authoritarianism of the regime of President Rodrigo Duterte”. Additionally, she was commended for focusing attention on Duterte’s bloody anti-drug campaign, the spread of fake news, and the manipulation of public discourse. In 2022, the Philippines ranks 147 out of 180 on the Reporters Without Borders Press Freedom Index.

Its ranking was slightly higher in 2021 (138). Southeast Asia ranks horribly in World Press Freedom Index Singapore’s civil liberty status demoted to ‘repressed’ in new report Malaysian reimagines ‘Attack on Titan’ censorship with batik ‘kain pelikat’ Filipinos protest through art as the government shuts down Philippines’ largest TV network.