Rappler
The Hold the Line Coalition, comprised of over 80 organisations around the world including APC, welcomes the verdict acquitting Nobel laureate Maria Ressa and her news outlet Rappler on the final criminal tax charge levelled against them by the regime of former President Rodrigo Duterte.
APC and the more than 80 other organisations that comprise the Coalition welcome the dismissal of a cyber-libel charge against Rappler CEO and founder Maria Ressa in the Philippines – the second spurious charge against Ressa to be dropped in just two months.
SEAPA and other organisations, including APC, express concern over the unwarranted arrest of Rappler’s chief executive officer Maria Ressa on 13 February 2019 based on libel charges arising from a story published almost seven years ago by the online news site.
As advocates of human rights and communication rights, FMA stands by press freedom and free speech as fundamental to civil liberty, especially at a time when the very foundations of democracy are under threat.
