CAGAYAN DE ORO — A coalition of international and local press freedom watchdogs urged President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. to free detained Filipino journalist Frenchie Mae Cumpio as the promulgation of her cases draws near.
Cumpio’s remaining cases include two counts of illegal possession of firearms and explosives, which were jointly heard, and terrorism financing. According to the People’s Alternative Media Network (AlterMidya), these are typical cases against human rights workers since the enactment of the Anti-Terrorism Act and the establishment of the National Task Force to End Local Communist Armed Conflict (NTF-ELCAC).
The Tacloban City Regional Trial Court Branch 45 scheduled the promulgation dates for these cases on January 22 and February 9, respectively.
In a joint statement, the #FreeFrenchieMaeCumpio Coalition said that the Filipino journalist’s prolonged detention is “inhumane and has no place in a system that claims to uphold justice and respect media freedom,” adding that the international community’s eyes will be focused on the country during those promulgation dates.
“The government can, and must, end this injustice without delay. We hope to see her finally free, reunited with her family, and able to continue doing the job she loves: reporting,” the coalition said.
The #FreeFrenchieMaeCumpio Coalition consists of Reporters Without Borders (RSF), AlterMidya, Committee to Protect Journalists (CPJ), Free Press Unlimited (FPU), and National Union of Journalists of the Philippines (NUJP).
Read: For Int’l Human Rights Day, CPJ urges Marcos Jr. to free detained Filipino journalist
NUJP earlier said that Cumpio’s remaining charges highlighted how the government was throwing accusations against a community journalist who was just doing her job.
Cumpio, who has been detained for almost six years now, faced one civil case and six criminal cases since her “questionable” arrest in February 2020. Her camp, however, secured legal victories last year over the two counts of murder, one attempted murder, and the civil forfeiture cases filed against her.
NUJP remained optimistic that previous legal victories will lead to her acquittal.
Myles Albasin, part of the Mabinay 6 detained for seven years and also a journalist for Cebu-based ANINAW Productions during her arrest, was released from prison on September 22, 2025, after they were acquitted from trumped-up charges. Over two months later, poet, writer, and peasant organizer Amanda Echanis was also freed from her five-year detention.
In a Facebook post, Albasin hoped that Cumpio and the rest of the Tacloban 5 would be freed as well. (RTS, DAA)
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