CAGAYAN DE ORO — Detained journalist Frenchie Mae Cumpio marked her 27th on January 23, her 6th birthday at Tacloban City Jail.
Cumpio and lay worker Marielle Domequil were acquitted from charges related to illegal possession of firearms and explosives, but were convicted by the same Tacloban court for terrorism financing on January 22. Cumpio’s mother Lala said that their acquittal could have been the best birthday present.
Following the guilty verdict, the Media Freedom Coalition Embassy Network expressed concern on the accused’s continuing detention.
“Freedom of expression and the ability to report independently are essential pillars of democracy and must be safeguarded,” said the coalition, which is composed of 14 embassies in the Philippines, including Austria, Belgium, Canada, the Czech Republic, Finland, Germany, Ireland, the Netherlands, Norway, Slovenia, Sweden, Switzerland, Ukraine, and the United Kingdom.
The embassies of France and Denmark, including the delegation of the European Union to the Philippines, also echoed the coalition’s statement.
Read: TIMELINE: The prolonged detention of Filipino journalist Frenchie Mae Cumpio
Cumpio and Domequil who are part of the Tacloban 5 have been detained for nearly six years. Their lawyers filed a motion for bail on Tuesday, January 27.
The National Task Force to End Local Communist Armed Conflict (NTF-ELCAC) said that Cumpio and Domequil were convicted for financing terrorist organizations and not for dissent and free speech.
Four rebel returnees presented by the prosecution claimed that they saw Cumpio and Domequil hand over cash and logistics to a commander of the New People’s Army in Catbalogan, Samar, in March 2019. Aside from testimonies, no supporting evidence was presented, said lawyer Julianne Agpalo of the National Union of Peoples’ Lawyers.
Read: How ‘ex-rebels’ testimonies lead to conviction of Cumpio, Domequil
Because of this, online news outfit Rappler said in a statement that the conviction of the two should alarm human rights groups and independent voices. “If mere corroborating testimony is enough to establish that a person is a terror financier, it would have serious repercussions on the exercise of anyone’s right to dissent and voice out criticism of the government.”
Both Amnesty International Philippines and the International Press Institute said that the court ruling illustrates the weaponization of counterinsurgency laws in the country to silence members of the media, human rights defenders, and development workers.
Cristina Palabay, secretary general of human rights alliance Karapatan, said that Cumpio and Domequil were targeted because of their efforts to improve the lives of the poor people in Eastern Visayas.
The two were part of the Stand with Samar-Leyte, a group that supports victims of reported human rights violations brought by Memorandum Order No. 32 of former President Rodrigo Duterte which purportedly aims to suppress lawless violence in Samar, Negros provinces, and the Bicol region.
Read: De facto martial law terrorizes civilians in Negros, Bicol, Eastern Visayas
Specifically, they were convicted for violating Section 8(ii) of the Terrorism Financing Prevention and Suppression Act.
Ritz Lee Santos III, section director of human rights organization Amnesty International Philippines, called on the Department of Justice to ensure that such laws, including the controversial Anti-Terrorism Act, would not be used against government critics. “No one should have to endure loss of liberty and livelihood for criticizing the government and peacefully standing up for human rights.”
Civicus, a global alliance of activists and civil society organizations, called the conviction of Cumpio and Domequil “a gross abuse of justice” and pushed for an immediate overturn of the judgment. (RTS, DAA)
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