Philippines: CFWIJ Congratulates Renowned Journalist Maria Ressa on Acquittal of Tax Charges
After years of battling bogus tax evasion allegations, Ressa and Rappler have finally been cleared of all fraud charges
Location: Philippines, Manila
Date: September 12, 2023
Philippine court ruling clears Rappler CEO and Nobel Peace Prize laureate Maria Ressa of the last tax evasion charge levied against her and the outlet. The Coalition For Women In Journalism congratulates Maria Ressa and her team, who remain devoted, courageous defenders of free speech and the right to information. While we applaud the verdict, we continue to urge the court to drop all other charges against Ressa. The politically motivated legal harassment of Ress and Rappler must end.
“You gotta have faith,” Maria Ressa tells reporters outside the court after the last acquittal. “It shows that the court system works, and we hope to see the remaining charges dismissed,” she says.
Ressa and Rappler faced five tax evasion charges related to the 2015 sale of Philippine depositary receipts. While they were acquitted on four charges in January, the fifth charge was cleared on September 12, 2023.
Ressa, who won the Nobel Peace Prize in 2021, has been battling multiple charges filed during former president Rodrigo Duterte's administration. She has consistently maintained that cases against her and newsroom Rappler, which she co-founded, were politically motivated. The acquittal of her final tax evasion charge marks a significant legal victory for the veteran journalist. Had they lost the case, Ressa could have faced severe consequences, including a potential 10-year imprisonment for Ressa herself and a substantial fine for the media outlet.
The charges stemmed from an alleged failure to accurately disclose financial information on their tax return, specifically concerning an approximate sum of $11,000.
The Ongoing Crusade Against Ressa
Although today's judgment provides temporary relief, it is clear that ongoing legal battles have been strategically aimed at weakening Rappler and Ressa — who have been subjected to a sustained campaign of legal persecution and online harassment, with the government opening 23 individual cases against them since 2018.
Ressa and Rappler still face two more court cases, including a cyber libel conviction appeal and a challenge against a closure order of Rappler issued by the Philippine Securities and Exchange Commission.
In 2018, agencies on behalf of the Philippine government lodged a libel case against Maria Ressa and Rappler. Ressa, a critic of former president Rodrigo Duterte and his violent drug war, was convicted of cyber libel on June 15, 2020. Rappler as a company was found not guilty.
The award-winning journalist filed a motion for reconsideration in 2020. The Philippine Court of Appeals denied the motion in October 2022.
The fight continues to appeal the conviction in the Supreme Court, which has previously indicated that criminalization of libel is constitutionally doubtful. Ressa faces up to seven years in prison if the charges against her are upheld.
Rappler received an official shutdown order in June 2022, reinforcing the earlier decision to revoke the outlet's operating license. This order was unprecedented for both the issuing agency and the Philippine media as a whole. The threat of a permanent shutdown continues to loom over Rappler.
Ressa, a US citizen, has remained based in the Philippines throughout the campaign against her. She is currently on bail pending the appeal and must seek court approval for international travel.
Legal harassment of the journalist began in 2016 after Duterte's election. His government denied involvement in the cases against her. Current Philippine President Ferdinand “Bongbong” Marcos, who succeeded Duterte, has stated he will not interfere in Ressa's cases, respecting the separation of powers between the executive and judicial branches of government.
Alongside Russian journalist Dmitry Muratov, Ressa was jointly awarded the Nobel Prize for efforts to safeguard freedom of expression in 2021. The Nobel Peace Prize laureates have continued advocating for press freedom. In 2022, they presented a plan to address the threat posed by Big Tech's focus on data harvesting and attention, which distorts information ecosystems, undermines journalism, and polarizes society.
“When facts become optional, and trust disappears, we will no longer be able to hold power to account”
“When facts become optional, and trust disappears, we will no longer be able to hold power to account,” said Ressa at the campaign’s launch.
The Coalition For Women In Journalism is thrilled by the court's decision to acquit Maria Ressa and Rappler of all charges. The victory signifies a landmark ruling for press freedom in the country.
However, legal harassment instigated by the former President continues. Rappler is battling against a government-issued closure order, and Ressa is fighting to have her cyber libel conviction overturned. We urge the Philippine Supreme Court to decide in Ressa’s favor and call on the Securities and Exchange Commission to rescind its closure order and stop harassing independent media outlets.
The Coalition For Women In Journalism is a global organization of support for women journalists. The CFWIJ pioneered mentorship for mid-career women journalists across several countries around the world and is the first organization to focus on the status of free press for women journalists. We thoroughly document cases of any form of abuse against women in any part of the globe. Our system of individuals and organizations brings together the experience and mentorship necessary to help female career journalists navigate the industry. Our goal is to help develop a strong mechanism where women journalists can work safely and thrive.
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