#HoldTheLine
Internationally celebrated Filipino-American journalist Maria Ressa is facing extreme threats in the Philippines as state-orchestrated attacks escalate against her and Rappler, the news organization she founded. This follows her conviction on a criminal cyber libel charge and the shuttering of the country’s largest broadcaster, ABS-CBN, as part of the Duterte government’s wider campaign to stifle independent media. Throughout the Philippines, critical journalists are being sent a chilling message: You are only safe in silence. Ressa knows this better than anyone.
NPF joins a coalition led by the Committee to Protect Journalists (CPJ), the International Center for Journalists (ICFJ), and Reporters Without Borders (RSF), and stands with Maria Ressa to #HoldTheLine and defend independent journalism in the Philippines.
To see a list of all #HoldTheLine coalition members, click here.
The Numbers:
⇒ Maria Ressa faces eight criminal and administrative charges and cases.
⇒ In the past two years she has been arrested twice.
⇒ In June, she and former colleague Reynaldo Santos Jr. were convicted of criminal cyber libel, for which they could spend up to six years in prison.
⇒ If convicted on all charges, the sentencing could lead to decades behind bars.