Amnesty International Demands Philippines Free Journalist Frenchie Mae Cumpio — Convicted of 'Terrorism' After Being Jailed for 5 Years
Amnesty International has launched an urgent action calling on the Philippine government to immediately and unconditionally release journalist Frenchie Mae Cumpio, community worker Marielle Domequil, and human rights defender Alexander Philip 'Chakoy' Abinguna — members of the so-called 'Tacloban 5' who have been detained since February 2020.
Cumpio, executive director of Eastern Vista news website, and Domequil, a lay worker of the Rural Missionaries of the Philippines, were convicted on January 22 on what Amnesty calls 'trumped-up terrorism financing charges.' They were sentenced to between 12 and 18 years in prison. Their bail application was denied on February 16.
The five were arrested during pre-dawn military and police raids on their offices in Tacloban City in February 2020. Rights groups say evidence — including ammunition, explosives, and a Communist Party flag — was planted during the raids, found 'under pillows and mattresses and even near a one-year-old child\'s crib.' The detainees were not allowed to witness the searches.
Days before her arrest, Cumpio had reported to the Centre for Media Freedom that masked men were tailing Eastern Vista staff. She managed to publish an article about the surveillance just days before being taken. Two other members of the Tacloban 5, Marissa Cabaljao and Mira Legion, were granted bail in 2020 on lesser charges.
The case has drawn international condemnation as an example of how anti-terrorism laws are used to silence journalists and activists in the Philippines. According to civil society groups, there are around 700 political prisoners in the country, many facing the same pattern of 'red-tagging, questionable raids, planted evidence, and prolonged detention.'
Source: Amnesty International / IPS News
