Laya Na si Nanay Sally: Appeals Court Clears Veteran Child Rights Advocate

Child rights advocate Sally Ujano is now free after the Court of Appeals acquitted her in a rebellion case that had kept her behind bars for more than a year. Philstar reported that the appellate court cleared the 67-year-old on March 24, with her release from the Correctional Institute for Women in Mandaluyong carried out on March 26.

According to the ruling cited in the report, the evidence against Ujano failed to show with the required moral certainty that she was among those who took part in the alleged rebellion. That decision reversed an earlier Taguig Regional Trial Court ruling that had convicted her and sentenced her to a prison term of 10 years up to more than 17 years.

The charge traces back to a 2006 case tied to an alleged ambush of two military personnel in Quezon province in 2005. Ujano was only arrested much later, on Nov. 14, 2021, in an operation where, according to an earlier report cited by Philstar, plainclothes police supposedly did not present identification.

Supporters welcomed the acquittal as a major win, especially for women and young people, noting that the ruling came as Women’s Month wraps up. Her family and backers had long argued that the case was baseless and had also raised concern over her health while detained, saying she was dealing with hypertension, heart arrhythmia, osteoarthritis and scoliosis.

Ujano is known for years of advocacy work, including leadership roles at the Women’s Crisis Center and the Philippines Against Child Trafficking. She was also recognized by UN Women Philippines in 2023 and had helped push landmark legislation such as the Anti-Violence Against Women and Their Children Act. After years of legal limbo, her camp is now treating the acquittal as both personal relief and a symbolic victory.

Source: Philstar article