— The following acts shall also constitute an offense: It contained malicious imputations of crimes, with bad intentions, purposely to malign, dishonor and discredit my character and good reputation,” the complaint said. MANILA, Philippines – Businessman Wilfredo Keng filed a cyber libel complaint against Rappler for a report that linked him to illegal activities including human trafficking and drug smuggling. Read: Despite Maria Ressa’s conviction, Malacañang insists Duterte supports press freedom Embattled Philippine journalist Maria Ressa is facing a new cyber-libel complaint over a 2019 tweet of a newspaper story claiming that a Filipino businessman was … Metro Manila (CNN Philippines, October 27) — Online scams and libel cases top the cybercrime list of the Philippine National Police (PNP) from … Eduarte said the meeting was cordial, and that it showed that both Rappler and Keng have trust in the NBI. According to a 2002 Philippine Star report, Keng was also accused of smuggling fake cigarettes and granting special investors residence visas to Chinese nationals for a fee. The unsigned resolution was signed by First Division Clerk of Court Librada Buena, not any of the five justices who composed the First Division at the time – Associate Justices Teresita Leonardo-de Castro (who later became chief justice), Mariano del Castillo, Francis Jardeleza, Noel Tijam and Alexander Gesmundo. The SC, in this resolution, did not mention if it was treating cyber libel as a different crime from ordinary libel. According to a press release from the Philippine National Police Anti-Cybercrime Group (PNP ACG), a total of 1,211 cybercrime complaints were filed with them from 2013-2015. The Supreme Court has mentioned the relatively new Cybercrime Prevention Act of 2012 in only a handful of cases. This is called an “afflictive” penalty under Article 25 of the RPC. The document also said Keng was involved in a murder case for which he was "never jailed." Go was also the architect of Keng's Reina Regente condominium residence in Binondo, Manila. Cyber libel complaint vs Rappler sparks discussion). If the defamation is directed against a group or class and the statement is so sweeping or all-embracing as to apply to every member of that group or class, then any member can file an action for libel in his own name, not in the name of the group/class. Far Eastern University Institute of Law dean Mel Sta. Eduarte said it is "normal" that a complaint is not given to the camp of the defense, seeing that it’s not yet a criminal proceeding. Not resolutions,” Rodriguez said. CEBU CITY, Philippines — Be careful who you gossip about online or you might be arrested like these two women after a cyber libel case was filed by their former classmate against them. The case concerned Rappler’s May 29, 2012 article that cited a purported intelligence report “prepared in 2002” that supposedly talked about businessman Wilfredo Keng’s “alleged involvement in illegal activities, namely ‘human trafficking and drug smuggling.’”, On Feb. 19, 2014, the article was edited to correct one misspelling – the phrase “tax evation” in the 28th paragraph was changed to “tax evasion.”. By 3326 provides for a 12-year prescription period for offenses under special laws that are punishable by more than six years’ imprisonment. Cyber libel complaint vs Rappler sparks discussion. “When can a mere resolution become part of the ‘law of the land?’ Only when the Supreme Court itself referenced to it in an actual decision.”, Rodriguez said this meant that the Tolentino resolution was “binding only between the parties involved and cannot be used as a ‘case law.’ ”. Keng argued that he first tried to ask Rappler to take down the article and send a reporter to air his side of the story before he decided to file a case. Even if the Tolentino resolution was considered a binding precedent, Sta. continuing to use this site means you agree to our use of cookies. However, the copy of the complaint provided to Rappler is dated December 19, 2017. He complained that Rappler did not publish his side or take down the article. Santos’ report in May 2012, however, included Keng’s side taken from a phone interview with the businessman. This is the theory of continuous publication, which is what Eduarte cited in saying that Rappler could still be liable for cyber libel despite a non-retroactive law. View this article in your In justifying the inclusion of Ressa and Bitanga, Keng’s lawyers cited the Supreme Court’s ruling in 2008 against reporter Erwin Tulfo, which found him guilty of libel, as well as the managing editor, national editor, city editor, and president of the publishing house that owned the daily, Wilfredo Keng's complaint vs Rappler by Lian Nami Buan on Scribd –, Rappler libel complaint dangerous for media, bloggers – cyber lawyer, What's the right to be forgotten? of Dolphin Fire, which is a shareholder in Rappler Holdings Corporation, the parent company of Rappler Inc. Veteran broadcast journalist and Rappler executive editor Maria Ressa at the Manila regional trial court on June 15, 2020 for the promulgation of the decision on the cyber libel case filed against her by businessman Wilfredo Keng. The private complainant can just allege that he accessed the … Eduarte said the Cybercrime Division received the complaint in October 2017. The judge considered cyber libel to be “an offense separate and distinct” from ordinary libel under the Revised Penal Code (RPC). Maria, host of, Even if the Tolentino resolution was considered a binding precedent, Sta. One of the biggest sticking issues in Rappler’s case is prescription, or the time limit for the filing of a complaint counted from the discovery of the crime. “Basahin niyo may precedent na. Carlos T. So, G.R. In justifying the inclusion of Ressa and Bitanga, Keng’s lawyers cited the Supreme Court’s ruling in 2008 against reporter Erwin Tulfo, which found him guilty of libel, as well as the managing editor, national editor, city editor, and president of the publishing house that owned the daily Remate. No. phone’s browser. Metro Manila (CNN Philippines, December 3) — Rappler CEO Maria Ressa has been charged for the second time with cyber libel over her Twitter post where she shared a … The SC’s resolution allowed the case against Tolentino to proceed to trial. Ressa, along with Reynaldo Santos who wrote the … It is Bitanga’s son James who sits on the board of Rappler Inc. But the First Division affirmed the Quezon City RTC’s order. The report is about Keng supposedly lending his SUV to the late former chief justice Renato Corona, raising questions on ethics and propriety. Keng filed the complaint before the National Bureau of Investigation in October 2017, several years after the publication and correction of the article. Santos’ report was published in May 2012, or 4 months before former president Benigno “Noynoy” Aquino passed the Cybercrime Act into law September that year. Gesmundo is currently the only member of the division that tackled Tolentino’s case who has not yet retired – and can still participate in a future case where the prescription issue may be raised again. He noted that not even the state prosecutors or Judge Montesa used the Tolentino resolution to justify entertaining Keng’s complaint. We use cookies to help give you the best browsing experience. MANILA, Philippines – Businessman Wilfredo Keng filed a cyber libel complaint against Rappler for a report that linked him to illegal activities including human … “The article was published by Rappler, without observing the ethical standards of journalism. But unlike Ressa and Santos, Tolentino ended up being acquitted in a Sept. 27, 2019 decision, according to defense lawyer Berteni Causing. Te’s argument was hinged on the SC’s pronouncement in its Disini decision that cybercrime is “not a new crime but is one already punished” under the RPC. Online libel is the top cybercrime complaint in 2016, according to the Philippine National Police-Anti-Cybercrime Group The number of cybercrime complaints … It argued that because the Cybercrime Prevention Act of 2012 was silent on the prescription period for cyberlibel, the general rule on special laws should apply. Since all criminal laws are not retroactive, Keng’s lawyers justified their invoking the Cybercrime Law: “The article written was committed by means of publication in the online platform and website of Rappler, which is open and available for public consumption since the date it was posted, which was on May 29 2012 and updated on February 19 2014,” the complaint said. In 2016, Keng’s lawyers got in touch with Rappler and sent the office a letter dated August 2016 from the Philippine Drug Enforcement Agency (PDEA). Under the RPC, as amended by RA 4661, the crime of “libel or other similar offenses” shall prescribe in one year. In the first cyber libel case, based on the complaint filed by Keng, a Manila regional court had found Ressa and co-defendant Reynaldo Santos Jr., a former Rappler researcher, guilty and sentenced them to a minimum of six months and one day to a maximum of six years in prison. Does it matter then that the SC’s pronouncement of a 15-year prescription period was made in an unsigned resolution? Not writs. NBI Cybercrime Chief Manuel Eduarte said that this correspondence was tackled during the meeting at his office on Monday, January 22, between the camps of Keng and Rappler. 7010, which would specify a one-year period. She is interested in decisions, pleadings, audits, contracts, and other documents that establish a trail. (Tap the upper right corner and select, Veteran broadcast journalist and Rappler executive editor Maria Ressa at the Manila regional trial court on June 15, 2020 for the promulgation of the decision on the cyber libel case filed against her by businessman Wilfredo Keng. He does not sit on Rappler Inc's board. But the Corona issue is not what Keng is complaining about, but the portion of the story that quoted an intelligence report that details Keng’s past. 10175, the constitutionality of which was partially upheld by the SC in its Feb. 18, 2014 en banc decision on Disini versus Secretary of Justice. Academia.edu is a platform for academics to share research papers. Rappler's counsel files a counter-affidavit for the cyber libel complaint against Rappler's Maria Ressa and Reynaldo Santos at the NBI cybercrime office on February 1, 2018. A copy of the complaint was provided to Rappler only during the meeting on Monday. The report stated that Keng had been under surveillance by the National Security Council for alleged involvement in illegal activities, namely "human trafficking and drug smuggling." Section 5. Caloocan City prosecutor Darwin Cañete – known for his June 12, 2017 Facebook post that compared the “yellows” or the political opposition and its supporters to “cockroaches” and said “you kill them” – lashed out at the “apologists relying on technicalities to put Ressa off the hook” and claimed the Tolentino resolution was a “precedent.”. The trial court found that it was not enough that Tolentino used offensive language against Pua. This is equivalent to imprisonment of four years, two months and one day up to a maximum of eight years. Rappler's lawyer Jose Jesus "JJ" Disini said libel under the RPC has a prescriptive period of one year, which has lapsed. No. Instead of Act No. Maria argued that “, Campanilla, on the other hand, declined to discuss the Tolentino resolution directly in the context of, Caloocan City Metropolitan Trial Court Branch 83 Judge Marlo Campanilla, Tolentino ended up being acquitted in a Sept. 27, 2019, decisions interpreting a law only apply prospectively. The June 15 conviction of Rappler executive editor Maria Ressa and former writer- researcher Reynaldo Santos Jr., renewed attention to the law, Republic Act No. He is supposedly close to lawmakers and had contacts with the US embassy at the time. Maria Ressa, the founder of award-winning news site Rappler, was charged with her second cyber libel case at the Makati Regional Trial Court, several media reported today. (READ: What's the right to be forgotten? 10175, or the Cybercrime Prevention Act of 2012, Divina said in his complaint … But the SC used a different basis. In 2018, it held that the time limit for an offended person to file a cyberlibel case is 15 years – but it did so in an “unsigned resolution” that may not be a binding precedent and part of case law. The complaint was filed under a controversial cyber libel law that was enacted in September 2012 -- months after the article was published. Following Article 90 of the RPC, the prescription period for crimes punishable by afflictive penalties is 15 years – although, again, the very same section provides for a one-year period for libel. Pua claimed to have found out about the posts only in April 2017, or two years after the posts were made. Wilfredo Keng's complaint vs Rappler by Lian Nami Buan on Scribd – Rappler.com. Specified in Keng’s 7-page affidavit-complaint are the following paragraphs from the story: At the time we were tracing the registered owner of the Chevrolet in early 2011, we got hold of an intelligence report that detailed Keng's past. Though the NBI itself has branded it a cyber libel complaint, the header of the affidavit-complaint actually cites the "ordinary" crime of libel, as punishable by Article 355 of the Revised Penal Code (RPC). People of the Philippines and Atty. 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