Newsbreak editor held for P100-M Chavit libel

(Update 7) Gemma Bagayaua Mendoza, the online editor of Newsbreak magazine was arrested Wednesday afternoon by Pasig City policemen over a P100-million libel suit filed by administration senatorial candidate Luis "Chavit" Singson against the publisher, editors and a writer of the publication. Police said Judge Dominador Arquilada of the Vigan Regional Trial Court Branch 21 issued a warrant of arrest against Bagayaua and Newsbreak's publisher Maan Hontiveros, editor in chief Maritess Danguilan Vitug, business editor Lala Rimando and senior writer Aries Rufo. Bagayaua's P 10,000 bail was not accepted because the head of the Pasig police warrant department, as of posting time, was still not in his office to sign the papers. Bagayaua told GMANews.TV that she was the only one of the five to be arrested who was inside the Newsbreak office at the Tektite Towers along Exchange road in Pasig city when two policemen in plain clothes arrived at 2:45 p.m. Bagayaua may be detained at the city precinct until the police officer shows up. She said her lawyers were looking at "night courts" that could accept her bail so that she could be released Wednesday night. She said Newsbreak's articles on Ilocos Sur Gov. Singson "were well-researched and were written without malice". The magazine's managing editor Glenda Gloria said she and Vitug were themselves almost arrested on Wednesday by policemen who were waiting outside the Newsbreak office. Gloria and Vitug, who were scheduled to attend a forum sponsored by Newsbreak on Wednesday afternoon, managed to convince the policemen to let them after promising to post bail Thursday morning. Second Gentleman Police said the libel case was in connection with a package of articles published by Newsbreak about Singson who was called by the magazine in its November 14 2006 issue "the second gentleman". In the editor's note section of the November issue, Vitug wrote: As we see in this issue, things have fallen into place—not for the country but for Singson. The governor is perceived to be the favored crony of President Arroyo, thanks to his revelations that led to EDSA 2." "Thus Singson is seen as the “second gentleman," with a clout that’s second only to the perceived influence of the President’s husband," she added. Vitug wrote Singson "appears to have expanded his sphere of influence from Ilocos Sur to the national government as indicated, among others, by the increase in his recommended appointees to choice agencies." She added:" His friends have hustled their way to sequestered prime land in Ortigas Center and built the Metrowalk mall, made possible by Singson’s well-placed connections." Bagayaua wrote an article about Singson on June 6, 2005 titled “Beyond Vigan". The article told of how Singson “expanded his sphere of influence" under the Arroyo administration. Bagayaua wrote that 22 of Singson’s people held key positions in 16 government agencies that mostly dealt with gaming, ports, land development and transportation. GMA's 24 Oras on Wednesday quoted Singson as saying that he would withdraw the case in exchange of Newsbreak's apology. Singson was the star witness of the prosecution in the 2000 Senate impeachment of trial of then President Joseph Estrada. In January 2001, Gloria Macapagal Arroyo became president after Estrada was ousted through the second EDSA People Power. In December 2006, five Newsbreak journalists posted bail at the Manila regional trial court after First Gentleman Jose Miguel "Mike" Arroyo filed libel charges against them in connection with an article that appeared in the magazine on December 3, 2003. Those charged were: Vitug, Glenda Gloria, managing editor; Jose Dalisay, editorial consultant; Ricky Carandang, former business editor and Booma Cruz, former contributing editor. Each posted a bail of P10,000 to preempt the arrest warrant. Denounced The National Union of Journalists of the Philippines, which launched a signature campaign last year to protest the libel charges filed by First Gentleman against journalists, denounced the arrest. Jose Torres Jr, NUJP chairman, said "the incident demonstrates the vulnerability of journalists to harassment by politicians who can afford to throw away money for the enormous filing fees simply to threaten media." "It is a sad irony that a country that prides itself of having the 'freest' media in Asia has journalists being harassed by government officials themselves for simply doing their job," he said. Torres said: "The use of an outdated libel law to harass media, coupled with the killings and threats against journalists, point to a deteriorating press freedom situation." Based on the NUJP list, the First Gentleman has filed libel charges against 46 journalists. These media practitioners came from seven different media organizations. The Philippine Center for Investigative Journalism reported that Arroyo had spent over P1.2 million in filing for damages before various courts. He has sought a total of P141 million in damages.-GMANews.TV