Justice dep't files sedition rap vs Daily Tribune journalists

For allegedly writing articles that "stirred up" people’s sentiments against President Gloria Macapagal Arroyo, the publisher and two columnists of The Daily Tribune newspaper were slapped of inciting to sedition charges by the Department of Justice (DOJ). The filing of charges against the three journalists at the Manila Metropolitan Trial Court came at the start of the senatorial campaign for the midterm May 14 elections. DOJ’s Senior State Prosecutor Philip Kimpo said there was probable cause to file inciting to sedition charges against Tribune publisher Ninez Cacho-Olivares and columnists Ramon "Ike" Señeres and Herman Tiu-Laurel. The DOJ alleged that the articles written by the three journalists tend to "lead or stir up the people against the lawful authorities, namely, the President of the Philippines and disturb the peace of the community." DOJ said that for writing these articles, the three journalists violated Article 12 of the Revised Penal Code. "Aptly, it must be clearly understood and always borne in mind that there is a vast difference between criticism or fair comment on the one side and defamation on the other. Where defamation commences, true criticism ends," Kimpo said. He also said "the accused (have) continuously maligned and undermined the present administration" and government institutions and have even "sullied the reputation and integrity of the institution(s) and compromised the moral ascendancy of its members." Prior restraint The three maintained that they cannot be held liable for what they wrote because they were just doing their job and exercising their right to freedom of expression. Olivares said the charges filed against them were a form of “prior restraint". This was not given credence by Kimpo who said “freedom of expression is not immune to regulation by the State in the exercise of its police power". "The Bill of Rights itself does not purport to be an absolute guaranty of individual rights and liberties," Kimpo said. He added: "Even liberty itself, the greatest of all rights, is not unrestricted license to act according to one’s will," It is subject to the far more overriding demands and requirements of the greater number." Presidency maligned The DOJ likewise belied Olivares’ claim that the charges were a form of prior restraint. "Clearly, there is no prior restraint or censorship being addressed to respondents. However, it could not be gainsaid that they could not be punished, as the freedom from subsequent punishment is not unqualified for they may be regulated in matters of public interest" Kimpo said. Kimpo cited one article written by Olivarez dated December 11, 2005 wherein the publisher alleged that the military “willfully engages in illegal activities and follows illegal orders from the Commander-in-Chief." "She (Olivarez) further categorically stated that the incumbent president is a bogus president. In the same column, she also maligned the person of the then Chief of Staff Generoso Senga by saying that he was unprofessional and protector of criminals in the military establishment," he said. He also noted that on her January 5, 2006 column entitled "Illegal Chain of Command", Olivarez reiterated her previous statements on her December 11, 2005 column that the military was corrupt and unprofessional. Also on January 13, 2006, Kimpo said Olivarez wrote that “the Supreme Court could not be trusted by the people because the High Court is an accomplice to the crime against them." "She (Olivares) also attacked the integrity of the legislature of the Philippines by stating in her column that the same was the protector of thief, liar and cheat." He added: "Under the very same column, she continued to malign the presidency by stating that the chief executive had extremely prostituted all government agencies in order to hold on to power and that the president made a mockery of the law," he added. Seneres, in his column, called President Arroyo as a "bad girl, that she was continuing what her cheating spree and stole the credit from the Overseas Filipino Workers by claiming that she was the cause of the upsurge of the peso." Vulgar libels The same issues were allegedly repeated in Seneres’ December 6, 2005 column. "And on his Jan. 26, 2006 column entitled sense and sensibilities, he (Seneres) stated that the President committed too many wrongs and that the Filipinos already believed that it was right to oust her," said Kimpo. "In addition, he had written other vulgar libels against the constituted authorities as evidenced by the newspapers submitted by the herein complainant." Laurel, on the other hand, wrote in his January 23, 2006 column that Mrs. Arroyo "bribed her way out of the impeachment and her enforcers used police brutality and she had cheated in the election." "It is thus an unconcealed fact that their columns would certainly produce disaffection and discontentment to the people and would undermine the stability of the government. Much less, it might also create a feeling of hate and dissatisfaction agains the government," Kimpo said. He insisted that the series of articles published by the Daily Tribune "could not be concluded as a mere opinion or observation of facts and circumstances". He said "the records at hand revealed that respondents had persistently attacked the executive department of the government, particularly the legitimacy of the present administration of President Arroyo." Obscenely abusive Kimpo said that while Article 142 of the Revised Penal Code does not require that respondents directly participate in the crime of sedition, "their seditious statements and scurrilous libels tend to incite others to cabal and meet together for unlawful purposes, to suggest rebellions conspiracies or riots, to stir up the people against the lawful order of the government." While the three did not directly participate in any public tumultuous uprising, Kimpo said reading of the articles written by the respondents "reveal some grossly or obscenely abusive libels against the government and its officials." The DOJ recommended P12,000 each for the temporary liberty of the three accused. Police officers raided the Manila offices of the Daily Tribune midnight of February 24, 2006 on the basis of Presidential Proclamation 1017 issued by President Gloria Arroyo. The proclamation was issued to stem an alleged destabilization plot planned by members of the political opposition and disgruntled military officers against the government. Copies of the newspaper’s back issues and printed articles were confiscated during the raid. These were used by the DOJ to investigate Olivarez, Seneres and Laurel. -with reports from Joan Dairo, GMANews.TV