Rights groups, gov’t clash over terror verdict

A young journalist who spent nearly six years in a crowded provincial prison was found guilty of terror financing, which rights groups and a UN rapporteur immediately assailed as a “travesty of justice.”

Community journalist and radio broadcaster Frenchie Cumpio, 26, and former roommate Marielle Domequil broke down in tears and hugged each other as the guilty verdict was read, and they were sentenced to up to 18 years by Judge Georgina Uy Perez of the Tacloban regional court.

The National Task Force to End Local Communist Armed Conflict (NTF-ELCAC), however, hailed the conviction as a decisive legal victory against terrorism and those who finance it.

Regional Trial Court (RTC) branch 45 of Tacloban City, an anti-terrorism designated court, has convicted both for terrorism financing under Republic Act 10168 or the Terrorism Financing Prevention and Suppression Act, while acquitting them of the separate charge of illegal possession of firearms and explosives, “proving that justice is neither blind to facts nor captive to propaganda.”

“The court has spoken. Justice has been fairly dispensed with — based on evidence, not noise, not ideology, and not propaganda,” NTF-ELCAC executive director Undersecretary Ernesto Torres Jr. said.

The ruling, rendered by Presiding Judge Georgina Perez, was lauded by the task force as a victory for the Filipino people and their collective right to be protected from terrorism and its financial lifelines.

Marcos rapped for ‘empty talk’

The case has been closely monitored by human rights groups including Amal Clooney’s Clooney Foundation for Justice, which in October questioned the lengthy detainment, citing “repeated postponements and slow progress.”

UN Special Rapporteur Irene Khan had previously said the charges against Cumpio appeared to be “in retaliation for her work as a journalist.”

Beh Lih Yi, Asia-Pacific director of the Committee to Protect Journalists, condemned the court’s decision.

“This absurd verdict shows that the various pledges made by President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. to uphold press freedom are nothing but empty talk,” she said.

“The ruling underscores the lengths that Philippine authorities are willing to go to silence critical reporting.”

Outside the courthouse, riot police blocked a crowd of supporters that included Cumpio’s mother, Lala, from entering the courtyard.

Justice slow but it works

For Torres, however, the verdict demonstrated how the justice system works when due process is allowed to run its full course.

“This decision is a clear affirmation that our justice system is working exactly as it should — independently, impartially, and anchored on due process and evidence,” he said.