A New York-based journalist advocacy group has urged Malacañang and the Supreme Court to probe the death threats reportedly received by a journalist after the publication of her book on the “insides” of the country’s highest court.
The Committee to Protect Journalists voiced concern over an “apparent lack of an effective government response” to threats to the life of journalist Marites Danguilan Vitug.
The International Federation of Journalists (IPJ) has also echoed the same call for the conduct of the probe and rthe protection of local journalists.
Most dangerous
The IFJ last year said the Philippines has become the most dangerous place for journalists in the world following the Nov. 23 massacre of 57 people, including 32 journalists, in Maguindanao province.
In separate statements, the Foreign Correspondents Association of the Philippines (FOCAP) and the National Union of Journalists of the Philippines (NUJP) said the messages sent to Vitug only depict the culture of impunity to silence journalists seeking to uncover irregularities in the government.
“President Arroyo, Chief Justice Puno, as you know, we have long held the Philippine government responsible for the high level of impunity that has left unprosecuted virtually all 61 of the cases of journalists we count as killed in the country since 1992. The fact that a journalist of Vitug’s stature can be threatened in the capital city and that those threats have been callously dismissed by a spokesman for the highest court in the country only further discredits your government and the country’s judicial system,” CPJ executive director Joel Simon said in a letter addressed to Mrs. Arroyo and Chief Justice Reynato Puno.
Shadow of Doubt
Vitug is the editor of online news site Newsbreak, who has published the book “Shadow of Doubt: Probing the Supreme Court.”
The book, launched last week, critiqued the inner workings of the SC and discussed how some decisions were reached by justices.
“We urge you to press for a full investigation of the threats against Marites Vitug not only for her safety, but for that of the country’s other journalists, and for the reputation of the Philippines,” Simon added.
Simon said Vitug reportedly received death threats in recent weeks, including a stalking incident on March 24.
Before that, she also reportedly received four menacing text messages that mentioned following her as well as her son.
Not funny
Simon also chided Supreme Court spokesman Jose Midas Marquez for branding the threats against Vitug “funny” and “ridiculous,” and a publicity stunt for her book.
“The [FOCAP] condemns the death threats received by seasoned journalist Marites Vitug. We urge the authorities to swiftly investigate the threats and prosecute those behind them,” FOCAP said in a statement.
The NUJP also called on government authorities to provide Vitug with protection and unmask who are behind the threats.
“That she is threatened with death because someone has obviously taken offense at what she has written again highlights the culture of impunity that has emboldened those who wish to silence a dynamic and critical Philippine press to impose the ultimate form of censorship on those whose only sin is to strive to deliver the truth as best as they can to their audiences,” the NUJP said in a statement posted on its website.
Protection
Vitug welcomed the support of the media organizations, saying these gave her a cloak of protection.”It’s a great comfort for a journalist. It’s the best kind of protection,” she said. Meanwhile, a Supreme Court justice has filed a P1-million libel suit against Vitug for allegedly portraying him as an “unethical person without delicadeza.”
In his 10-page complaint, SC Associate Justice Presbitero Velasco said Vitug violated the Journalists’ Code of Ethics for allegedly indulging in a “vicious smear campaign” against him through 13 serialized articles called “SC justice in Partisan Politics,” published in the Web site abscbnnews.com/newsbreak.
