Statement on the recent attacks on press freedom

The Duterte administration once again exposed its fascist character after the Pandi Police raided Pinoy Weekly on the day before the president’s State Of the Nation Address and the people’s nationwide mobilization SONAgKaisa, accusing the legitimate and licensed publication as ‘subversive.’

Rappler quickly refuted claims made by the National Task Force to End Local Communist Armed Conflict (NTF-ELCAC) who attempted to justify the actions of the police. Rappler posted a counter statement stating that the Kadamay members were forced to sign a sloppy handwritten letter under duress. Furthermore, the Kadamay members protested the confiscation of the copies but were threatened with “May mangyayari.”, by the Pandi Police chief, Captain Jun Alejandrino,
if they do not surrender the copies

Recently, the official student publication of Central Luzon State University is also under attack by a malicious Facebook page. The page accused the staffers of the publication as part of the New People’s Army and that they are being trained by the rebels. This is a clear and blatant lie that aims to silence and intimidate the publication.

The Angelite shared the same fate after the current Editor-in-chief and the Associate Editor were tagged as CPP-NPA recruiters by Samahan ng Makakaliwa page which was already taken down by Facebook because of its malicious content.

The Duterte administration is afraid of the growing dissent. Their objective now is to silence the critical press with the recent shutdown of the ABS-CBN, raiding a legitimate alternative publication, and now the assault on campus journalists.

The Angelite, the official student publication of the Holy Angel University, vehemently condemns these attacks, we reiterate that our duty as journalists lies in delivering the truth under the heaps of lies propagated by this corrupted administration. Pinoy Weekly is a threat not because they are subversive but because they are relentless in exposing the rotten core of the Duterte regime.

To our fellow campus journalists, it is time to step down from our ivory tower to go beyond the gates of the University and be one with the Filipino people. Now is the time to amplify the voices of the toiling masses who are at the forefront in the struggle against the Duterte regime.

Our duty now as the campus press is evident more than ever, and so we shall rise to the occasion. As the attacks on the critical press worsen, the resistance will steadily grow, and we will be there to continue holding the line, along with the masses, in serving the truth, from the people to the people.

Serve the people!

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