Philippines orders shutdown of news site Rappler

The Philippine government has previously ordered the shutdown of the news website Rappler, according to co-founder, Maria Ressa, the Nobel Peace Prize winner.

Rappler, who has been praised for exposing abuse of power and growing authoritarianism under the outgoing Philippine president Rodrigo Duterte, has faced a number of legal charges over the past few years.

The latest decision came just days before Duterte stands down and his successor, Ferdinand Marcos Jr., son and namesake of the late dictator, takes office.

At the East-West Center's International Media Conference in Honolulu, Ressa said the Securities and Exchange Commission, a key business regulator, had affirmed its earlier decision to revoke the certificates of incorporation of Rappler.

Ressa told the audience that part of the reason I didn't have much sleep last night was because we got a shutdown order.

She said we are not shutting down. I'm not supposed to say that. A copy of the order dated June 28th, 2022, made online by the SEC, said: The Company Registration and Monitoring Department is directed to effect the revocation of the Certificates of Incorporation of Rappler, Inc. and Rappler Holdings Corp. in the records and system of the Commission. The media has been under intense pressure under Duterte's presidency. The country's biggest broadcaster ABS-CBN was ordered off air during his term, and Ressa faced a number of legal charges that could lead to decades in prison.

Rappler said the decision effectively confirmed the shutdown of the company and vowed to appeal, and they have discussed all possible scenarios with Rapplers staff since SEC issued its first order in 2018, Glenda Gloria, executive editor and co-founder of the site, told reporters in comments quoted by AFP.

Nothing prepares an organization for a kill order. Ressa, who is also a US citizen and Russian journalist Dmitry Muratov, was awarded the Nobel Peace Prize in October for their efforts to preserve freedom of expression.