[OPINION] Journalism - it’s to die for!

May 03, 2024 | By Rain Julia Maduli

History of World Press Freedom Day from 1986 to 2023. (The Companion/R.J. Maduli)

In 1986, Guillermo Cano, a Colombian journalist was shot and killed in front of his newspaper's offices. Colombia in the 1980s was almost a narco-state, with notorious drug lords having major influence and holding political positions. Guillermo was critical of them and wrote articles exposing their crimes. They found his work offensive and had him assassinated.

His legacy lives on in the United Nations World Press Freedom Day, where an award in his name is given to journalists and organizations who contribute to global press freedom. UNESCO declares press freedom as essential to democracy, recognizing it as a fundamental human right through the Windhoek Declaration.

Fast forward to just before election season in 2009 in Maguindanao. Esmael Mangudadatu is on his way to file a certificate of candidacy to challenge the ruling Ampatuan clan in the province. Joining him for the convoy is a group of motorists, aides, lawyers, and journalists. The convoy is stopped by the Ampatuans' private militia, and then all of the convoy's members are kidnapped. Every member is summarily shot and tossed into a nearby mass grave. 58 people were killed, 32 of them being journalists. Evidence shows that at least 4 of the female journalists were raped before their execution, and all of the women in the convoy were shot in their genitals. In the aftermath, the Philippines was named by the Committee to Protect Journalists as the second most dangerous country for journalists, second only to Iraq - an active war zone at the time.

All this and yet many, myself included, still aspire to be media practitioners and journalists. They all know the risks; they too know there are undocumented disappearances and killings, and yet they still keep on writing.

Today, May 3, as we commemorate World Press Freedom Day, let us recall how the state has suppressed the freedom of the media, often exploiting it for self-interest and propagating falsehoods. The employment of trolls by state entities, for example, has become widespread across various social media platforms. When a news agency tries to uphold the truth, they are often labeled as biased. A short look at the comment sections of news agencies writing articles critical of the government will reveal staunch defenders of the administration – sometimes staunch enough to wish death upon the journalist who wrote it. Under the current media atmosphere in the Philippines, this cannot be seen as just an empty threat.

News organizations are also the targets of censorship under the guise of upholding the law. In 2022, news organizations such as Bulatlat and Pinoy Weekly were targeted as organizations that ‘promote terrorism,’ with their shutdown being endorsed to the National Telecommunications Commission. Rappler’s shutdown is also an example of this, when its license to operate was revoked by the Philippine Securities and Exchange Commission. Red-tagging by the state and its forces for individual journalists has also become a common occurrence. The true essence of being a media practitioner and journalist lies in continuously standing up for press freedom and centering truth above all else, which is often at odds with the current reality.

A truly free press – one free from governmental, political or economic intervention from the state – is crucial for a democratic society, but if the threat to press freedom persists, the urge for everyone to uphold the truth and freedom must be at its highest.

Many journalists and media practitioners have been slain or disappeared in their line of work, but their legacies and stories live on in the truths they have exposed and the change they have inspired. At the end of the day, it is worth pausing and reflecting on why you write what you do, and who you are writing for.

The opinion and views expressed by the writer are their own and do not necessarily reflect the positions of The Companion.