So our topic is Santos, Ressa (R-MNL-19-01141-CR), also known as the Maria

Ressa cyberlibel case

1. What is the case all about.

- So this is all about the high-profile criminal case in the Philippines, lodged
against Maria Ressa, co-owner and CEO of Rappler Inc. Accused of cyberlibel,
Ressa was found guilty by a Manila Regional Trial Court on June 15, 2020.

2. What are the facts of the case.

- The case centered on an article published on Rappler by Reynaldo Santos
Jr. which accused the former Chief Justice of the Supreme Court of the Philippines
of accepting favors from Filipino-Chinese businessman Wilfredo Keng.

3. What are the issues on the case.

- The issues for this case is Manila Regional Trial Court Judge Rainelda
Estacio-Montesa delivered the opinion of the Court. The central issue before the
Court was whether or not to charge the accused Reynaldo Santos, Jr. and Maria
Ressa with “cyberlibel,” contrary to section 4(c)(4) of the 2012 Cybercrime
Prevention Act (CPA).

4. What is the ruling of the Supreme Court.

- On 7 July, the Court of Appeal affirmed the libel conviction of Maria Ressa,
Rappler co-founder and CEO, and former researcher-writer Reynaldo Santos Jr, in
relation to an article published on alleged corruption by the Chief Justice of the
Supreme Court in the Philippines.
5. What are your take-aways (learnings) from this case?
- The Maria Ressa cyberlibel case is a high-profile legal case involving a journalist and CEO of
Rappler, a Philippine news website. Ressa was charged with cyberlibel in connection with a Rappler
article that linked a Filipino businessman to illegal activities. While I do not have access to real-time
information, I can provide some general takeaways or learnings that can be derived from cases like this
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