March 13, 2006 · Posted in: Media
Search warrant on PCIJ
LATE this afternoon, three members of the Central Police District, accompanied by sound engineer Jonathan Tiongco, asked a Quezon City judge to issue a warrant that will allow the police to search the office of the Philippine Center for Investigative Journalism, apparently in connection with a charge of inciting to sedition.
The PCIJ received confirmation of the application from well-placed sources in the Quezon City Regional Trial Court (RTC) and the Quezon City Police. Court and police sources say that an earlier application for a search warrant was turned down last Friday by another Quezon City judge. This apparently prompted the police and Tiongco to apply today for a search warrant with another judge, Alan Balot of RTC Branch 76.
Alerted by the PCIJ, journalists from various media organizations waited outside Balot’s office while the hearing for the search warrant, which began at about 4:30 p.m., lasted past office closing hours this afternoon. The judge emerged from his office at about 5:30 p.m, but refused to talk to reporters. Interviewed by GMA-7 reporter Sandra Aguinaldo, Tiongco only said that the hearing had been cancelled. The clerk of court, meanwhile, told Aguinaldo that the there was no hearing, only an application for a search warrant.
The PCIJ and other journalists have been unable to confirm whether the judge granted the request for a warrant. But some court sources say that the presence of journalists prevented the warrant’s issuance today.
The PCIJ was unable to get a copy of the charge sheet, but its lawyers believe that the case is linked to the one filed by Tiongco against the PCIJ late last year. In that case, filed before the Department of Justice, Tiongco said that the PCIJ should be charged with “inciting to sedition” for posting on this blog the “Hello, Garci” recording containing the allegedly wiretapped conversations between former elections commissioner Virgilio Garcillano and several officials, including possibly President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo.
In that petition, which was ignored by the justice department, Tiongco alleged that the posting of the audio recordings led the opposition to call for the president’s resignation and impeachment and encouraged civil society groups to hold rallies against the president.
Since the last quarter of 2005, Tiongco and his wife Rona have filed two libel cases against the PCIJ for publishing on this blog extracts of a police dossier that lists a string of criminal cases filed against him. Rona Tiongco has also sued the PCIJ for violation of her right to privacy. In addition, Jonathan Tiongco has filed a falsification charge against the Center. He also asked, but failed, to get the Supreme Court to issue an injunction against the posting of the “Hello, Garci” recording on the PCIJ blog. Tiongco has also sued ABS-CBN for libel, wiretapping and falsification.
On Nov. 4, Quezon City Judge Ralph S. Lee issued a 20-day temporary restraining order on the PCIJ blog on the request of Rona Tiongco, who said that the Aug. 12, 2005 post on her husband violated her privacy and that of her children. Mrs. Tiongco, however, was never mentioned by name in that post.
Jonathan Tiongco has been linked to Presidential Chief of Staff Michael Defensor, who presented the sound engineer in a press conference last Aug. 12, in a bid to question the authenticity of the “Hello, Garci” recording. In a telephone interview with the PCIJ this afternoon, Defensor denied any knowledge of the search warrant against PCIJ.
“There are certain media personalities against whom cases of inciting to sedition will be filed,” he said, “pero hindi kasama ang PCIJ (PCIJ is not one of them).” He said that the only relationship he had with Tiongco was that press conference last year. “I want this clear, we’re not together politically,” he said. “He is more aligned with the opposition. He even filed cases against (former police chief Hermogenes) Ebdane and (former Cabinet secretary and chief of staff Angelo) Reyes.”
When asked whether an inciting to sedition charge ought to be filed against the PCIJ for posting the wiretapped recordings, Defensor said, “I was the one who said it’s no use stopping the release of the Garci tape.”
In an Oct. 11, 2005 ruling, the Supreme Court threw out Tiongco’s petition demanding that the PCIJ take down the "Hello, Garci" recording from this blog. The high tribunal asserted that the constitutional right to free expression was paramount. "Free expression is guaranteed by the Constitution," the Supreme Court said. " Any deviation from this rule through judicial restraint can only be had after a proper trial of facts."
The Supreme Court also described Tiongco’s petition as "barely comprehensible" and "bereft of merit." It also rather pointedly said that Tiongco should have sought professional legal advice before filing his motion.
50 Responses to Search warrant on PCIJ
johnmarzan
March 13th, 2006 at 10:22 pm
wow.
Chihiro
March 13th, 2006 at 11:17 pm
oh my.
jr_lad
March 13th, 2006 at 11:38 pm
wow talaga.
tuloy-tuloy na talaga ang mga intimidations at tangkang pambubusal sa media at mga taong tumutuligsa kay glue-ria. at ano naman ang papel netong si tiongco sa gobyerno? civilian agent na ba siya? bakit kasama siya sa pag-aapply ng warrant? and mike d has the nerve to say that tiongco is more alligned with the opposition? nagpapatawa ka mike.
mabuhay ang PCIJ!
Simon
March 14th, 2006 at 12:10 am
Gloria’s suppressive actions are panic reactions characteristic of governments wanting in legtimacy. She is hounded by her own shadows of political insecurity and her inordinate desire to stay in power. Her time could be running out as she does not know her enemies in her own military structure and she will just self-destruct because she is her own enemy. She is the cause and the answer to her own problem which she and her group do not realize. They thought the problem lies with the opposition or the left or the enlightened segment of the military establishment. They failed to see that Gloria is the problem and in the course of failing to comprehend the problem, they are destroying all democratic institutions in the country… the electoral system, the checks and balances in a democratic government, the independence of the judiciary, the bill of rights of the people, the professionalism of the military and the freedom of the press.
After Gloria has practically bastardized our fledgling democratic institutions and trampled upon our civil liberties and freedom as a people, the realization will one day dawn in the mind of every decent Filipino… to alter or abolish the existing government and to institute a new government that will give meaning to democracy and freedom.
‘We hold these truths to be self-evident, that All men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable rights, that among these are life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness. That to secure these rights, governments are instituted among men, deriving their just powers from the consent of the governed. That whenever any form of government becomes destructive of these ends, it is the right of the people to alter or abolish it, and to insitute new government laying its foundation on such principles and otganizing its powers in such form, as to them shall most likely to effect their safety and happiness… All experience hath shown, that mankind are more disposed to suffer (governments), while evils are sufferable, than to right themselves by abolishing the forms to which they are accustomed. But when a long train of abuses and usurpations, pursuing invariably the same object evinces a design to reduce them under absolute despotism, it is their right , it is their duty, to throw off such government, and to provide new guards for their security….”(Democracy’s Declaration of Independence)
Gloria, for all her greed and hypocrisy, could be the final catalyst to ignite a genuine change in our society. The Filipino people and society have suffered for so long from corrupt politicians now epitomized by Gloria, who though beleaguered is still politically surviving aided by her misguided and selfish political and military herd. It’s a matter of time for the Filipino people to rise up to institute a new government led by the conscientious group in the armed forces.
baycas
March 14th, 2006 at 6:11 am
fishing expedition and political harrassment are what they are doing…pdi has been forewarned…newsbreak was also chilled last night through raw informations of a search in ms. vitug’s office…
dossiers on the opposition and palace-perceived opposition are being thoroughly checked and age-old lawsuits being unearthed and are now being used by the armed services against them (opposition). look at the latest alcuaz apprehension. one will shudder in thought that he/she may be next…possibly from an old “jaywalking” case or the like maybe?
…gloria’s brandied mix of paranoia and highhandedness in the air…a toast to the spirit of self-preservation…self-perpetuation!
MitaMS
March 14th, 2006 at 6:38 am
so there was no search warrant issued? and tiongco is who again?
penpenpen88
March 14th, 2006 at 9:00 am
this is indeed an pf installment martial law… pd 1017 may have been withdrawn in public.. but a shadow pd 1017 still exists and martial law like tenticles are steadily widening its reach all parts of her realm.. pretty soon all her detractors would have been silenced… if that happens then it will just be like a military junta.. a banana republic..
buddymigs
March 14th, 2006 at 9:18 am
Bakit ba hindi kasuhan yang tiongco na yan?
puro pa-epal lang.
puro pang-gugulo lang sa bayan ang ginagawa niyan..
mukang may balak yatang maging politiko yan eh.
sana may mag file ng kaso against this dumb ass..pwede ba disturbance of public peace and order? or kung anumang inciting na pwedeng ikaso sa kanya..
nangengealam puro palpak naman ang kinakalabasan ng pangengealam niya..
penpenpen88
March 14th, 2006 at 9:18 am
tiongco is that nobody that so antagonistic na pati si dating congressman jo mari gonzales pinapatulan.. hamunin ba naman makipagkita at makipagsuntukan dun sa matandang congressman.. toink.. that guy is a lackey of mike defensor.. sobrang madaming rage inside him.. wala naman sense magsalita… mukha pang masamang tao… tsk tsk… mike really knows how to find em…
penpenpen88
March 14th, 2006 at 9:25 am
kulang sa pansin kasi siguro since childhood kaya madaming galit sa loob.. all i can say is the government is pulling all the stops.. all the dirt they can dig or manufacture.. kasi lam nila the people wont stand for extra constitutional means to silence her detractors.. but sometimes they still do foray into the extra constitutional and do get away with it.. take the case of ka bel.. pinapalaya na nga ng hukom ayaw pa rin pakawalan ng AFP.. sila sila lang din naman ang naglalabag sa batas eh… but pag sila naglabag ok lang.. pag tayo full force of the law daw??… tsk tsk… duality on law implementation.. ganyan ang legacy ni ate glue..
MitaMS
March 14th, 2006 at 9:54 am
pinasisikat lang yan…andami naman nating nobody sa mundo bakit yung “nevermind” na yan pa sisikat?
ka lando
March 14th, 2006 at 10:07 am
who is tiongco?
He is the sound engineer who doesn’t have a sound sense of hearing and comprehension.
Sya kasi yung nag “analyze” ng mga audio recordings at di nya nabosesan si gloria, di nya rin na-gets na tungkol pala sa dayaan ng election ang topic ng recorded phone conversations.
Simon
March 14th, 2006 at 10:17 am
Piece of advice…
When you are being interrogated or cross-examined by Gloria stooges in the military or in the Justice Department in an investigation or in courts (of law or martial), just invoke JOSE PIDAL’S absurd line (I INVOKE MY Jose Pidal’s RIGHT TO PRIVACY OR MY RIGHT AGAINST SELF-INCRIMINATION!) OR Gloria’s notorious “Hello Garci” line (IT’S A LAPSE IN JUDGMENT! as in Gloria-Garci case) but don’t say I’m sorry.
Those two lines should acquit you in time as it freed the conjugal thieves from the long arms of the law. Let’s learn from these shameless conjugal thieves. They are exhibiting brilliant legal defenses that have lulled even certain decent Filipinos into fans of theirs joining their hypocritical chants for the “rule of law” to be allowed to take its course knowing fully well that they have already installed all their legal stooges in strategic legal positions which means in short (All justices in the Supreme Court and many lower court judges have sworn blind loyalty to Gloria’s rule/Ombudsman is hers/Congressmen are her paid minions) … They will/can never lose cases strategic to their political survival.
lokalokang matino
March 14th, 2006 at 10:44 am
jr_lad,
WOW talaga, look at Jingoy Alcuaz, hinuli sa kasong dapat ibinasura na. There is also the case of Dinky Soliman. PURE INTIMIDATION.
Using Tiongson only shows how desperate the Palace occupant is.
It is really very difficult to defend the undefensable.
The DEFENSORS will have a hard time juggling legalistic tactics, and dirty tricks.
These people are lucky enough enjoying borrowed (stolen?) power. They can easily intimidate critics/dissenters who dares cross their path.
Mindless display/practice of arrogance is careless governance. Thats the gloria regime is doing. SURVIVAL TAKES THE FRONT SEAT, GOVERNACE IN THE BACK SEAT.
Moving on? When? Only gloria knows.
Maybe after we dance the CHA-CHA. Shall We Dance?
dimasalang
March 14th, 2006 at 11:11 am
These charges are crap. Nothing more than a form of harassment to a bastion of free expression.
We will always be behind PCIJ!
Sino kaya ang mga political strategists ni Gloria? Lahat nag-babackfire sa kanila e. Nung ni-raid ang Daily Tribune, lahat ng journalists at publications nagkaisa. Even yung mga pro-administration, kasi they enjoy the same rights. They feel that an attack to one of their colleagues is an attack to them. And, the circulation of The Daily Tribune actually increased. Lalo silang nabigyan ng exposure e. The people who used to ignore the Tribune became curious about the paper. Tsktsk…kaya biglang lumambot yung stance nila. Ngayon ito na naman…tanga talaga silang lahat.
They can’t understand the fact that the more they try to muzzle the press and cover-up the truth, the more it comes out and the more it becomes credible.
As for the Supreme Court, the institution has allowed itself to become prostituted by this administration that it has relinquished itself of any integrity or independence. Now, only the court of the masses have the right to pass judgment on political matters.
floyd
March 14th, 2006 at 11:17 am
hahahahaha hahahahaha hahahahaha hahahahaha nakakahiya sila hahahahaha hahahahaha nakakahiya talaga yung mga nagfile ng petition hahahahahaha
ASTEEEGGG!!!!
^_^
jojo
March 14th, 2006 at 11:21 am
wtf is that chihuahua’s problem?
he needs major psych help, seriously.
johnmarzan
March 14th, 2006 at 11:54 am
Critical media, not military, is biggest threat to Arroyo
Sabi ni Fence-sitting Joker Arroyo:
Dear Joker, you’ve got it wrong again.
It’s not the military that has supplanted the political opposition as the real opposition group to GMA, but the critical media.
Kaya nga may media crackdown yung arroyo administration eh, including threats of a government takeover of the Tribune, and now this harassment PCIJ is getting for “inciting to sedition”, because they posted the “Hello, Garci” tapes.
UPDATE: Baycas said:
if this is true, then by golly, kakatakot naman ito…
mowa
March 14th, 2006 at 12:11 pm
produce more hello garci tape !!!
assumptionista
March 14th, 2006 at 12:55 pm
don’t get intimidated!! lets continue fighting!!!!!!
magsasaka
March 14th, 2006 at 1:20 pm
baka may cd na dito about sa nakawan sa ballot boxes sa congress kaya kumukuha ng search warrant ang mga militar.
glncrz
March 14th, 2006 at 2:13 pm
uuy harassment yan ha but pcij people huwag matakot!!!
jester-in-exile
March 14th, 2006 at 2:16 pm
let’s look at this from the viewpoint of pre- and post-PP 1017:
– the Tribune, a rather smallish broadsheet with circulation by and large limited to metro manila (we don’t get it here) was raided.
– guards were posted at the ABS-CBN and GMA stations.
– NTC “guidelines” for broadcasters and gonzales’ statement that “they” (presumably the administration) are watching the media, even after 1017 is lifted.
– alleged attempt to search the PCIJ offices for “seditious” material, and rumors of PDI and newsbreak being in the same boat.
it seems to me (i think i posted a comment about this somewhere) that the administration’s actions under and post-1017 encouraged and still encourages the stifling of the media, especially specific sectors long known and renowned for in-depth reporting and analysis, as well as no-holds-barred criticism (among them newsbreak, the PCIJ, the inquirer, the tribune).
whether tiongco was acting on his own or on someone’s behest, it seems pretty clear that he was emboldened by the administration’s tacit favor for silencing critics. the mccarthyist witchhunts for “communists” are nothing compared to arroyoist stakeburning of “destabilizers”.
the scary part would be for provincial journalists. knowing that the attempts to stifle the metro manila-based media are via raiding and ransacking quite obviously with the administration’s sanction, it’s no leap of faith that the attempts to silence critics among the provincial media will be more rampant unsolved shootings… with or without the administration’s sanction, little doubt that there will be their approval, and what little effort being made to bring justice to the victims will trickle to a dead stop (pardon the the bad pun).
tikboyblue
March 14th, 2006 at 2:17 pm
hey Mr. Tiongco,
baka puwede mo ring isama ang mga blogsters at website owners na nagpalabas din ng palabas mo, err, analysis mo (kuno) plus nagsilbing mirror sa mga articles na sabi mo ay kontra sa iyo. para naman one big happy family, di ba?
at saka baka puwede ring isama mo ang mga tsismosa sa kalye namin — si Aling Maring, si timang, si tikya, si aling obang, si lumen, si iska, si maria, si manong jose, si kanor, si manang abelarda, si bansot, si kiko, etc., etc., etc. — na kung hindi man naniwala ay nagkalat din sa kuwestiyonable mong pagkatao at mga analysis.
baka gusto mo rin akong isama. kasi mamya baka i-tsismis din kita sa blog ko pag hindi ako tinopak. ok ba?
yahitsmhe
March 14th, 2006 at 3:21 pm
Just wondering how many millions defensor gave Tiongco? Why is that a lot of intellegent person allow themselves to be used by these corrupt officials? Nakakatulog pa kaya sila?
coldfeet
March 14th, 2006 at 3:22 pm
guys naisahan naman kau ng dumb na si tiongco. ngaun sino ang dumber… yung si tiongco nga nangisa o yung naisahan.. it pays to play dumb.. yung opposition naman puro daw matatalino eh wla namang magawa. sana kasi ginawa nila ang kanilang trabaho..gumawa ng batas na maprevent ang mga ganito.. eh sira(close) ang mga loopholes ng batas.. eh yun naman talaga trabaho nila;..hindi yung lagi presscon.. hindi ang bansa mapupunta sa ganitong basura kungdi rin sila nagpapabaya… think about it.. marami palang butas ang batas na magamit ni gloria. eh ano pa ginagawa ninyo.. mambabatas kau diba..?stupid..
lokalokang matino
March 14th, 2006 at 3:57 pm
In a press conference after the senate hearing today, and during the hearing itself, Joker arroyo displayed frustratiion over what the executive department has been doing and very disappointed over the ineffectiveness of the minority.
His final statement in the presscon, ” I THINK I HAVE MADE ENOUGH DAMAGE TODAY”.
Your honor, Mr. Chairman, Sana next time please direct your statements to gloria macapagal. Kunwari na lang nakalimutan nyong banggitin ang ARROYO.
To Ms. Sheila Coronel:
Keep the fire burning !!!
floyd
March 14th, 2006 at 5:30 pm
“Huwag kang matakot”
Huwag kang matakot
‘Di mo ba alam nandito lang ako
Sa iyong tabi
‘Di kita pababayaan kailan man
At kung ikaw ay mahulog sa bangin
Ay sasaluhin kita
CHORUS:
Huwag kang matakot na matulog mag-isa
Kasama mo naman ako
Huwag kang matakot na umibig at lumuha
Kasama mo naman ako
Huwag kang matakot
Huwag kang matakot
Dahil ang buhay mo’y walang katapusan
Makapangyarihan ang pag-ibig
Na hawak mo sa iyong kamay
Ikaw ang Diyos at hari ng iyong mundo
Matakot sila sa ‘yo
CHORUS:
Huwag kang matakot na matulog mag-isa
Kasama mo naman ako
Huwag kang matakot na umibig at lumuha
Kasama mo naman ako
Huwag kang matakot na magmukhang tanga
Kasama mo naman ako
Huwag kang matakot sa hindi mo pa makita
Kasama mo naman ako
Huwag kang matakot
Aahhhah
CHORUS:
Huwag kang matakot na matulog mag-isa
Kasama mo naman ako
Huwag kang matakot na umibig at lumuha
Kasama mo naman ako
Huwag kang matakot
Huwag kang matakot (huwag kang matakot)
‘Di kita pababayaan kailan man
(Repeat till fade)
-eraserheads-
everybody sing with me!!!! lets rally behind PCIJ!!! heres our chant!!! nyahahaha
jr_lad
March 14th, 2006 at 6:12 pm
there’s no doubt that tiongco is a paid lackey of malacanang. he is a mercenary. i think his services is to the highest bidder or to whoever will pay him.
paano naman kaya naging inciting to sedition yung pagsisiwalat ng katiwalian ng gobyerno?
ibig bang sabihin kung si erap hindi napatalsik noon, si chavit ay kinasuhan din ng kasong sedition sa halip na libel?
baycas
March 14th, 2006 at 6:35 pm
thanks, john. the military warned pdi “against publishing articles about alleged attempts by ‘puppet masters’ to divide the armed forces in a bid to unseat her.” this came out in yesterday’s pdi headline news. re: newsbreak “alert,” i heard ms. vitug and their lawyer on radio last night that they were alerted of rumors of a possible pnp search as a result of their publication of the so-called “beautiful bello” (not from the belo medical group) pictures in previous blogpost.
—–
now, must reads (with mp3s too) again…for positive-thinkers and naysayers; apathetics; stabilizers and critics; left, right, and center; holy and unholy:
http://philippinecommentary.blogspot.com/2006/03/telling-faux-pas-in-proclamation-1017.html
http://philippinecommentary.blogspot.com/2006/03/this-is-proof-of-leftist-rightist.html
thanks, djb and pcij!
Barako Café » Blog Archive » Who’s seditious now? (OR doesn’t GMA make you sick?)
March 14th, 2006 at 7:15 pm
[…] PCIJ just made it to the inciting-to-sedition hit list. Thank God some journalists believe the media can beat Arroyo’s repressive regime, and thank God, the church isn’t as neutral as we all thought.. […]
schumey
March 14th, 2006 at 8:48 pm
No matter what laws our senators propose to plug the loopholes in our laws, the president will have the last say. She can veto any law that she thinks will be detrimental to her hold on power.
If you want to hear straight-from-the-hip commentaries, watch Jay Sonza and Batas Mauricio on UNTV, (www.untvweb.com) every morning at 5 am. I know that PCIJ will continue to fight for what is right and true.
Keep that fire burning PCIJ!
coldfeet
March 14th, 2006 at 9:03 pm
Yap .. she can veto.. but her veto can be override by the majority of the lawmaker.if that happens.. that is a big embarassment to any president .. kaya delikado gumamit ng veto pag alam mo matatalo ka sa override..
Chabeli
March 14th, 2006 at 11:08 pm
Gheeeez!
PCIJ Bloggers will NOT BE INTIMIDATED by a low-life, wacko, money-sucking, idiot like Tiangco! He has some gall!
Chabeli
March 14th, 2006 at 11:09 pm
I forgot to add, criminal pa yata, yan diba?
INSIDE PCIJ: Stories behind our stories » Twilight zone
March 14th, 2006 at 11:30 pm
[…] SOMETHING strange appears to be happening at the Quezon City Regional Trial Court, at least in connection with a search warrant that police officials have been seeking against the PCIJ. […]
penpenpen88
March 15th, 2006 at 12:47 am
by cold feet
Yap .. she can veto.. but her veto can be override by the majority of the lawmaker.if that happens.. that is a big embarassment to any president .. kaya delikado gumamit ng veto pag alam mo matatalo ka sa override..
— dont think she needs it.. she has control of the house FYI kaya kahit gaano pa ka wais ang opposistion.. kahit na gaano ka well crafted yang impeachment na yan.. it will always be in the end about how many votes you can muster in the house.. and if u look at the last impeachment case she has most of the house in her left pocket…. so talking bout veto?? no need to even think bout it.. lahat ng laws na contra sa government.. contra sa interests ng mga corrupt officials natin ay di nila ipapapasa.. gusto nila status quo.. kurakot galore.. congressmen na kurakot passing budgets so dat government official na kurakot and military na kurakot can kurakot us more… =)
lbrto
March 15th, 2006 at 5:01 am
They won’t stop until they get their way…
But we will succeed in the end…
lbrto
March 15th, 2006 at 5:02 am
Because we are on the side of the TRUTH…
PinoyPress » Blog Archive » With Great Power…
March 15th, 2006 at 2:20 pm
[…] I was sitting as a panelist at a forum called “Who’s Afraid of Media Freedom?” yesterday (March 13) at the Ateneo law school in Rockwell when my cellphone went berserk with text messages warning of an impending police raid of the offices of the Philippine Center for Investigative Journalism. I was stunned. Literally, I felt a chill crawling down my spine. Having no experience with media repression on the scale that my elder colleagues went through during the martial law years, I was actually afraid. Is this it? I asked myself silently. Are they really going to arrest Sheila Coronel et. al.? After them, who was going to be next? (Read Sheila’s account of what happened yesterday.)I was going to speak after ABS-CBN’s Luchi Cruz-Valdez. While listening to her recount her experience covering the first Edsa, a thought crossed mind: Should I deliver my speech? What if the Arroyo regime would think it is subversive or that it might incite people to rebel? […]
cultourtra
March 16th, 2006 at 1:16 am
Look!!! Who’s now on the side of the oppressor??? …..sor!!!
If my recollection serves me right, this guy was a militant (?) student
activist fighting for a cause (?) in the 80s or 90s. What a waste! Can
I call this “preposterous irony?”
cultourtra
March 16th, 2006 at 2:03 am
I’m really sad with the way things are degressing in a country like ours.
When can we be proud again as a nation?
I’m now confused with the real meaning of FREEDOM and INDIVIDUAL’s RIGHTS; people getting arrested, maimed and/or even killed, for
exercising this democratic endowments.
It’s very apparent lessons are not learned. In time, they will leave
this earthly life, rot in their graves and debased forever.
johnmarzan
March 16th, 2006 at 4:55 pm
Sabi ni Mike Defensor:
More aligned with the opposition? That’s like saying Oliver Lozano is “more aligned” with the opposition too.
But this nutcase has also filed charges against the opposition and other critics of arroyo in the media.
He’s also filed a libel case against Teresita Ang See for this.
…and against ABS-CBN too for esposing him as the one who bailed out Terror suspect dawud santos.
And against PCIJ for “inciting to sedition” raw. DOJ Sec. Gonzalez agrees with gov’t stooge Tiongco.
Tiongco even accused the opposition of, get this, poisoning FPJ and other crazy stuff.
Of course, pinagtawanan lang siya ng opposition then: (aug. 15, 2005)
The fact that a blogger like Sassy Lawyer would stake her credibility to defend a Jonathan Tiongco shows her lack of judgment.
Coffee With Amee » Blog Archive » More Scare Tactics
March 18th, 2006 at 2:34 pm
[…] Things look extremely bleak for journalists in the Philippines. In addition to the murders of journalists, ongoing for years now, muzzling the press is currently in full swing, even with the lifting of Marti…este Proclamation 1017. From the PCIJ blog summarized: LATE this afternoon, three members of the Central Police District, accompanied by sound engineer Jonathan Tiongco, asked a Quezon City judge to issue a warrant that will allow the police to search the office of the Philippine Center for Investigative Journalism, apparently in connection with a charge of inciting to sedition.The PCIJ and other journalists have been unable to confirm whether the judge granted the request for a warrant. But some court sources say that the presence of journalists prevented the warrant’s issuance today. […]
INSIDE PCIJ: Stories behind our stories » Tiongco files perjury, obstruction of justice cases vs. PCIJ
March 20th, 2006 at 6:07 pm
[…] In that hearing, Coronel told members of the sub-committee on franchises about attempts by the Quezon City police to apply for a warrant to search the premises of the PCIJ. Coronel recounted how three members of the Central Police District, accompanied by Tiongco, tried but failed to obtain such a warrant. […]
blog @ AWBHoldings.com » Blog Archive » A Blogger’s Survival Manual (Updated)
March 20th, 2006 at 8:50 pm
[…] PCIJ has learned that there was an attempt by Tiongco to file a search warrant against – you guessed it right – PCIJ. […]
INSIDE PCIJ: Stories behind our stories » Media groups urge court: hear TRO petition
March 21st, 2006 at 2:41 pm
[…] They referred to incidents which they said provided “direct and thinly veiled threats against the press.” These include, they said, the suspension of an award-winning radio program by the station that aired it for four years, and the subsequent testimony of a government witness that the program’s producer was fronting for the communist party; and the attempts by the Quezon City police to secure a warrant to search the premises of the PCIJ. […]
INSIDE PCIJ: Stories behind our stories » Tiongco strikes again
March 27th, 2006 at 6:04 pm
[…] During a Senate inquiry on the effects of Proclamation 1017 on the media, Coronel and Olaso-Coronel told members of the Justice and Human Rights Committee how the Quezon City police, along with Tiongco, tried but failed to secure a warrant to search the PCIJ office. […]
INSIDE PCIJ: Stories behind our stories » Senate report backs free press;says the President is not the State
April 5th, 2006 at 11:54 am
[…] The report deplored the “high-handed and brazen” raid by the PNP of the office and printing press of the newspaper, Daily Tribune and the attempt to secure a warrant to search the premises of the PCIJ. […]
INSIDE PCIJ: Stories behind our stories » Manila conference on freedom of expression in Asian cyberspace
April 9th, 2006 at 4:12 pm
[…] Though largely credited for disseminating the audio files of the taped conversations that seriously cast doubt on the legitimacy of Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo’s election victory, Filipino bloggers, in particular the writers of the PCIJ, were recently threatened by the secretary of justice with cases of “inciting to sedition,” and the Center’s office also targeted by a search warrant. […]