Solons Decry ‘Bastardization’ of Bill Meant to Decriminalize Libel

Several party-list representatives withdrew on Monday their authorship of a bill that seeks to decriminalize libel, saying the proposed measure has become bastardized, its objective a direct opposite to the one they had earlier filed.

In a letter addressed to House Minority Leader Arthur Defensor, Representatives Satur Ocampo and Teddy Casino (Bayan Muna), Liza Maza and Luzviminda Ilagan (Gabriela) and Rafael Mariano (Anakpawis) made formal their withdrawal from the authorship of House Bill No. 5760, which consolidates various bills that seek to decriminalize libel or, at the very least, remove imprisonment as a punishment for a libel offense.

They said HB 5760 “does not decriminalize libel” but is, in fact, intended to reform the country’s libel law. As such they said, the bill “is a direct anti-thesis to our original bill, HB 3535, which aims to delete libel from our criminal statutes.�

The lawmakers stressed that the crime of libel has been used as a tool for repression, particularly against the media. It violates the constitutional right to press freedom and presumption of innocence as it constitutes prior restraint and places the burden of proof on the accused, they said.

They noted that “libelous statements against the government are already taken care of by the provisions in the Revised Penal Code defining the crimes of rebellion or sedition.”

The lawmakers believe that libel, “like nonpayment of debt, does not partake of a criminal act even if it does cause damage to another person.” Thus, according to them, “the personal injury caused by a defamatory publication constitutes a cause of action for civil damages but not for criminal prosecution.�

�Public funds and the criminal justice system should not be used to vindicate a private reputation. In the case of libel, the criminal justice system is employed against an individual for his act of damaging the reputation of another,� they added.

In a statement released by Mariano, the lawmakers criticized House Speaker Prospero Nograles�s statement that House Bill 5760 would serve as a “companion-measure and a counter-balance” to the controversial right of reply bill.

�HB 5760 will in fact harden the criminalization of libel. It will never offset the right of reply bill�s curtailment of press freedom. These twin measures are direct assaults to the Philippine media,� Mariano said.

The lawmakers explained that they were not invited to any technical working group meeting to iron out the differences of the various bills that seek to decriminalize libel, calling the consolidated version �strikingly similar� to HB 4914, the last bill to be filed, which seeks to maintain libel as a criminal act.

To say that HB 5760 is a “middle ground is therefore unacceptable since it clearly is not,� they said.

They added that although the consolidated bill contains provisions that are “better” than the current libel law, particularly on venue and the liability of editors, it will only increase the fines for libel without attempting to lower the penalty of imprisonment. (pinoypress.net)