Philippines: Journalist charged for ‘terrorist financing’

On January 10, community journalist Deo Montesclaros was charged in a terrorism financing case alongside four activists by a Cagayan branch of the Criminal Investigation and Detection Group in northern Luzon. The International Federation of Journalists (IFJ) joins its affiliate, the National Union of Journalists of the Philippines (NUJP) in condemning the registration of charges against the journalist and urging authorities to uphold press freedom and withdraw all charges.

Journalists and human rights defenders in the Philippines continue to be 'red-tagged' for their supposed criticism of the government, often by state authorities. Credit: Ted Ajilbe / AFP

Deo Montesclaros, a correspondent for Pinoy Weekly and contributor to several international photo agencies, was named in a January 10 subpoena by the Criminal Investigation and Detection Group of the Philippine National Police before the Cagayan Provincial Prosecutor's Office, alongside four activists.

The five have been directed to submit counter-affidavits with supporting evidence in response to a complaint registered by Police Staff Sergeant (PSSg) Percival P. Carag, which claims that Montesclaros and others were members of a regional Communist Party of the Philippines branch. The NUJP, civil society organisations, and media organisations have condemned the charges as the latest in a series of attacks against free expression and critical voices in the Philippines.

In 2020, the National Task Force to End Local Communist Armed Conflict (NTF-ELCAC) named Montesclaros as a member of an insurgent leftist organisation during a senate hearing. Journalists and other human rights defenders in the Philippines have continued to face 'red-tagging', a process in which perceived critics of the government are labelled as a member of insurgent Communist groups, often by authorities themselves.

Montesclaros, a member of the NUJP and the Filipino Freelance Journalists' Guild (FFJ) is the second journalist charged under anti-terror laws in the Philippines, with community journalist Frenchie Mae Cumpio held in detention since 2020 on spurious terrorist financing and illegal firearms charges.

The NUJP said: "We join our colleagues in Pinoy Weekly, Photojournalists' Center of the Philippines, Filipino Freelance Journalists' Guild and in the media community in condemning the accusations against Deo and in demanding their withdrawal or dismissal. We condemn as well the continuing use of supposed anti-terrorism laws as a tool to silence journalists and the public in general. We call on the Presidential Task Force on Media Security and its new leadership to monitor this case, ensure that Deo's rights, safety and well-being are protected, and seek accountability over the spurious accusation against him."

The IFJ said: "The IFJ condemns the registration of arbitrary cases against journalists and other human rights defenders. Filipino authorities have a responsibility to ensure that national and international human rights commitments are met and withdraw all charges against Deo Montesclaros and Frenchie Mae Cumpio.