Mr Francis Lim, one of Ms Ressa’s lawyers, said the team hoped the latest acquittal would lead to the dismissal of the other cases, including the closure order. ![]() She attributed that to his desire to “change that history” of his family and vindicate their “tarnished” name. Ms Ressa said the “fear that engulfed us” during Mr Duterte’s rule had largely gone since Mr Marcos took power. Mr Marcos, who has been in office for 14 months, has said he would not interfere in the court cases against Rappler. He has also publicly vowed to protect the rights of journalists. Since taking office, however, Mr Marcos has been more open to answering questions from reporters, though one-to-one interviews are still rare. His own father had shut down independent media outlets during his rule, which ended in a bloodless revolution in 1986. ![]() Many Filipino journalists had feared for press freedom under President Ferdinand Marcos Jr, who largely shunned the mainstream media on the 2022 campaign trail. Rappler is still operating unhindered, pending its appeal against a closure order from the securities regulator. Ms Ressa and Rappler are still fighting two cases, including a cyber-libel conviction that could put her behind bars for nearly seven years, and another that could shut down Rappler. Those charges stem from a 2018 government indictment that accused her and Rappler of dodging tax payments after failing to declare proceeds of a 2015 sale of depositary receipts to foreign investors. Ms Ressa’s acquittal was expected after she was cleared of similar tax charges nine months ago.
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