Philippine journalist Maria Ressa ‘hopeful’ ahead of libel verdict which could see her jailed

The Rappler co-founder and former CNN journalist is facing a verdict on Monday in a libel case that could see her sentenced for up to 12 years

Media watchdogs say the case is in retaliation for Rappler’s independent reporting on President Rodrigo Duterte and his administration

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Veteran Philippine journalist Maria Ressa is facing a libel charge which could see her jailed for up to 12 years. Photo: SCMP / Nora Tam

Published: 4:37pm, 10 Jun 2020Updated: 9:52pm, 10 Jun 2020

High-profile Philippine journalist Maria Ressa says the libel charge that could see her jailed next week is a government ploy to intimidate all critical voices, but she refuses to be silenced and still holds out hope of winning.

Ressa admitted being scared ahead of Monday’s verdict that could see her sentenced for up to 12 years, but also continued to speak defiantly.

“I’ve been the cautionary tale: be quiet or you’re next … that’s part of the reason why I have been targeted,” said Ressa, 56, the co-founder of news site Rappler and a former CNN journalist.

Maria Ressa shows the warrant of arrest order after posting bail at a court in Manila in 2018. Photo: AFP

“It’s a chilling effect … not just to me and to Rappler, but to journalists and to anyone who asks critical questions.”

Monday’s verdict will decide a case that stems from a businessman’s complaint in 2017 over a Rappler story five years earlier about his alleged ties to a then-judge on the nation’s top court.