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Trial to Open for Philippine Journalist Critical of Duterte

AFP

   MANILA - High-profile Philippine journalist Maria Ressa's libel trial
   opens Tuesday in a case that press freedom advocates see as government
   retaliation for her news site's critical reporting on President Rodrigo
   Duterte.

   Ressa, who leads online outlet Rappler and was named a Time Magazine
   "Person of the Year" in 2018 for her journalism, is out on bail and
   faces years in prison if convicted.

   This case is among a string of criminal charges that have hit Ressa and
   Rappler over the past year, prompting allegations that authorities are
   targeting her and her team for their work,

   The news portal has reported extensively and often critically on
   Duterte's policies, including a deadly crackdown that rights groups say
   may be a crime against humanity.

   "The message that the government is sending is very clear," Ressa told
   reporters in February as she posted bail after spending the night in
   jail over the libel case: "Be silent or you're next."

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