Filipino journalists deserve to exercise their profession without any fear of violence, intimidation, and harassment, the Commission on Human Rights declared on Monday, May 3, in the observance of the World Press Freedom Day.
Through Spokesperson Jacqueline Ann De Guia, the CHR paid tribute to the important role of journalists particularly amidst the coronavirus disease pandemic. But De Guia, a lawyer, lamented that because of the current political climate, journalists face a lot of risks in the performance of their profession.
“This drop in ranking coincides with the recent results released by the Social Weather Stations survey which finds six in ten Filipinos agree that it is ‘dangerous to print or broadcast anything critical’ of the current administration ‘even if it is the truth,'” she bewailed.