Dear Friends,
We are writing to you today with deeply troubling news.
Following a grossly unfair trial, journalist Frenchie Mae Cumpio has been sentenced to 12 to 18 years in prison in the Philippines on completely baseless charges of “financing terrorism.” This appalling verdict is a serious miscarriage of justice and a dangerous escalation of the crack down on independent journalism.
Frenchie Mae Cumpio, an investigative journalist, has been arbitrarily detained since February 2020, arrested alongside four human rights defenders. At the time, she was executive director of the news website Eastern Vista and a radio news anchor at Aksyon Radyo-Tacloban DYVL, reporting extensively on alleged police and military abuses as well as community welfare issues in the Eastern Visayas region.
The RSF investigation has shown that throughout the proceedings the prosecution failed to present credible evidence, instead relying on fabricated accusations that have resulted in an extraordinarily severe, unjust sentence.
Her conviction is a devastating failure on the part of the Philippines justice system and the authorities’ blatant disregard for press freedom.
This ruling is not just an attack on one journalist — it’s an attack on everyone's right to be informed.
Cases like Frenchie Mae Cumpio’s are exactly why our work is so vital. Your donations allow us to monitor and expose judicial harassment against journalists, push for international action against abusive prosecutions and defend journalists who are silenced for doing their job.
Without your support, these injustices risk becoming the norm.
Frenchie Mae Cumpio should never have been convicted. She should never have spent six years in detention. She should not face decades in prison for her journalism.
Please donate to strengthen RSF’s fight for press freedom and the news professionals who risk everything to keep us informed.
Thank you for standing with us — and with journalists like Frenchie Mae Cumpio.
Reporters Without Borders (RSF)
