Amal Clooney: Don’t imprison journalists / MAP International CEO Web Conference 2020
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Amal Clooney: Don’t imprison journalists / MAP International CEO Web Conference 2020
by annemarie Wed 16 Sep 2020, 12:41
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[size=42]Amal Clooney: Don’t imprison journalists
[/size]
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[size=16]ByMayvelin U. Caraballo, TMT
September 15, 2020
[/size]
INTERNATIONAL human rights lawyer Amal Clooney called on Filipino business leaders to “protect the press if you want to have a functioning democracy”.
Clooney, who is also a British Foreign and Commonwealth Office special envoy for global media freedom, said that to protect the press, “”don’t imprison journalists”.
Speaking at the 18th MAP International CEO Web Conference 2020 on Tuesday, Clooney emphasized that democracy was under threat in any country where the judiciary was not independent, or where freedom of the press was not cherished and protected as an utmost priority.
She cited the case of Rappler Chief Executive Officer and Executive Editor Maria Ressa, who was convicted of cyber libel for imputing that Wilfredo Keng committed a series of crimes, including human and drug trafficking in an article posted on her news website in 2012.
The lawyer criticized Ressa’s conviction and blamed the government.
“Defenders of the judgment have claimed ‘this is just a private dispute between a journalist and the person whose reputation was harmed by the story.’ But this is not correct. It was a criminal prosecution brought by the Department of Justice. The state advocated for a conviction and a term of imprisonment,” she said.
Clooney said this sends a clear message to other journalists: “Be quiet, or you will be next.”
Quoting a professor of journalism at Columbia University, Clooney said this is how democracy dies in the 21st century, adding that “Maria’s struggle is one that defines our times.”
Amal Clooney is the wife of Hollywood A-lister George Clooney.
[size=42]Amal Clooney: Don’t imprison journalists
[/size]
[You must be registered and logged in to see this image.]
[size=16]ByMayvelin U. Caraballo, TMT
September 15, 2020
[/size]
INTERNATIONAL human rights lawyer Amal Clooney called on Filipino business leaders to “protect the press if you want to have a functioning democracy”.
Clooney, who is also a British Foreign and Commonwealth Office special envoy for global media freedom, said that to protect the press, “”don’t imprison journalists”.
Speaking at the 18th MAP International CEO Web Conference 2020 on Tuesday, Clooney emphasized that democracy was under threat in any country where the judiciary was not independent, or where freedom of the press was not cherished and protected as an utmost priority.
She cited the case of Rappler Chief Executive Officer and Executive Editor Maria Ressa, who was convicted of cyber libel for imputing that Wilfredo Keng committed a series of crimes, including human and drug trafficking in an article posted on her news website in 2012.
The lawyer criticized Ressa’s conviction and blamed the government.
“Defenders of the judgment have claimed ‘this is just a private dispute between a journalist and the person whose reputation was harmed by the story.’ But this is not correct. It was a criminal prosecution brought by the Department of Justice. The state advocated for a conviction and a term of imprisonment,” she said.
Clooney said this sends a clear message to other journalists: “Be quiet, or you will be next.”
Quoting a professor of journalism at Columbia University, Clooney said this is how democracy dies in the 21st century, adding that “Maria’s struggle is one that defines our times.”
Amal Clooney is the wife of Hollywood A-lister George Clooney.
Last edited by Admin on Thu 17 Sep 2020, 11:20; edited 1 time in total (Reason for editing : edited thread title)
annemarie- Over the Clooney moon
- Posts : 10309
Join date : 2011-09-11
Re: Amal Clooney: Don’t imprison journalists / MAP International CEO Web Conference 2020
by party animal - not! Wed 16 Sep 2020, 14:24
Thanks Annemarie. Really pleased to see that Rappler managed to get this out too despite the Philippines
President, Duterte. Brilliant!
The editor of Rappler is Maria Ressa, one of Amal's clients who is currently being
threatened by Duterte with long-term imprisonment and the closure of her online inde-
pendent newspaper....
[You must be registered and logged in to see this link.]
President, Duterte. Brilliant!
The editor of Rappler is Maria Ressa, one of Amal's clients who is currently being
threatened by Duterte with long-term imprisonment and the closure of her online inde-
pendent newspaper....
[You must be registered and logged in to see this link.]
party animal - not!- George Clooney fan forever!
- Posts : 12437
Join date : 2012-02-16
Re: Amal Clooney: Don’t imprison journalists / MAP International CEO Web Conference 2020
by annemarie Wed 16 Sep 2020, 19:52
[size=46]FULL TEXT: Amal Clooney's 3 propositions for a functioning democracy
SEPTEMBER 15, 2020 3:22 PM PHT
AMAL CLOONEY
[/size]
'What we must remember is that a clampdown on critics – a silencing of dissent – is not a sign of strength but the ultimate sign of weakness'
The following speech was delivered by international law and human rights lawyer Amal Clooney at the Management Association of the Philippines' (MAP) 18th International CEO Web Conference on September 15, 2020.
Ladies and gentlemen, thank you so much for inviting me to address you today at this important conference. Let me start by saying that I hope everybody is staying safe and healthy. I was due to travel to Manila just before lockdown and I hope that I will be able to visit your beautiful country again once restrictions can safely be lifted.
Ladies and gentlemen, we are living through a time of crisis, and in such times reporting the truth is more important than ever. Information about the coronavirus in the early stages of the pandemic could have saved thousands of lives. Silencing journalists and others who tried to report on the virus was deadly as it allowed the disease to spread while people were in the dark. And all over the world as truth is being suppressed – false information proliferates instead. In my view this puts not only public health but also the future of democracy on the line.
It may sound grandiose or alarmist to speak in such terms. Surely, you may be thinking, democracy is not under threat around the world. Yet studies have found that one third of the world’s population lives in a backsliding democracy. The University of Gothenburg’s democracy institute reports that "[d]emocracy [is] in decline in more countries than ever before." And Freedom House reports that democratic freedoms have been in decline for over a decade in both open societies and authoritarian states alike. I would say that democracy is under threat in any country where the judiciary is not independent; or where freedom of the press is not cherished and protected as an utmost priority.
This is the first of 3 propositions I’d like to put to you today: that you cannot have a functioning democracy without a free press. And I’d like to illustrate this with a case I am involved in in the Philippines. The case of Maria Ressa, and Rappler, the news site Maria set up that over 10 million people now routinely access and read. Maria is a renowned journalist: a Filipino-American national who has won some of the most prestigious awards available to her profession; who has been Time’s Person of the Year. But the authorities in Manila are not proud of her. Instead, in response to reporting on hard-hitting topics like the drug war and corruption, they have gone after her. With threats and hateful language emanating from presidential podiums and across social media. And with a string of prosecutions designed to silence her and send a chill down the spine of any other journalist thinking about reporting unflattering news.
Earlier this year, a trial judge convicted Maria and her colleague of "cyber libel." For an article she did not write, based on a law that did not exist when the article was written, and as a result of a prosecution initiated 6 years after the limitation period had expired. The article was about alleged corruption by a supreme court justice who was facing impeachment at that time: a matter of clear public interest. But none of this stopped the trial judge from imposing a draconian 6-year maximum sentence on Maria. And in a bizarre twist the judge even cited Nelson Mandela’s struggle for freedom while single-handedly undermining respect for fundamental freedoms through her verdict.
Defenders of the judgment have claimed that this is just a private dispute between a journalist and the person whose reputation was harmed by the story. But this is not correct. It was a criminal prosecution brought by the Department of Justice. The state advocated for a conviction and a term of imprisonment. It is now defending the judgment and it is expected to oppose the appeal. So this is the government’s case – their choice, and their legacy. It will be for my colleagues, Maria’s Filipino counsel, to make submissions in the appeal. And a panel of appellate judges can still set things right. But Maria faces a barrage of other charges – all equally spurious – that expose her to many decades behind bars. And in the meantime the message to other journalists is clear: be quiet, or you’ll be next.
According to a professor of journalism at Columbia University: This is how democracy dies in the 21st century: in a musty courtroom, with a judge invoking Mandela. There are no power grabs in the dead of night, no tanks rolling down the streets, no uniformed officers taking over TV stations. Just the steady drip, drip, drip of the erosion of democratic norms, the corruption of institutions, and the cowardly compromises of decision makers in courts." As Maria has herself put it: it is the death of democracy by a thousand cuts.
I believe that Maria’s struggle is one that defines our times. Data gathered in the last few years shows more journalists being imprisoned around the world than at any time since records began. And this, in turn, threatens every other right. Because if the press is silenced, we don’t know about human rights abuses or corruption. When you switch off the news broadcast by the country’s largest TV station – as the Philippine government did just weeks before Maria’s judgment – you see, as the Washington Post puts it, democracy dying in darkness.
And what we see happening in other parts of Asia reminds us that it is much more difficult to win a right than to lose it. The people of Hong Kong know that. They’ve seen basic rights vanish overnight, with young people, foreign residents, and business leaders packing up and leaving in response to a new security law that the UN says "infringes on...fundamental rights" and places "undue limitations on freedom of…expression."
I often read about leaders in the region being described as "strongmen" – a title that sounds like it should imply something positive. But as The Economist recently reported, the Asian countries performing particularly poorly when it comes to the coronavirus have leaders who are "strongmen." Sri Lankans’ rights are imperiled now that their country is led once again by sibling strongmen. And each day in the US we live through the consequences of choosing a supposedly strong man over a smart woman.
What we must remember is that a clampdown on critics – a silencing of dissent – is not a sign of strength but the ultimate sign of weakness. It is a sign that you know you cannot win in the "marketplace of ideas" so you have to have a monopoly over the ideas that are expressed.
So that was my first proposition to you: that you cannot have a functioning democracy without a free press.
SEPTEMBER 15, 2020 3:22 PM PHT
AMAL CLOONEY
[/size]
'What we must remember is that a clampdown on critics – a silencing of dissent – is not a sign of strength but the ultimate sign of weakness'
The following speech was delivered by international law and human rights lawyer Amal Clooney at the Management Association of the Philippines' (MAP) 18th International CEO Web Conference on September 15, 2020.
Ladies and gentlemen, thank you so much for inviting me to address you today at this important conference. Let me start by saying that I hope everybody is staying safe and healthy. I was due to travel to Manila just before lockdown and I hope that I will be able to visit your beautiful country again once restrictions can safely be lifted.
Ladies and gentlemen, we are living through a time of crisis, and in such times reporting the truth is more important than ever. Information about the coronavirus in the early stages of the pandemic could have saved thousands of lives. Silencing journalists and others who tried to report on the virus was deadly as it allowed the disease to spread while people were in the dark. And all over the world as truth is being suppressed – false information proliferates instead. In my view this puts not only public health but also the future of democracy on the line.
It may sound grandiose or alarmist to speak in such terms. Surely, you may be thinking, democracy is not under threat around the world. Yet studies have found that one third of the world’s population lives in a backsliding democracy. The University of Gothenburg’s democracy institute reports that "[d]emocracy [is] in decline in more countries than ever before." And Freedom House reports that democratic freedoms have been in decline for over a decade in both open societies and authoritarian states alike. I would say that democracy is under threat in any country where the judiciary is not independent; or where freedom of the press is not cherished and protected as an utmost priority.
This is the first of 3 propositions I’d like to put to you today: that you cannot have a functioning democracy without a free press. And I’d like to illustrate this with a case I am involved in in the Philippines. The case of Maria Ressa, and Rappler, the news site Maria set up that over 10 million people now routinely access and read. Maria is a renowned journalist: a Filipino-American national who has won some of the most prestigious awards available to her profession; who has been Time’s Person of the Year. But the authorities in Manila are not proud of her. Instead, in response to reporting on hard-hitting topics like the drug war and corruption, they have gone after her. With threats and hateful language emanating from presidential podiums and across social media. And with a string of prosecutions designed to silence her and send a chill down the spine of any other journalist thinking about reporting unflattering news.
Earlier this year, a trial judge convicted Maria and her colleague of "cyber libel." For an article she did not write, based on a law that did not exist when the article was written, and as a result of a prosecution initiated 6 years after the limitation period had expired. The article was about alleged corruption by a supreme court justice who was facing impeachment at that time: a matter of clear public interest. But none of this stopped the trial judge from imposing a draconian 6-year maximum sentence on Maria. And in a bizarre twist the judge even cited Nelson Mandela’s struggle for freedom while single-handedly undermining respect for fundamental freedoms through her verdict.
Defenders of the judgment have claimed that this is just a private dispute between a journalist and the person whose reputation was harmed by the story. But this is not correct. It was a criminal prosecution brought by the Department of Justice. The state advocated for a conviction and a term of imprisonment. It is now defending the judgment and it is expected to oppose the appeal. So this is the government’s case – their choice, and their legacy. It will be for my colleagues, Maria’s Filipino counsel, to make submissions in the appeal. And a panel of appellate judges can still set things right. But Maria faces a barrage of other charges – all equally spurious – that expose her to many decades behind bars. And in the meantime the message to other journalists is clear: be quiet, or you’ll be next.
According to a professor of journalism at Columbia University: This is how democracy dies in the 21st century: in a musty courtroom, with a judge invoking Mandela. There are no power grabs in the dead of night, no tanks rolling down the streets, no uniformed officers taking over TV stations. Just the steady drip, drip, drip of the erosion of democratic norms, the corruption of institutions, and the cowardly compromises of decision makers in courts." As Maria has herself put it: it is the death of democracy by a thousand cuts.
I believe that Maria’s struggle is one that defines our times. Data gathered in the last few years shows more journalists being imprisoned around the world than at any time since records began. And this, in turn, threatens every other right. Because if the press is silenced, we don’t know about human rights abuses or corruption. When you switch off the news broadcast by the country’s largest TV station – as the Philippine government did just weeks before Maria’s judgment – you see, as the Washington Post puts it, democracy dying in darkness.
And what we see happening in other parts of Asia reminds us that it is much more difficult to win a right than to lose it. The people of Hong Kong know that. They’ve seen basic rights vanish overnight, with young people, foreign residents, and business leaders packing up and leaving in response to a new security law that the UN says "infringes on...fundamental rights" and places "undue limitations on freedom of…expression."
I often read about leaders in the region being described as "strongmen" – a title that sounds like it should imply something positive. But as The Economist recently reported, the Asian countries performing particularly poorly when it comes to the coronavirus have leaders who are "strongmen." Sri Lankans’ rights are imperiled now that their country is led once again by sibling strongmen. And each day in the US we live through the consequences of choosing a supposedly strong man over a smart woman.
What we must remember is that a clampdown on critics – a silencing of dissent – is not a sign of strength but the ultimate sign of weakness. It is a sign that you know you cannot win in the "marketplace of ideas" so you have to have a monopoly over the ideas that are expressed.
So that was my first proposition to you: that you cannot have a functioning democracy without a free press.
annemarie- Over the Clooney moon
- Posts : 10309
Join date : 2011-09-11
Re: Amal Clooney: Don’t imprison journalists / MAP International CEO Web Conference 2020
by Admin Wed 16 Sep 2020, 20:50
Fantastic speech!
Admin- Admin
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Join date : 2010-12-05
Re: Amal Clooney: Don’t imprison journalists / MAP International CEO Web Conference 2020
by Admin Thu 17 Sep 2020, 11:01
[You must be registered and logged in to see this link.]Amal Clooney urges PH gov't to protect press freedom, honor international commitments
Bruce Rodriguez, ABS-CBN News
Posted at Sep 15 2020 11:24 PM
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MANILA - International human rights lawyer Amal Alamuddin-Clooney on Tuesday urged the Philippine government to protect the free press and honor its international commitments on human rights.
Speaking before Philippine business leaders in an online forum, Clooney said, "if you want to have a functioning democracy, protect the press. To protect the press, don't imprison the journalists for their work."
Until recently, the Philippines was considered by many "to have the freest press in Asia," she said.
Clooney noted the Philippines is one of Asia's oldest democracies and was a founding member of the United Nations. Likewise, the country has ratified more international human rights treaties than any other country in the region.
"I hope that the Philippines will take steps to honor its international commitments and that future leaders will consider that they have nothing to fear from the ICC (International Criminal Court)," Clooney said.
"Do honor international treaties that the Philippines itself played a part in drafting."
The ICC has been investigating alleged human rights violations of the Duterte administration, particularly those perpetrated in the country's brutal drug war.
However, President Rodrigo Duterte and his allies have repeatedly insisted that the court has no jurisdiction over the Philippines, and that the investigation is an affront to the country's sovereignty.
The administration had instigated the country's withdrawal from the ICC amid the probe.
Clooney, who represents beleaguered Filipino journalist Maria Ressa, also noted that "Asian leaders who are strongmen are not [even] able to contain the COVID-19 spread."
"Silencing dissent is a sign of weakness."
Ressa, who is CEO of online news platform Rappler, faces at least 11 complaints, most of which were filed by the Duterte's allies.
She earlier argued the cases stem from her outlet's critical news coverage of the Philippine government.
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Re: Amal Clooney: Don’t imprison journalists / MAP International CEO Web Conference 2020
by Admin Thu 17 Sep 2020, 11:19
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Re: Amal Clooney: Don’t imprison journalists / MAP International CEO Web Conference 2020
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