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Media groups to IIRC, PNoy: Don’t charge the messengers


(Updated 9:36 p.m.) “Don’t charge the messengers." This was the latest appeal for President Benigno Aquino III to spare the media from culpability in connection with the August 23 hostage crisis, raised by civil society group Center for International Law (CENTERLAW). “The reality is that the August 23 incident was truly a newsworthy event. Media hence had a duty to cover the incident," according to a statement released by CENTERLAW. “[The media’s] coverage may have affected the outcome of the incident; this, however, is but a natural consequence of the right of the public to information on matters involving public concerns," CENTERLAW added. Last Friday, the Incident Investigation and Review Committee (IIRC) headed by Justice Secretary Leila de Lima presented to the President the final report of its five-day marathon investigation. Aquino released the IIRC report to the public on Monday, after furnishing the Chinese Embassy with a copy. The report included recommendations as to who should be held culpable for the hostage tragedy, although the copy released to the public, which was posted at the Official Gazette website, excluded pages 61-83 that contained the recommendations. The IIRC reportedly held 12 people accountable for the bloody end of the hostage crisis, including at least two journalists, Erwin Tulfo and Michael Rogas from the radio station Radyo Mo Nationwide (RMN). (See: IIRC asks public to be patient as Palace reviews recommendations) Journalists from television networks ABS-CBN, GMA-7, TV5 may also be later included in the list. “While we acknowledge that media may have failed to observe the highest degree of professionalism and self-restraint in their coverage of the unfortunate incident, still this is not a basis for holding them liable for breach of the country’s criminal laws," CENTERLAW said.
On August 23, dismissed policeman Rolando Mendoza commandeered a bus from the Intramuros to the Quirino Grandstand. He initially released some of the passengers, but after an 11-hour standoff that ended in a shootout, Mendoza and eight of the hostages — all Hong Kong residents — were shot dead. Government authorities and media have been condemned for their actions during the hostage crisis, with critics saying that it was incompetence and misconduct which brought about the deaths of the hostages. Mendoza reportedly went into a rage and opened fire on the hostages after seeing on the bus television a live broadcast of his brother, SPO2 Gregorio Mendoza, being arrested. CENTERLAW said it “call[ed] on the reformist P Noy not to adopt the IIRC’s recommendations" regarding the media. International backlash Members of the international community have also protested against charging media outfits and personalities for their involvement in the hostage tragedy, which was broadcast worldwide. The media watchdog group International Federation of Journalists (IFJ), which represents more than 600,000 journalists in 125 countries, cautioned the Aquino administration against holding the media criminally liable for the hostage crisis. "Criminal charges against media personnel would set a dangerous precedent for the Philippines that would potentially cause journalists and media organizations to censor coverage of other sensitive situations for fear of criminal liability," said IFJ Asia-Pacific Director Jacqueline Park in a statement. The Hong Kong Journalists' association (HKJA) has also expressed their support for their counterparts in the Philippines, said the IFJ. According to the IFJ, the HKJA has agreed that professional ethical issues must be handled by media professionals when no laws have been violated. Meanwhile, in an opinion piece on CNN, commentator Michael Hamlin said that De Lima and Aquino were “taking an enormous political gamble, taking on the media." “Filipinos rely on the media to keep government in check, so "any hint that the government's true intent is to silence media critics rather than discipline criminal behavior will backfire with profoundly damaging results," he added. Hamlin underscored the failure of the PNP to coordinate effectively with the media. "Officials at no time issued a media directive; they cannot enforce one retroactively," he said. One survivor of the hostage tragedy, Hong Kong Citizen Li Yick-biu, also told the South China Morning Post (SCMP) on Tuesday that “ putting the blame on the media was an outrage." "The media were just doing their job. They should not be made a scapegoat," said Li. Media as 'scapegoats' Earlier, the National Union of Journalists of the Philippines (NUJP) warned the Aquino administration not to file charges against the members of the media involved in the hostage crisis. (See: Govt warned vs haling media to court over hostage tragedy) To equate “lapses in judgment with criminal liability" is to make the media “the scapegoat for what essentially was government incompetence on all levels," said the NUJP in a statement. The National Press Club (NPC) also urged Aquino and De Lima to “spare the journalists from any criminal or civil or administrative cases." (See: Aquino urged to ‘spare’ media from hostage raps) “If there were persons who should be charged with multiple homicide through reckless imprudence, it should be the officers on the ground who recklessly disregarded the need to follow the PNP manual for the media coverage of a hostage crisis," said the NPC. A memorandum issued on November 2006 by the Philippine National Police (PNP) covers general rules for media coverage in crisis situations. PNP Memorandum Circular No.2006-022 includes provisions for “limited live telecast" by the media. The police should also designate an area for the media and periodically brief them on the situation as new developments took place, as well as remind the media to withhold sensitive information such as the location of police snipers, according to the memorandum. The IIRC report pointed to several “critical incidents" during the crisis wherein problems arose in implementing these provisions. Former Senator Aquilino Pimentel Jr., lawyer for RMN, also slammed the inclusion of RMN broadcasters Tulfo and Rogas in the IIRC’s list. (See: Pimentel: Charges vs media for hostage tragedy show traces of martial law) He said that the charges against Rogas and Tulfo were “invented," because there was no provision in the Revised Penal Code that media outfits violated while covering the standoff. “Para bagang naghahanap [ang gobyerno] ng mapapasahan ng kanilang nakikitang [pagkukulang]," Pimentel said. (It’s like the government is looking for a scapegoat for their own shortcomings.) 'Too early to pick a fight with media' Using similar arguments as CENTERLAW and NUJP, lawyer Theodore Te of the University of the Philippines (UP) College of Law said that there is no legal basis to charge the media in connection with the hostage tragedy. The most probable criminal case is obstruction of justice, Te explained, but the elements of such a crime, according to Presidential Decree 1829, include blocking of witness testimony, destruction of evidence, helping suspects escape, and cover-up of a crime, among others — none of which any member of the media engaged in while covering the hostage crisis. "It is very early in his administration to be picking a fight that is so huge," Te said of Aquino, explaining that the issue of media accountability was a difficult one. Melinda Quintos de Jesus, executive director of the Center for Media Freedom and Responsibility (CMFR), added that there are internal mechanisms through which the media can investigate its own shortcomings, and mete out the necessary penalties. She cited the Kapisanan ng mga Brodkaster ng mga Pilipinas (KBP) as a body that could ensure self-regulation of the media. CMFR was one of the earliest journalism watchdogs who pointed out lapses in how the media conducted its live coverage of the unfolding hostage drama, even as it reiterated the principle of self-regulation. ‘Breach of ethics’ The IIRC report focused in particular on three aspects of the media’s involvement in the hostage crisis: “1. The showing of tactical or strategic footages particularly sniper positions and the assault by the [Special Weapons and Tactics] SWAT and subsequently, the augmentation by the [Special Action Force] SAF; “2. The coverage on the arrest or taking into custody of SPO2 Gregorio Mendoza (brother of the Hostage Taker); “3. The interview over the radio by Radio Mindanao Network (RMN) station DZXL with Michael Rogas as anchorman." “Media organizations have ethical and operational rules and regulations on how media personnel should conduct themselves in the coverage of a crisis situation," the IIRC said. Regarding the footage of Gregorio Mendoza’s arrest, the IIRC noted that “because of the nature of how media operate, the media personnel on the ground take their cue from the authorities particularly the police officer assigned to coordinate with media. In the incident under review, it was not clear as to who this person was." However, while the IIRC blamed the airing of Gregorio Mendoza’s arrest on “flaws in [police] coordination with media, due to lack of a point person," the committee pushed for Tulfo and Rogas to be held accountable. The RMN interview of Mendoza was “a breach of the ethical guidelines governing journalists covering a hostage taking crisis situation, potentially endangered lives, and interfered and/or derailed the efforts of authorities to resolve the crisis," stated the IIRC in its report.—JV, GMANews.TV
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