{
  "title": "Incidents in the Philippines",
  "canonical_url": "https://thewaronnews.com/incidents?country=PH",
  "filters": {
    "country": "PH"
  },
  "sort": "date",
  "count": 4,
  "page": 1,
  "pages": 1,
  "per_page": 50,
  "counts_caveat": "The number of entries reflects the depth of this record, not the severity of a country's conduct.",
  "facets": {
    "country": [
      {
        "value": "PH",
        "label": "Philippines",
        "rsf": {
          "index": "RSF World Press Freedom Index",
          "year": 2026,
          "rank": 114,
          "of": 180,
          "label": "RSF 2026 rank: 114th of 180",
          "source_url": "https://rsf.org/en/index"
        }
      }
    ],
    "continent": [
      {
        "value": "asia",
        "label": "Asia"
      }
    ],
    "tactic": [
      {
        "value": "detention_and_violence",
        "label": "Detention and violence",
        "count": 2
      },
      {
        "value": "lawsuits_against_press",
        "label": "Lawsuits against the press",
        "count": 1
      },
      {
        "value": "access_ban",
        "label": "Access bans",
        "count": 1
      },
      {
        "value": "prior_restraint",
        "label": "Prior restraint",
        "count": 1
      },
      {
        "value": "shutdowns_and_blocking",
        "label": "Shutdowns and blocking",
        "count": 1
      }
    ],
    "stage": [
      {
        "value": "pressure",
        "label": "Pressure",
        "count": 1
      },
      {
        "value": "punish",
        "label": "Punish",
        "count": 2
      },
      {
        "value": "silence",
        "label": "Silence",
        "count": 1
      }
    ],
    "level": [
      {
        "value": "national",
        "label": "National",
        "count": 4
      }
    ],
    "outcome": [
      {
        "value": "reversed",
        "label": "Reversed",
        "count": 2
      },
      {
        "value": "ongoing",
        "label": "Ongoing",
        "count": 1
      },
      {
        "value": "unknown",
        "label": "Unknown",
        "count": 1
      }
    ],
    "leader": [
      {
        "value": "ferdinand-marcos",
        "label": "Ferdinand Marcos"
      },
      {
        "value": "rodrigo-duterte",
        "label": "Rodrigo Duterte"
      }
    ],
    "era": [
      {
        "value": "2010s",
        "label": "2010s",
        "count": 2
      },
      {
        "value": "2020s",
        "label": "2020s",
        "count": 1
      },
      {
        "value": "1970s",
        "label": "1970s",
        "count": 1
      }
    ],
    "year": [
      {
        "value": "1972",
        "label": "1972",
        "count": 1
      },
      {
        "value": "2018",
        "label": "2018",
        "count": 1
      },
      {
        "value": "2019",
        "label": "2019",
        "count": 1
      },
      {
        "value": "2020",
        "label": "2020",
        "count": 1
      }
    ],
    "has_case": [
      {
        "value": "0",
        "label": "without a court case",
        "count": 4
      }
    ]
  },
  "results": [
    {
      "slug": "2020-philippines-ressa-cyber-libel-conviction",
      "title": "Philippines: Maria Ressa convicted of cyber libel",
      "occurred_on": "2020-06-15",
      "occurred_on_precision": "day",
      "country": "PH",
      "country_name": "Philippines",
      "continent": "asia",
      "jurisdiction": "PH",
      "level": "national",
      "tactic_primary": "lawsuits_against_press",
      "tactics": [
        "lawsuits_against_press"
      ],
      "leader_slug": "rodrigo-duterte",
      "leader_name": "Rodrigo Duterte",
      "issue_of_the_day": "Not stated in the sources reviewed.",
      "outcome": "ongoing",
      "outcome_on": "2020-06-15",
      "outcome_note": "Ressa and Santos were convicted and sentenced but remained free pending appeal, according to the source reviewed.",
      "stage": "punish",
      "ladder_note": "A court convicted an outlet's executive editor of criminal cyber libel and imposed a prison sentence over a story published before the cybercrime law existed; United States lawsuits against the press in the record are civil, seeking damages, not prison time.",
      "rsf": {
        "index": "RSF World Press Freedom Index",
        "year": 2026,
        "rank": 114,
        "of": 180,
        "label": "RSF 2026 rank: 114th of 180",
        "source_url": "https://rsf.org/en/index"
      },
      "era": "2020s",
      "granularity": "granular",
      "status": "in_effect",
      "case_count": 0,
      "summary": "A Manila court convicted Rappler's Maria Ressa and researcher Reynaldo Santos Jr. of criminal cyber libel and sentenced them to up to six years in prison, over a 2012 story republished after the cybercrime law used to charge them took effect.",
      "url": "https://thewaronnews.com/incidents/2020-philippines-ressa-cyber-libel-conviction"
    },
    {
      "slug": "2019-philippines-arrests-ressa",
      "title": "Philippines: Rappler's Maria Ressa arrested over cyber libel case",
      "occurred_on": "2019-02-13",
      "occurred_on_precision": "day",
      "country": "PH",
      "country_name": "Philippines",
      "continent": "asia",
      "jurisdiction": "PH",
      "level": "national",
      "tactic_primary": "detention_and_violence",
      "tactics": [
        "detention_and_violence"
      ],
      "leader_slug": "rodrigo-duterte",
      "leader_name": "Rodrigo Duterte",
      "issue_of_the_day": "Not stated in the sources reviewed.",
      "outcome": "reversed",
      "outcome_on": "2019-02-14",
      "outcome_note": "Ressa was released on bail the morning after her arrest; the underlying cyber libel case continued separately.",
      "stage": "punish",
      "ladder_note": "Philippine agents arrested an outlet's executive editor at her own newsroom over a story published years before the cybercrime law used to charge her existed; United States detentions in the record ended without charges filed.",
      "rsf": {
        "index": "RSF World Press Freedom Index",
        "year": 2026,
        "rank": 114,
        "of": 180,
        "label": "RSF 2026 rank: 114th of 180",
        "source_url": "https://rsf.org/en/index"
      },
      "era": "2010s",
      "granularity": "granular",
      "status": "historical",
      "case_count": 0,
      "summary": "Philippine agents arrested Rappler executive editor Maria Ressa at the outlet's Manila office and held her overnight on a cyber libel case tied to a 2012 story, published before the cybercrime law used to charge her existed.",
      "url": "https://thewaronnews.com/incidents/2019-philippines-arrests-ressa"
    },
    {
      "slug": "2018-philippines-bans-rappler-presidential-palace",
      "title": "Philippines: a Rappler reporter is barred from the presidential palace",
      "occurred_on": "2018-02-21",
      "occurred_on_precision": "day",
      "country": "PH",
      "country_name": "Philippines",
      "continent": "asia",
      "jurisdiction": "PH",
      "level": "national",
      "tactic_primary": "access_ban",
      "tactics": [
        "access_ban"
      ],
      "leader_slug": "rodrigo-duterte",
      "leader_name": "Rodrigo Duterte",
      "issue_of_the_day": "The ban followed the Philippine Securities and Exchange Commission's January 2018 revocation of Rappler's operating license over a foreign-ownership finding, a decision Rappler said was really aimed at its critical coverage of Duterte.",
      "outcome": "unknown",
      "outcome_on": "2018-02-21",
      "outcome_note": "The source reviewed reports only the ban taking effect and does not state whether or when it ended.",
      "stage": "pressure",
      "ladder_note": "The head of government personally ordered a named outlet's reporters excluded from the seat of government after revoking the outlet's corporate license.",
      "rsf": {
        "index": "RSF World Press Freedom Index",
        "year": 2026,
        "rank": 114,
        "of": 180,
        "label": "RSF 2026 rank: 114th of 180",
        "source_url": "https://rsf.org/en/index"
      },
      "era": "2010s",
      "granularity": "granular",
      "status": "in_effect",
      "case_count": 0,
      "summary": "President Rodrigo Duterte ordered Rappler reporter Pia Ranada and the outlet's CEO barred from Malacanang Palace, the seat of the Philippine presidency, after the government revoked Rappler's operating license.",
      "url": "https://thewaronnews.com/incidents/2018-philippines-bans-rappler-presidential-palace"
    },
    {
      "slug": "1972-philippines-marcos-martial-law-media-closures",
      "title": "Philippines President Marcos closes every major news outlet under martial law",
      "occurred_on": "1972-09-21",
      "occurred_on_precision": "day",
      "country": "PH",
      "country_name": "Philippines",
      "continent": "asia",
      "jurisdiction": "PH",
      "level": "national",
      "tactic_primary": "shutdowns_and_blocking",
      "tactics": [
        "detention_and_violence",
        "prior_restraint",
        "shutdowns_and_blocking"
      ],
      "leader_slug": "ferdinand-marcos",
      "leader_name": "Ferdinand Marcos",
      "issue_of_the_day": "Marcos had declared martial law citing threats from Communist insurgency and civil unrest, and moved immediately to eliminate independent media coverage that might question the declaration or his expanding powers.",
      "outcome": "reversed",
      "outcome_on": "1986-02-25",
      "outcome_note": "Marcos was removed from power in the People Power Revolution of February 22-25, 1986, ending martial-law controls on the Philippine press.",
      "stage": "silence",
      "ladder_note": null,
      "rsf": {
        "index": "RSF World Press Freedom Index",
        "year": 2026,
        "rank": 114,
        "of": 180,
        "label": "RSF 2026 rank: 114th of 180",
        "source_url": "https://rsf.org/en/index"
      },
      "era": "1970s",
      "granularity": "anchor",
      "status": "historical",
      "case_count": 0,
      "summary": "President Ferdinand Marcos declared martial law on September 21, 1972, and the next day ordered the military to take over nearly every newspaper, radio and television station in the Philippines, jailing prominent publishers and editors and requiring government clearance for whatever remained.",
      "url": "https://thewaronnews.com/incidents/1972-philippines-marcos-martial-law-media-closures"
    }
  ],
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    "md": "https://thewaronnews.com/incidents.md?country=PH"
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  "license": {
    "name": "CC BY 4.0",
    "url": "https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/"
  }
}