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Civil society rejects flawed ASEAN Human Rights declaration

Blogie Robillo — Thu, 15 Nov 2012 10:30:47 +0000

[Media Release] Phnom Penh, Cambodia — Today, 62 grassroots, national, regional, and international civil society groups are calling upon ASEAN Member States to postpone the adoption of the ASEAN Human Rights Declaration, which is not worthy of its name. The organizations vow to reject the Declaration if it is adopted with its current text. Instead, [...]

Cambodia: Stop disrupting civil society events

Blogie Robillo — Thu, 15 Nov 2012 09:59:34 +0000

[Media Release] …and restricting freedom of expression & assembly ahead of ASEAN Summit We, the undersigned civil society organizations, strongly urge the Cambodian authorities to immediately end the ongoing intimidation, threats and harassment of organizers, venue owners and participants involved in civil society events in Cambodia’s capital, Phnom Penh, ahead of the 21st Association of [...]

BlogFest Asia 2012

Blogie Robillo — Thu, 08 Nov 2012 20:11:27 +0000

BlogFest Asia has a special place in my heart, because it was on this annual event, back in 2009, when I got the chance to be invited by the US Department of State to participate in an International Visitors Leadership Program. This was during the first BlogFest Asia, held in Hong Kong, where I gave [...]

A lame president

Blogie Robillo — Fri, 12 Oct 2012 12:44:19 +0000

There were times when I questioned the one-term policy for Philippine presidents built into the 1987 Constitution — which I think was included due to a knee-jerk reaction to fears of having a repeat of the Marcos dictatorship. But with this sitting president, I am more than glad for it! Benigno Aquino III has once [...]

Victory against RA10175

Blogie Robillo — Tue, 09 Oct 2012 06:11:20 +0000

Today, Filipino netizens scored a victory against the Cybercrime Prevention Act, against the those who would infringe upon the people’s civil liberties. Sitting en banc, all 14 Supreme Court justices issued a Temporary Restraining Order (TRO) against RA10175, effectively stopping it dead in its tracks. The TRO bars the Department of Justice from carrying out [...]

From the horse’s mouth

Blogie Robillo — Fri, 05 Oct 2012 13:55:42 +0000

President Aquino, probably ignoring counsel from his legal team (who have blundered quite embarrassingly earlier anyway), has finally proceeded to issue his own statement with regards the Cybercrime Prevention Act. The alarming fact is, he has blithely ignored the people’s counsel, the people whom he once called his “boss.” A leader who has to qualify [...]

Bloggers vs. President Benigno S. Aquino III

Blogie Robillo — Thu, 04 Oct 2012 05:55:29 +0000

Today at around 1:00pm, a group of bloggers and social media activists, including yours truly, has filed a petition before the Supreme Court to nullify assailed provisions of Republic Act No. 10175. We are suing the President of the Philippines, among others, because we believe he owns command responsibility for enacting a law that is [...]

Blundering or Calculating?

Blogie Robillo — Thu, 04 Oct 2012 04:37:25 +0000

Palace spokesman Edwin Lacierda strikes again. And so does Justice Secretary Leila de Lima. You see the disinformation that Malacañang is spreading? It is characteristic of repressive regimes to turn tables on dissidents, to try and label them as mere rabble rousers. Instead of recognizing legitimate redress by the people — whom the president called [...]

Malacañang statement on RA10175 controversy

Blogie Robillo — Wed, 03 Oct 2012 18:21:51 +0000

After the President’s communications staff blundered with their confused statements regarding the newly-enacted Cybercrime Prevention Act, an official pronouncement from Malacañang has now been issued. It reads like an attempt to placate the Filipino netizenry. And I found it offensive. We have been clamoring against RA10175′s vagueness, among other things. The very first sentence of [...]

This day is for the history books…

Blogie Robillo — Tue, 02 Oct 2012 19:08:53 +0000

…but in a tragic way. The Cybercrime Prevention Act of 2012, a law that has enraged Filipino netizens because of its draconian measures and unconstitutional provisions, takes effect today, the 3rd of October 2012. The Supreme Court, that heretofore esteemed body in which we were putting our faith for the ingenuous interpretation and stalwart safeguarding [...]