By JONAS ALPASAN
Bulatlat.com
MANILA – A group of Filipino journalists welcomed the arrest of former Palawan Governor Joel Reyes, the alleged mastermind of the 2011 killing of broadcaster and environmental defender Gerry Ortega.
Reyes was taken into custody recently, after he reportedly turned himself to the National Bureau of Investigation in Manila. He was previously in hiding after an arrest warrant was issued against him last year.
The National Union of Journalists of the Philippines (NUJP) considered the arrest “a crucial step towards justice for Doc Gerry Ortega.”
Ortega, also an anti-mining advocate, was shot dead on January 24, 2011. He was known for his critical reporting of the Malampaya project, including the alleged misuse of its public funds.
His family filed murder charges against Reyes and several others shortly after his death.
Read: Palawan Environmentalist and Broadcaster Shot Dead
Earlier this year, NUJP, along with the Committee to Protect Journalists (CPJ), Reporters Without Borders (RSF), and Free Press Unlimited (FPU), met with the Department of Justice to call for action on the Ortega case and to demand Reyes’s arrest.
“We remain vigilant and will continue to stand with Doc Gerry’s family, friends, and supporters as we wait for the trial and the resolution of this decade-long case,” said NUJP, adding that his “custody is just a first step in holding Reyes to account.”
In a joint statement by the CPJ, RSF and the FPU, no date has been set for the start of Reyes’s trial in Quezon City.
“We hope this new development brings justice closer for the Ortega family and call on the Philippine authorities to do everything they can to ensure justice is delivered for this senseless murder,” they said.
Part of fugitive pattern
The family of the slain broadcaster also welcomed the arrest but said that their “optimism remains cautious.”
“More than 13 years have passed, and we have yet to see the swift and fair trial that the overwhelming evidence against the former governor demands. We remember that Reyes evaded justice for over a year after the warrant was reissued—resurfacing only when it suited him,” the Ortega family said in a statement.
The family added that the recent resurfacing of Reyes is “part of his fugitive pattern, as he had previously fled to Thailand and hid there for years using a fake passport.”
“Despite these challenges, our family remains resolute in our belief that the truth must prevail. We continue to honor Doc Gerry’s legacy of standing with integrity, defending the defenseless, speaking truth to power, and fighting courageously for what is right,” they said.
Arrest other fugitives too
Meanwhile, the NUJP also urged the Philippine government to arrest and prosecute other fugitives who are considered suspects in media killings like Gerald Bantag, alleged mastermind in the 2022 killing of broadcaster Percy Lapid.
In 2023, the Global Witness report showed that the Philippines is the most dangerous country in Asia for environmental defenders, said the NUJP, adding that the country also ranked eighth in the CPJ Global Impunity Index in the same year.
“The world is watching if the Philippine government succeeds or fails in delivering justice,” the NUJP concluded. (Bulatlat.com)
Disclosure: Co-Pilot was used to aid the reporter in writing this report. It was vetted, edited and finalized by human editors.
