Bulatlat News
By ALELI B. MADRIGAL
Bulatlat.com
MANILA — The network of alternative media organizations sent a letter-complaint to the Commission of Human Rights (CHR) regarding the difficulties of news media and diplomatic communities in visiting detained journalist Frenchie Mae Cumpio.
AlterMidya – People’s Alternative Media Network asked the CHR to look into restrictions on Cumpio’s visitation rights as requests have been reportedly turned down by the Bureau of Jail Management and Penology (BJMP) in Tacloban City.
“We appeal to the Commission of Human Rights to help us remind the government to honor the rights of Cumpio under the Mandela Rules and other human rights related to her being a political detainee,” Altermidya national chairperson Raymund Villanueva said.
According to the Nelson Mandela Rule No. 58, “a prisoner shall be allowed, under necessary supervision, to communicate with their family and friends at regular intervals by (a) corresponding in writing and using, where available, telecommunication, electronic, digital and other means; and (b) receiving visits.”
Officially known as the United Nations (UN) Standard Minimum Rules for the Treatment of Prisoners, the Mandela Rules were adopted by the UN General Assembly in December 2015.
Currently, 38 states have joined in implementing said rules. The Philippines joined the Group of Friends of the Nelson Mandela Rules in 2023.
Meanwhile, Karapatan Secretary-General Cristina Palabay said that any entity wanting to visit Cumpio, including human rights organizations, shall be allowed as it is granted by the Mandela Rules and is stated in the law.
Section 2 of the Republic Act No. 7438 states: “Any person arrested or detained or under custodial investigation shall be allowed visits by or conferences with any member of his immediate family, or any medical doctor or priest or religious minister chosen by him or by any member of his immediate family or by his counsel, or by any national non-governmental organization duly accredited by the Commission on Human Rights of by any international non-governmental organization duly accredited by the Office of the President.”
The planned online visitation of Anna Enrech, a journalist from Spain, was the most recent case of a declined visit request. She requested in July 2024 but was denied by BJMP Tacloban City Jail-Female Dormitory.
Visitation requests from the International Association of Women in Ratio and Television (IAWRT) and the Committee to Protect Journalists (CPJ) were denied last year. Also denied was the request of Alexander Schmidt, the First Secretary for Political Affairs from the Embassy of the Federal Republic of Germany of Manila and a member of the Media Freedom Coalition.
So far, United Nations special rapporteur Irene Khan was the only international delegation allowed by the Philippine government to visit Cumpio and the other two human rights defenders. She visited them on January 27 this year.
Read: UN expert Irene Khan visits journalist Frenchie Mae Cumpio, companions in jail
“The assertion that only lawyers and immediate family members can visit Cumpio undermines the nature of her case. She is a journalist persecuted under weaponized laws,” Villanueva said. “[I]t is not a matter of jail management, but how their rules and regulations are biased against the welfare of persons deprived of liberties.”
The Eastern Vista broadcast journalist was among the so-called “Tacloban 5” arrested after the police and the military raided their offices and staff houses on Feb. 7, 2020. They were accused of possession of illegal firearms and explosives and terrorism financing. Before Cumpio’s arrest, she was red-tagged for reporting cases of human rights violations.
Read: Frenchie Mae Cumpio’s brave truth-telling
“We submitted the letter-complaint during the National Press Freedom Day to underscore that Cumpio is a member of the press and that the charges pressed against her are a form of political persecution,” Villanueva said.
Alongside submitting their letter, they also reiterated their call to nullify the blocking order from the National Telecommunications Commission (NTC) affecting websites like Bulatlat and Pinoy Weekly, both members of AlterMidya.
“If the Marcos Jr. administration vows to act differently than the previous administration, he should prove it. All sorts of attacks and assaults such as red-tagging, cyberattacks, and killings must come to an end,” Villanueva said. (JJE, DAA) 
