MEAA letter over the closure of the Philippines broadcaster ABS-CBN

MEAA has written to the Philippines’ Ambassador and Australian Foreign Minister Marise Payne over the failure of the Philippines’ Congress to renew the licence of the country’s biggest broadcast network ABS‐CBN.

“The closure of the network has led to almost 11,000 people being put out of work at a key time when the provision of information about COVID‐19 is a vital service to the Filipino community.

It is apparent that some of the motivation behind the failure to renew is political. President Rodrigo Duterte has made no secret of his disdain for public interest journalism. He has also openly complained about the network since he ran for office in 2016.

The closure of ABS‐CBN is clearly an assault on press freedom.”

MEAA letter over the closure of Philippines broadcaster ABS-CBN

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Last update: May 8, 2020