By Junex Doronio
MANILA — Claiming that libel and cyber libel suits curtail the freedom of expression and human rights, socialist professor and former vice presidential candidate Walden Bello has asked the Supreme Court (SC) to declare them unconstitutional.
On Tuesday, accompanied by lawyers Estrella Elamparo and Danilo Balucos, the Partido Lakas ng Masa (PLM) vice presidential bet in 2022 filed a 26-page petition before the High Tribunal seeking to void Articles 353 to 355 of the Revised Penal Code on libel and section 4(c)(4) of Republic Act 10175 or the Cybercrime Prevention Act on cyber libel.
“[T]he criminal statutes on libel and cyber libel suffer from the same fatal flaw of overbreadth as it does not distinguish between defamation supposedly committed against private individuals and those committed against private individuals and those committed against public officers, employees, celebrities, high profile personalities, or persons involved in matters of public interest,” Bello maintained.
He argued for decriminalizing libel and cyber libel, saying they are at “loggerheads” with the constitutionally guaranteed freedom of expression.
“It is not pleasant to be arrested, booked, and jailed and having to post P95,000. The humiliation of being arrested, handcuffed, and having your mugshot taken is I believe a very grave violation of one’s dignity,” Bello said during a press conference after the filing of his petition.
Bello also pointed out the Philippines’ obligations to international treaties such as the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights, the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, and high court rulings in Kenya and Zimbabwe which voided defamation laws.
(ai/mnm)