Several media organizations condemned the charges of financing terrorism filed against Deo Montescarlos, calling these as an attempt to stifle press freedom.
By ANNE MARXZE D. UMIL
Bulatlat.com
MANILA – Several media organizations stood in solidarity with community journalist Deo Monteclaros, who has been charged with financing terrorism, along with four other activists in Cagayan Valley.
Alternative media outfit Pinoy Weekly said the financing terrorism charges filed against its multimedia contributor are false and baseless. Pinoy Weekly said the charges levelled against Montesclaros “reek of the government’s relentless red-tagging spree.”
Others charged include peasant activist and former political prisoner Isabelo Adviento, fellow peasant activist Cita Managuelod, Karapatan human rights worker Jackie Valencia, and Makabayan-Cagayan Valley coordinator Agnes Mesina.
“Last year, the Quezon City Trial Court already ruled against government-backed red-taggers and the Supreme Court declared that the practice endangers life, liberty and safety. Despite this, the military continues to attack journalists like Montesclaros with its baseless accusations in a bid to stifle free speech,” Pinoy Weekly said.
The National Union of Journalists of the Philippines (NUJP) condemned the use of terror laws against journalists, noting that Montesclaros is the second journalist to be charged with financing terrorism.
“They have also been thrown against our colleague Frenchie Mae Cumpio, who has been detained since February 2020, over money that had been raised to fund her radio show,” NUJP said in a statement.
Altermidya Network also condemned the charges against Montescarlos saying, “These false accusations are part of the state’s ongoing attempts to silence independent and community journalists.”
Montesclaros has been a community journalist since 2017, covering human rights, social justice, the environment, and indigenous peoples. He also contributes as a photojournalist for international agencies such as IMAGO Images and Alto Press and a former correspondent of The Northern Dispatch.
In 2020, Montescarlos was red-tagged by the National Task Force to End Local Communist Armed Conflict where he was falsely labeled as communist rebel during a Senate hearing. Altermidya said he was forced to flee Cagayan province due to threats after the hearing.
“At the time, he was leading humanitarian efforts, raising donations, and coordinating relief for 1,809 families affected by Typhoon Ulysses. His reports on environmental issues—particularly against large-scale mining and illegal logging in Nueva Vizcaya and Cagayan Valley—made him a target of the government’s anti-communist witch-hunt,” the group said.
“These accusations reflect a broader pattern of state repression that endangers community journalists, who remain highly vulnerable to harassment, legal threats, and red-tagging. By weaponizing anti-terror laws to silence the press, the government creates a climate of fear, discourages critical reporting, and allows misinformation to thrive unchecked,” they added.
The Filipino Freelance Journalists’ Guild and the Photojournalists Center of the Philippines also condemned the charges and expressed support for Montescarlos.
The FFJG meanwhile called on the Ferdinand Marcos Jr. administration to uphold the constitutional right of the press to report, and called for an end to red tagging.
“Due to his critical work as a journalist—covering issues such as the environment, land reform, and human rights—he has become a target of multiple incidents of red tagging, the first which began in October 2020. He has also been surveilled by unknown elements in the past,” the FFJG said.
For PCP, the “arbitrary use of anti-terror laws to target the press not only endangers journalists but also fosters a culture of intimidation, discouraging critical coverage of issues affecting marginalized communities.”
The charges against Montescarlos and others stemmed from a complaint filed by PSSG Percival P. Carag, Deputized Anti-Money Laundering Council Financial Investigator. He alleged that Montescarlos and others are gathering supplies and cash for the New People’s Army.
On Jan. 10, a subpoena was issued by the Office of the Provincial Prosecutor in Cagayan for Montescarlos and others and ordered them to submit a counter-affidavit and other evidence to answer the complaint filed against them. (RTS, RVO)
