DAVAO CITY, Philippines – Detained community journalist Frenchie Mae Cumpio of Tacloban secured two legal victories this week on charges filed against her, as media groups press for her release on what they said are made-up charges that kept her behind bars for five years.
The Court of Appeals (CA) on October 29 reversed a lower court decision of civil forfeiture that froze her bank account, on charges that she and her companion, lay worker Marielle Domequil, were part of terrorist financing.
The CA ruled that they found no evidence linking Cumpio to terrorist groups.
On November 6, the Laoang Regional Trial Court in Samal dismissed a murder charge filed against her, as the complaint named a certain “Frenchie Armando Cupio” which the court said is not the same Frenchie Cumpio. The case accused Cumpio and her companions allegedly joined an ambush against state forces in 2019.
Cumpio, age 26, is the executive director of the alternative media group Eastern Vista based in Tacloban. She was among the five activists arrested in simultaneous raids in February 2020 now called the Tacloban Five, and has been detained facing three cases of terrorism financing and possession of illegal firearms police claimed was hidden in her staff house.
The National Union of Journalists (NUJP) hailed the latest decisions, and reiterated their call for the remaining charges of illegal firearms possession and financing terrorism against Cumpio to be dropped.
Cumpio’s trial on the illegal firearms case is about to end with the promulgation set on January 2026, while the case on terrorism financing is still pending resolution from the evidence presented by her lawyers. Cumpio may face a maximum of 40 years in prison.
“Cumpio’s case raises serious concerns over prolonged pretrial detention and allegations that authorities planted the weapons that led to her arrest. As executive director of the Eastern Vista news website and a radio news anchor, Cumpio frequently covered alleged police and military abuses as well as community welfare issues prior to her arrest,” NUJP said.
The AlterMidya Network, a national alliance of alternative media outfits said the Court of Appeals decision is a rebuke of state efforts to weaponize anti-terrorism laws against journalists and activists.
“The CA’s ruling affirms the very real dangers of arbitrarily tagging journalists, human rights defenders, and activists as ‘terrorists,’” AlterMidya said.
AlterMidya also noted that the confiscated cash—wrongly claimed by authorities as “terror funds”—was in fact raised through the Stand with Samar-Leyte campaign, a humanitarian initiative to help small-scale farmers in Eastern Visayas affected by calamities.
The CA gave a pointed warning on the lower courts which cautioned against abuse of counterterrorism laws.
“The Court cannot countenance the hasty labelling of human rights advocates as terrorists and the speedy confiscation of their funds and property in the name of national security… Measures to counter terrorism must not be done without due process, and at the expense of individuals, groups, and civil society organizations that are engaged in the promotion and defense of human rights.”
The CA said under the Anti-Terrorism Act, the Anti-Monetary Laundering Council (AMLC) may only investigate properties or funds of designated or proscribed individuals or groups. Cumpio and Domequil were proven to be employed -Cumpio as executive director of Eastern Vista, and Domequil as a lay worker for the Rural Missionaries of the Philippines.
The National Union of Peoples’ Lawyers (NUPL), which represents Cumpio and Domequil, hailed the decision as a landmark affirmation of due process and press freedom.
“This victory belongs not only to Frenchie and Marielle, but to all journalists, church workers, and human rights advocates whose commitment to truth and justice persists amid persecution,” the NUPL said in a statement.
The international journalist group Reporters Sans Fortieres (RSF) hailed the decision and urged the government to immediately release Cumpio.
The group had conducted early this year its investigation on the cases filed against Cumpio and found the claims “flimsy and implausible”, noting witnesses against her were not consistent in their statements, and questioned how Cumpio could have participated in the charges against her as state security admitted they have put her under surveillance.
“The journalist should never have been detained in the first place, nor held in provisional detention without conviction for almost six years. It is late, but not too late for President Marcos and his government to ensure that Cumpio is immediately released from prison and that all remaining charges against her are dropped. Only with her release can the authorities demonstrate their true commitment to press freedom,” said RSF Asia Pacific Advocacy Manager Aleksandra Bielakowska.(davaotoday.com)
