In the lead-up to the 2022 national elections, UP campus publications urged the university administration to protect student journalists from intensified harassment and intimidation.
During the first-ever virtual convention of UP Solidaridad held Feb. 18 and 19, its member publications reported receiving red-tagging blows under President Rodrigo Duterte’s term. UP Solidaridad is the UP system-wide alliance of student publications and writing organizations in the university.
Vista, the official student publication of UP Visayas (UPV) Tacloban, was red-tagged in February 2020 after covering the illegal arrest of five activists in the province. Among those detained were two UPV alumni and imprisoned journalist Frenchie Mae Cumpio.
Former editors of Sinag of UP Diliman (UPD) College of Social Sciences and Philosophy were baselessly labeled as ‘terrorists’ in July 2020 after publishing an article on military attacks against Lumad communities.
The social media pages of Sinag were also taken down multiple times due to mass reporting allegedly by state-sponsored trolls.
In January 2021, Manila Times columnist Rigoberto Tiglao accused UPD’s Philippine Collegian of ties to communist groups. The following month, UP Mindanao’s (UPMin) Himati was red-tagged by a Facebook page backed by the National Task Force to End Local Communist Armed Conflict (NTF-ELCAC).
Tinig ng Plaridel (TNP)’s editor-in-chief also received death threats from a suspected troll account in March 2021. UP Solidaridad itself was red-tagged by the NTF-ELCAC in January 2021.
Among the other publications that decried instances of red-tagging were UP Baguio’s Outcrop, UPD College of Science’s Scientia and UPV College of Arts and Sciences’ Pagbutlak.
“Despite the targeted attacks on the media, the campus press remains at the forefront of serving the student body and the community. [Our] mission has been to unite with other Filipinos and be their loud voice of truth,” Pagbutlak said.
In UP Solidaridad’s assembly last Friday, member publications adopted protocols to address state-sponsored attacks. The alliance will also create the UP Solidaridad Committee for Press Freedom which would provide legal assistance to campus publications. The publications would also collaborate with press groups like the National Union of Journalists of the Philippines to increase protections for student journalists.
“Due to the continued and intensified attacks against the freedom of the press, a system-wide effort by campus publications is needed to protect our ranks from state-sponsored attacks,” reads one resolution.
Urgent needs
Another resolution called on university officials to address the publications’ need for funding, security, equipment and spaces (FSES).
The Campus Journalism Act of 1991, the prevailing law on student publications, gives the editorial board autonomy over its own finances, but does not require schools to appropriate funds for them.
Funding woes exacerbated when the Free Tuition Law barred state universities and colleges from charging matriculation and miscellaneous charges, including campus publication fees.
READ: Lack of funding after free tuition law paralyzes student publications
Outcrop also reported that the publication could not make use of its funds due to “bureaucratic processes.” Likewise, Himati said they were unable to get funding from campus administrators as the publication “did not produce print issues” and “does not work for UP Mindanao.”
Mostly dependent on grants and alumni donations, TNP also faces budget issues and has yet to receive official recognition by the UPD College of Mass Communication since recognition rules in the college have changed.
READ: Medyo mapagpalaya: A “lesson” on hypocrisy and assertion
These issues are despite provisions in the UP Charter of 2008 which mandate every constituent unit and college to establish its own student publication with funding from student fees.
“Ang usapin ng budget at burukrasya [ay] ginagamit lang na palusot. Kailangan niyong iassert na first and foremost pera niyo yan bilang student publication, hindi ng admin,” UP Solidaridad Chairperson Marvin Ang told the publication representatives.
UP Solidaridad also called on the university to streamline processes to grant FSES to publications.
