February 6, 2021, Manila: A Mandaluyong court cleared journalist Ann Salem and trade unionist Rodrigo Esparago of all charges and voided the search warrant that was issued against them. Salem and Espargo were arrested on December 10, 2020.

Judge Monique Quisumbing-Ignacio dismissed the cases against Salem and Esparago after declaring the search warrant, which became the basis for their arrest, null and void. The warrants were issued by Quezon City Judge Cecilyn Burgos Villavert who has come into notoriety for his tumultuous history with activists. 

Quisumbing-Ignacio claimed that the warrants were vague, and the testimonies they were based on had glaring inconsistencies. The constitutional rights of the defendants demand that any warrants for searches and seizures be as specific as possible, and unclear terms of the documentation in Salem’s case allowed the authorities to go on a “fishing expedition”, grabbing all they want. In light of this, any evidence collected through the warrant was inadmissible in court.

Salem, the editor of red-tagged alternative publication Manila Today, was arrested alongside eight other activists on Human Rights Day last year on the charges of illegal possession of firearms and explosives.

The Coalition For Women In Journalism welcomes Judge Quisumbing-Ignacio’s decision and congratulates Ann Salem for having all charges against her dismissed. Legal harassment of activists and journalists should be discouraged and countered wherever necessary for a democratic society to thrive.