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Human rights groups condemn conviction of Filipina journalist for terrorism financing
Frenchie Mae Cumpio is the first Filipina journalist prosecuted under the Philippine anti-terror financing laws
- PUBLISHED: Thu 22 Jan 2026, 6:03 PM UPDATED: Thu 22 Jan 2026, 9:25 PM
- By:
- Angel Tesorero
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Human rights and press freedom advocates in the Philippines condemned the conviction of a 26-year-old community journalist and radio broadcaster, who was found guilty of financing terrorism and sentenced to a minimum of 12 years in jail by a regional trial court on Thursday.
Frenchie Mae Cumpio is the first Filipina journalist prosecuted under the Philippine anti-terror financing laws. She and her co-accused, Marielle Domequil, however, were both acquitted of charges of illegal possession of firearms and explosives.
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International organisation Reporters Without Borders (RSF) and the #FreeFrenchieMaeCumpio coalition of international press freedom organisations condemned the conviction of Cumpio, who can go to jail for up to 18 years.
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“The guilty verdict for ‘financing terrorism’ is a clear miscarriage of justice,” RSF underscored, following its independent investigation.
“We are appalled by this verdict. The RSF investigations and evidence presented in court by Cumpio’s lawyers clearly show how fabricated this case has been from the very beginning,” said Aleksandra Bielakowska, RSF Asia-Pacific Bureau Advocacy Manager.
Failure of the Philippine justice system
“Cumpio’s conviction represents a devastating failure on the part of the Philippine justice system and the authorities’ blatant disregard for press freedom,” she added, and called on Philippine President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. “to act without delay to end this injustice and release Cumpio immediately.
“Without his (Marcos) decisive action, there will be no meaningful difference from previous administrations that showed no regard for upholding a free press,” Bielakowska underscored.
Cumpio has been behind bars since February 2020, when she was arrested alongside four human rights workers. At the time of her arrest, Cumpio was executive director of the Eastern Vista news website and a radio news anchor at Aksyon Radyo-Tacloban DYVL, reporting extensively on alleged police and military abuses as well as community welfare issues in Eastern Visayas.
Cristina Palabay, secretary general of human rights alliance Karapatan, told Khaleej Times: “The conviction of Cumpio and Domequil is part of a broader pattern of repression. It mirrors the trumped-up cases filed against activists, humanitarian workers, and government critics. It sends a chilling message that speaking out and serving poor communities can cost you years of your life.”
According to Palabay, the terror financing charges stemmed from allegations that on March 29, 2019, in Samar (a province south of Manila), Cumpio and Domequil supposedly delivered cash and support to the New People’s Army, in alleged violation of Republic Act No. 10168, or the Terrorism Financing Prevention and Suppression Act.
“These claims relied on unreliable witnesses, speculative intelligence, and inconsistent narratives,” Palabay pointed out, adding: “By using this ‘terrorism’ narrative, state security forces carried out an illegal search and seizure on February 7, 2020, in Tacloban City, confiscating ₱557,360.00 (Dh34,835), which was later frozen and subjected to forfeiture proceedings.”
Work among the people
“Cumpio and Domequil were targeted not because of evidence, but because of their work among the people,” underscored Palabay, adding Cumpio was red-tagged and labelled a subversive for her reporting, which criticised the police and military.
International observers earlier noted red-tagging of journalists and activists intensified under the presidency of Rodrigo Duterte, who waged a bloody war on drugs in the Philippines from 2016 to 2022.
Human rights advocate and former New York Times correspondent Carlos Conde, meanwhile, noted: Cumpio’s conviction is not just an attack on press freedom. “In fact, the verdict will have an even worse impact on civil society actors and human rights defenders.
“Cumpio’s being a journalist is incidental in all this. She and the others were targeted by the state for their activism, not necessarily her journalism,” Conde underlined.
