[Editorial] Subjugation
The claws of the tyrants manifested again when the press was dragged into enemy trenches where rifles take the form of laws.
After two cease-and-desist orders against ABS-CBN that have impaired its broadcast operations, a committee of the House of Representatives denied the leading network a franchise, inflicting another injury to press freedom.
The result was expected as the lower chamber, filled with allies of President Rodrigo Duterte, became his machinery to further consolidate power.
To the representatives who favor the decision, it was the rule of law that decided the fate of ABS-CBN. But it was also a tale of political persecution by lawmakers whose aim was to push the network to comply with their brand of uncritical journalism.
The move mirrored the cyber libel complaint filed by William Keng against Rappler, its Executive Editor Maria Ressa, and its former writer Reynaldo Santos Jr. And the parallelism began in their shared agenda of conformity for the ruling class seeks to control the media and its framing of news.
But the subjugation of the press will only present an incomplete narrative of the current exploitative system. Where the ruling elite can fund their mechanism for propaganda or crawl into the desk of the corporate media, the underrepresented sectors do not have this luxury.
As the division between class intensifies, the side of the oppressors is not equal to the side of the oppressed.
Supporters of the ABS-CBN shutdown paraded themselves as a champion of the company workers and employees. They used labor violations in their line of arguments. But if labor violations truly exist, closing down the broadcast company will achieve nothing.
It only proved that Duterte and his allies are enemies of the working class. The move to paralyze the broadcast operations of ABS-CBN will leave thousands of workers into uncertain conditions. More than statistics, the working class who will lose their jobs will face the coronavirus pandemic in which the response of the regime is based on terror and the abuse of power.
And as the Philippines grapples with the pandemic, the ABS-CBN shutdown will deprive millions of crucial reports while the regime will exhaust its arsenal to misinform the public about their failed policies.
The tactic is a recycled version of the Marcosian rulebook of media repression which Duterte is emulating.
After all, it is the duty of the press to expose the crimes of an autocrat. When Duterte has initiated a failed bloody campaign against the poor under the facade of a war on drugs, it was the media who were on the streets at night, capturing the aftermath of police brutality and the heightened culture of impunity that followed.
It should be admitted that the media is not perfect. The corporate structure of the mainstream press and its reliance on advertisers from big business can contradict journalism but continued attacks against the media will also leave no room for self-correction.
The decision to strip the beleaguered network a franchise reveals Duterte’s aggressive intention to suppress those who would dare to be critical to him. Not only is it a wrongful prosecution, but the denial of a franchise also sends a message to those who seek to rebel against an oppressive regime.
In the aftermath of the franchise denial, Duterte and his allies will call it a victory. But their shallow celebration is devoid of historical context. For when the fangs of oppression harden, the people will always resist.
The editorial piece, Subjugation, was first published on July 13, 2020 by Pacesetter in its official Facebook page.
