MANILA, Philippines — Groups gathered Tuesday night to mark community journalist Frenchie Mae Cumpio’s third year in detention, with young journalists crediting her for inspiring them to continue ferreting out the truth in the service of the people.
Among them was Philippine Collegian editor-in-chief Daniel Daiz who recalled how he reported on the arrest of Cumpio and four other activists in Tacloban in February 2020 on illegal possession of firearms and explosives charges.
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“In many ways, the Gestapo style arrest of the Tacloban 5 was my awakening as a young writer,” Daiz said partly in Filipino in a brief speech during the gathering calling for Cumpio’s freedom.
He said he learned from covering Cumpio’s arrest that campus journalists like him should be consistent in being critical in their coverage.
Another campus journalist who covered Cumpio’s arrest was Brell Lacerna, national spokesperson of the College Editors Guild of the Philippines, who called the community journalist an “inspiration.”
“From that moment, Frenchie serves as an inspiration, not just to me, but to all student journalists especially that her case has been pending for three years,” Lacerna said partly in Filipino.
He said Cumpio’s arrest serves as a challenge to them to immerse in the experiences of marginalized sectors, like farmers and workers.
Prior to her arrest on charges she and media groups say are trumped up, Cumpio — a journalist for Eastern Vista — had been red-tagged and had documented incidents of harassment and surveillance, according to Altermidya Network.
“Her detention is also a violation of the right to communication by farmers, the poor and workers in Tacloban and the entire Eastern Visayas Region because they lost a platform like Eastern VIsta to express their sentiments,” Bulatlat editor-in-chief Ronalyn Olea said in Filipino.
Cumpio and church worker Marielle Domequil of the Rural Missionaries of the Philippines were also accused of terrorist financing over money she said was meant to fund a local radio show.
“Her case is moving extremely slow. Now, we call for her freedom. Let Frenchie Mae speak,” International Association of Women in Radio and Television - Philippines chairperson Lynda Catindig-Garcia said in Filipino.