The journalist Lady Ann Salem who was detained during Duterte’s wave of arrests on the International Human Rights day has still not been released. If she were to be pronounced guilty of the charges against her she would be facing several years of imprisonment. Several organisations agree that this wave of arrests was an open threat to critical journalism and voices opposed to the government. They demand her immediate release. The National Union of Journalists in the Philippines (NUJP) as well as Amnesty International are certain that the weapons found in Salem’s posession were planted by the police.
Amnesty International issued a statement where they express their concerns about Salem’s ongoing confinement. They consider her arrest a measure to silence activists of all sorts and are urging the government for her release.
The case of Lady Ann Salem shows once again how dangerous red-tagging is for the respective individuals and that it needs to stop now.