Media practitioners found an ally in Sen.  Gregorio “Gringo” Honasan in their effort to decriminalize libel.
Honasan, a former military colonel, has filed Senate Bill 2344, known as An Act to Decriminalize Libel, citing Article Ill, Section 4 of the 1987 Constitution which provides that “no law shall be passed abridging the freedom of speech, of expression, and of the press...”
In filing the measure, Honasan quoted the general comment issued by the United Nations Human Rights Committee (UNHRC) during its 102nd session on Sept. 12, 2011 regarding “Freedoms of opinion and expression.”
“It pronounced that defamation laws must be crafted with care…to avoid excessively punitive measures and penalties… States parties should consider the decriminalization of defamation,” Honasan said in quoting the UNHRC comment.
The UNHRC comment added, “in any case, the application of the criminal law should only be countenance in the most serious cases and imprisonment is never an appropriate penalty.”
Honasan said the UNHRC declared that the Philippines “is also under an obligation to take steps to prevent similar violations occurring in the future, including by reviewing the relevant libel legislation.”
On Oct. 23, 1986, the Philippines ratified the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights (ICCPR), recognizing that the ideal of free human beings enjoying civil and political freedom and freedom from fear and want can only be achieved if conditions are created whereby everyone may enjoy his civil and political rights, as well as his economic, social and cultural rights.
While pushing decriminalization of libel, Honasan emphasized the need for practitioners of mass communication to impose upon themselves utmost discipline in the practice of their profession.