The National Press Club of the Philippines, the largest and one of the oldest organizations of journalists in the country, vowed to scrutinize a bill filed by Sen. Jinggoy Estrada that seeks, among others, the creation of a council to be in charge of accrediting journalists.
While keeping on open mind to the intentions of the measure, NPC president Benny Antiporda said they would readily reject the measure if “traces of regulation” would be found in any of its provisions.
“We welcome Sen. Estrada’s gestures with regard to his expressed concern for members of the Philippine press. However, we believe that the measure should be scrutinized per letter in order to protect the sanctity of the freedom of expression,” Antiporda said.
He added that while it may seem at first glance that the Estrada measure smacks of regulation and censorship, it should also be taken to serve as a “wake-up” call for media organizations, including the NPC, to police their ranks.
“Protecting the profession begins with those who practice it. I see nothing wrong with preventing fly-by-night mediamen from invading the legal boundaries of journalism to serve their own ends. If the bill has to be killed, so be it. What is important is that it should induce us now to police our ranks,” Antiporda stressed.
Senate bill 380, or the Magna Carta for Journalists, was filed to gather all legitimate media organizations into one body—the Philippine Council for Journalists (PCJ)—that will be responsible in creating a database or directory of accredited journalists from both print and broadcast media.
Estrada said he decided to revive the “old” proposal amid the recent killings and harassment of media personalities.
Under the proposed legislation, journalists will be classified into two—accredited journalists, or those who have passed the Professional Journalist Examination to be given by the PCJ, and non-accredited journalists, those who failed the examination but are still allowed to exercise their duties.
“Only accredited journalists shall be entitled to all benefits and privileges that may be accorded to them by the law, their employers, and by the PCJ. To us in the Club, that may sound tolerable for as long as there is no government pressure,” Antiporda emphasized.
Media organizations that are supposed to be included in the council are the NPC, Philippine Press Institute (PPI), Kapisanan ng mga Broadkaster ng Pilipinas (KBP), Press Photographers of the Philippines (PPP), Manila Overseas Press Club (MOPC), National Union of Journalist of the Philippines (NUJP), Publishers Association of the Philippines, Inc. (PAPI), and the Federation of Provincial Press Club (FPPC).
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