MANILA — Local and international human rights groups and press freedom advocates have decried a Philippine court’s conviction of journalist Frenchie Mae Cumpio and lay worker Marielle Domequil for financing terrorism—a decision seen as the first in the country and the world, and an attack against truthful reporting.

Cumpio, 26, and Domequil, 28, were arrested during a raid by the Philippine National Police and the military in their room in Tacloban City, Leyte, on February 7, 2020. They have remained in detention for nearly six years.

Cumpio was then the executive director of the news outlet Eastern Vista and the host of a program over radio station Aksyon Radyo-Tacloban DYVL, where she reported on alleged abuses by the military and police in the Eastern Visayas region.

Domequil, meanwhile, was with the Rural Missionaries of the Philippines and was actively involved in humanitarian missions for marginalized rural communities.

They and three others comprised the so-called “Tacloban Five,” arrested while helping people address community issues in Tacloban, a poor coastal city.

After the raid, Cumpio and Domequil were charged with illegal possession of firearms and explosives, and with financing terrorism, by allegedly providing cash and various supplies, including ammunition, to members of the Communist Party of the Philippines–New People’s Army (CPP-NPA).

The police and military said they seized during the raid a cash box containing ₱557,360, allegedly being used to support the CPP-NPA, and recommended that this money be forfeited in favor of the government.

On January 22, 2026, the Tacloban Regional Trial Court (RTC) acquitted Cumpio and Domequil of illegal possession of firearms and explosives but convicted them of financing terrorism, as defined by Republic Act No. 10168 or the Terrorism Financing Prevention and Suppression Act of 2012.

They were sentenced to an indeterminate prison term ranging from 12 years, 5 months, and 11 days (minimum) to 18 years, 8 months, and 1 day (maximum), along with a fine of ₱500,000 each.

Conviction Condemned

Human rights alliance KARAPATAN said the conviction was part of “a coordinated effort by the National Task Force to End Local Communist Armed Conflict (NTF-ELCAC) and the Anti-Terrorism Council (ATC) to silence dissent through fabricated cases and the weaponization of anti-terror laws.”

“This conviction shows how the justice system is being used to carry out the lies and persecution pushed by the NTF-ELCAC and the Anti-Terrorism Council,” it added.

It stressed that the acquittal of Cumpio and Domequil on firearms and explosives charges exposed the weakness of the prosecution’s case, but alleged that “the same lies and perjured testimonies were used to force a conviction in the remaining case.”

The National Union of People’s Lawyers (NUPL) described the conviction as “disturbing.”

“This and similar cases thus demonstrate how counter-terrorism laws can be stretched and weaponized to criminalize lawful, civilian work—turning journalism, humanitarian work, and advocacy into alleged acts of terrorism financing. From this injustice flow the grave implications that cannot be ignored,” the lawyer’s group said.

It added, “This conviction, with due respect, … demands the highest level of public scrutiny. What is at stake is not only the liberty of [Cumpio] and [Domequil], but the safety of civil society actors whose work depends on the freedom to speak, associate, and serve without fear of criminalization. This shows how terror laws in the Philippines, by their nature and design, chill speech, deter association, and shrink civic space.”

The Members of the Media Freedom Coalition Embassy Network in the Philippines said in a statement, “We… reaffirm our commitment to the protection of press freedom and the rights of journalists worldwide.

We urge all stakeholders to ensure that journalists can carry out their work without fear of persecution or undue interference. Freedom of expression and the ability to report independently are essential pillars of democracy and must be safeguarded.”

The statement was signed by the embassies of Austria, the Kingdom of Belgium, Canada, Finland, France, Germany, the Netherlands, Switzerland, and several others.

The Committee to Protect Journalists said, “This decision sets a precedent as Frenchie Mae is the first journalist in the world to be convicted of financing terrorism.”

“… the decision sends a chilling effect not only among journalists in the Philippines but also worldwide. It has far-reaching implications because of the trend of using terrorism charges to go after journalists in autocratic countries like Russia, Myanmar using such absurd and ridiculous charges to go after journalists.”

Reporters Without Borders (RSF) said, “We are appalled by this verdict. The RSF investigations and evidence presented in court by Frenchie Mae Cumpio’s lawyers clearly show how fabricated this case has been from the very beginning.”

The group said the conviction “represents a devastating failure on the part of the Philippine justice system” and warned that the country risks becoming “a perpetrator that red-tags, prosecutes, and imprisons journalists simply for doing their work.”

The National Union of Journalists of the Philippines (NUJP) likewise slammed the convictions.

“We have held from the start that the charges against them are trumped up and are products of a questionable arrest and testimony from dubious witnesses.

Frenchie, as colleagues have testified in court, is a community journalist and was, at the time of her arrest, executive director of news site Eastern Vista and a radio broadcaster reporting on community issues, including alleged police and military abuses.

Her case has been emblematic of the challenged state of press freedom, and more broadly of freedom of speech and expression, in the Philippines and her conviction does not bode well for the media’s ability to report on the issues that Frenchie did without fear of reprisal and retribution.

NUJP and the coalition will stay in the fight for her and for the rest of the Tacloban Five. We call on the media community and the public to continue to monitor the case as it moves forward.

We welcome their acquittal on the Illegal Possession of Firearms and Explosives case, however partial that victory may be.

The victory is a testament to Frenchie’s and Marielle’s courage and perseverance to fight the charges despite the odds and the resources arrayed against them, but also a reminder that we can win through the collective effort of her lawyers, supporters, friends, and her community.”

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