Appeals Court Orders License Restored to Philippine News Site Rappler

A Philippine court has reversed a ruling against the independent news website Rappler and called for the company’s business license to be restored, the company said on Friday, in a rare victory for the free press in Southeast Asia.

The case was one of a dozen criminal and civil complaints filed by the government of former President Rodrigo Duterte against Rappler and its co-founder, the Nobel Peace Prize laureate Maria Ressa, along with its board members and staff. Charges have included tax evasion, violation of foreign ownership rules, and cyber libel.

Rappler had angered Mr. Duterte with its investigation into his brutal drug war. Ms. Ressa told The Times in 2022 that she viewed the cases against her and Rappler as “harassment and intimidation.”

The latest decision involved the biggest case facing Rappler, connected to the revocation of its operating license in 2018. That revocation had been ordered by the Securities and Exchange Commission, which said that an investment by Omidyar Network, owned by the eBay founder Pierre Omidyar, violated the restrictions on foreign ownership of domestic media. (The Constitution prohibits foreign entities from owning domestic media organizations in the Philippines.)

Rappler continued to operate pending the final outcome of the case, but the order added to the challenges it faced.

In 2020, the S.E.C. upheld its earlier order. Rappler argued then that Omidyar Network’s investment was not the same as owning shares, did not give the company control of its operations, and did not violate the law. Rappler vowed to take the case to the Court of Appeals.

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