Press Release
December 13, 2007

KIKO HITS PNP, MILITARY NO-SHOW AT SENATE
INVESTIGATION ON MANILA PEN MEDIA ARREST

"Their absence will not stop Senate from legislating to
protect the rights to free speech and of the press." --- KIKO

Senate Majority Leader and Independent senator Kiko Pangilinan criticized the PNP and military for failing to show up at the Senate probe on the media arrest during the Manila Pen siege.

"Their absence today casts doubt on their sincerity, and their willingness to account for what happened at the Manila Pen. This will not impair Senate from acting on its duty to legislate remedial measures to stop a repeat of these intrusions to our constitutionally guaranteed rights. We will not take this matter sitting down!" Kiko said.

"The danger of allowing small infractions is that it may embolden the commission of bigger ones. We need to be adamant in checking the abuses and stopping the excesses in the exercise of government. Rights are only rights when they are fought for," Kiko asserted.

"We were initially glad that the PNP participated in a dialogue with the media, which could've threshed out mechanics on how the government and the media could engage each other in circumstances like the Manila Pen incident. But since the dialogue ended nowhere, we wanted the PNP and the military to extend the same candidness by cooperating fully in the Senate investigation." Kiko added.

The Kapisanan ng mga Brodkaster sa Pilipinas initiated a dialogue among major news organizations, the DILG, PNP, and DND at the Manila Peninsula Hotel last December 5 to discuss the media arrest that occurred at the Manila Pen siege.

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