The move came just two days before President Rodrigo Duterte, the agency’s top critic, was due to step down as incumbent President-elect Ferdinand “Bongbong” Marcos, who takes office on Thursday. Rappler said it plans to appeal the decision. “By order of June 28, the Hellenic Capital Market Commission upheld its previous decision to revoke the certificate of incorporation of Rappler Inc. and Rappler Holdings Corporation,” the company said in a statement released by Ressa, the bank’s chief executive, on Wednesday. “We have been informed by our lawyers about this decision which effectively confirmed the closure of Rappler. “We have the right to appeal against this decision and we will do so, especially since the proceedings were extremely irregular.” RAPPLER STATEMENT By order of June 28, the Hellenic Capital Market Commission upheld its previous decision to revoke the certificates of incorporation of Rappler Inc. and Rappler Holdings Corporation. #HoldTheLine #CourageON pic.twitter.com/8Q0N6551lh – Rappler (@rapplerdotcom) June 29, 2022 The Philippine SEC revoked Rappler’s license in January for allegedly violating the country’s constitution and anti-creature law. The decision stemmed from a long-running case involving the issuance of Philippine depository receipts from the site, a security that allows foreigners to invest in Philippine companies without owning them, to foreign investor Omidyar Network. The country’s constitution prohibits foreign media ownership. The SEC opened an investigation into Rappler in 2016 and the investigation was one of several criminal cases filed by the Philippine authorities against the site, Ressa and other Rappler executives during Duterte’s presidency, which has eroded them. democratic controls and balances and led the Philippines to authoritarianism in its six years in office. The Nobel Committee awarded the 2021 Peace Prize to Resa and to Russian journalist Dmitry Muratov, publisher of Novaya Gazeta, for their work protecting freedom of expression.
