Philippine Right of Reply bill will cover bloggers
Representatives Mong Palatino and Bienvenido Abante confirm that House Bill No. 3306, also known as the Right of Reply bill, will cover websites, emails, and other electronic devices. Meaning, blogs are included.
Palatino noted that Section 1 of HB 3306 states, “All persons, natural or judicial, who are accused directly or indirectly of committing, having committed, or are criticized by innuendo, suggestion or rumor for any lapse in behavior in public or private life shall have the right to reply to charges or criticisms published in newspapers, magazines, newsletters or publications circulated commercially or for free, or aired or broadcast over radio, television, websites or through any electronic device.”
“The bill, therefore, would not only affect media outfits and journalists but also all website owners, website masters, e-mail account holders and other netizens who are not necessarily media practitioners,” said Palatino who has been a blogger since 2004.
Palatino believes this is “Internet censorship and suppression of freedom of speech and expression” and encourages both bloggers and texters to oppose the passing of this bill in Congress. Abante says people will have to refer to the specific implementing rules and regulations, especially for cases such as blogging.
Considering commenting systems are a default feature in blogs and anybody can start his own blog anyway, one wonders if the Right of Reply bill should be applicable, even feasible, on the Web.
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