Maria Ressa, Rappler cleared of tax evasion charges

	“Today, facts win, truth wins, justice wins.” Maria Ressa outside the court after being cleared of tax evasion charges, January 18, 2023

MANILA –Nobel Peace Prize winner Maria Ressa and her online news company, Rappler, were acquitted of tax evasion charges on January 18.  

The Court of Tax Appeals ruled that prosecutors failed to prove “beyond reasonable doubt” that the news organization had evaded tax payments in four instances after raising capital through partnerships with two foreign investors. “The acquittal of the accused is based on the findings of the court that respondents did not commit the crime charge,” the court said in its decision.

This was just one of several legal cases that Ressa said were used by former President Rodrigo Duterte to suppress critical reporting.