MANILA – The international media watch group, Reporters Without Borders, welcomed Friday the news that Jose Miguel Arroyo, the husband of President Gloria Arroyo, has decided to drop all law suits against the country's journalists and publishers.
It hailed the exemplary campaign waged by Philippines' journalist organizations and called for press offenses to be decriminalized.
Arroyo on Thursday instructed his lawyers to end all "defamation" suits which he had launched since 2003 against a total of 46 journalists, in connection with articles alleging corruption in which he was reportedly implicated.
"In order to express my deep gratitude and in a gesture of peace towards the good people who have helped my family during this crisis, I have instructed my lawyers to drop the cases for defamation. This is a real opportunity for us to begin a positive and constructive relationship with those who accept my outstretched hand", he said after leaving the St. Luke’s hospital in Manila where he had undergone an operation.
In December 2006, journalists took their own legal action against the president's husband because of the abusive accusations he made against them.
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