tito sotto, tito sotto cybercrime, tito sotto libel, tito sotto libel case insertion, libel case insertion, cybercrime libel case insertion, cybercrime preventiona law,
Disclaimer: The following is just a summary of the article published by ABS CBN news. DiversityHuman.com should not be held responsble regarding the authenticity of each parties claims.
Tito Sotto on libel case insertion
- January 24, 2012 Senate journal cited the person who inserted the libel rider in the Cybercrime Prevention Act of 2011 but Senator Tito Sotto III vehemently insisted that he did not insert the libel rider in Republic Act No. 10175.
The libel rider of the controversial cyber law may send a netizen to jail for up to 17 years. The suggested sanction is even heavier compared to libel cases in print media.
According to Sotto, in an interview on radio dzMM, Senate records uploaded on the upper House's website that showed he inserted the libel clause in the period of amendments is absurd.
"Kalokohan iyon," he said. "Iyung committee (amendments), nasa record ng Senado iyon."
"Mayroon pa silang sinabi, nasa journal daw ng Senate. Marunong pa sila sa journal ng Senate. Sa akin dumadaan iyung journal ng Senate. Ako ang Senate majority leader," Sotto said.
Pages 879 to 880 of the January 24, 2012 Senate journal on the website state:
Preliminarily, Senator Sotto stated that there are numerous abuses in technology, particularly the video and photo uploading and unnecessary write-ups and comments in social networking systems. He read the definition of libel in Mendez vs. Court of Appeals (OR No. 124491, June I, 1999), to wit: ... a public and malicious imputation ofa crime, or of a vice or defect, real or imaginary, or any act, omission, condition, status or circumstance tending to discredit or cause the dishonor or contempt of a natural or juridical person, or to blacken the memory of one who is dead. Thus, the elements of libel are: (a) imputation of a discreditable act or condition to another; (b) publication of the imputation; (c) identity of the person defamed; and, (d) existence of malice.
Senator Sotto further cited the ruling in Laesa vs. Intermediate Appellate Court (161 SCRA 427)...
Sotto, in his dzMM interview, remained firm in denying that he was behind the libel clause.
The Senate committee report did not have the libel clause as claimed by Tito Sotto.
"January 24, pinasa iyan. Natapos iyan sa Senado. Kasama na doon sa committee amendments, sinama na lahat ng crimes, punishable by the Revised Penal Code," he said.
He said he doesn't know what happened to the proposed legislation authored and sponsored by Senator Edgardo Angara when it reached the bicameral committee.
"Huwag nila akong atakehin. Akala nila may mga na-insert pa, wala, hindi totoo," Sotto said. "hindi ko nga tinayo sa individual amendments eh. May nagsasabi, ako raw sa individual amendments, hindi, intensiyon ko iyon nung last quarter."
"Karamihan dito sa mga nagfi-file ng petition, mayroon pang sina-cite sa akin eh. Ako raw ang nag-insert. Nakakapagtaka nga eh," he said.
"Mapapasubo sila sa Supreme Court, dahil ang haharap sa Supreme Court, sila Senator Angara, ang solicitor-general. Pagtatawanan sila sa sinasabi nila," he said.
"Ako ang babanggitin nila sa insertion, hinanap ngayon sa Supreme Court iyung journal, na wala akong kinalaman doon, di sira lahat ng petition nila," he added. "Dapat nag-iingat sila ng pagbibintang."
"Ako siguro, kung ano ang sabihin ng Supreme Court, antayin natin. Dinala nila doon eh, karapatan nila iyon," he said.
"Ako ang paboritong 'whipping boy' ng ibang tao sa social media. Masyadong binibigyan nila ako ng credit na hindi ko gawa," he said."Sa akin na naman ibinibintang ang anti-cybercrime act," he added.
"Naka-ilang public hearing iyan. Pagdating ng last quarter ng 2011, dinedebate namin sa Senate floor iyan," he said.
"Sa social media, tignan mo, katakot-takot na murahan doon. Kung ano-anong paninira ng reputasyon maririnig mo doon. Walang batas eh," he said.
"Hindi ko masagot kung bakit tinaasan iyung penalties, eh. Bakit daw triple iyung penalties," he said.
"Hindi matandaan kung ano iyung pinagdebatihan doon. Pinakamaganda diyan, si Senator Angara ang tanungin niyo, siya ang author eh," he added.