The Public Attorney’s Office (PAO) will now provide legal assistance to media members particularly in their libel cases and other work-related charges. The legal assistance is provided for in a memorandum of agreement (MOA) signed on Tuesday, July 25, by PAO Chief Persida V. Rueda Acosta and Presidential Task Force on Media Security (PTFoMS) Undersecretary Paul M. Gutierrez. “Lahat po ng media practitioners magbebenipisyo dito (All media practitioners will benefit from this),” said Acosta during the signing ceremony held at the PAO, an autonomous agency attached to the Department of Justice (DOJ). Gutierrez, a former president of the National Press Club (NPC), on the other hand explained the MOA provides “media legal assistance po sa mga kapatid natin sa media, especially, on work-related cases, partikular na po isyu ng libel (legal assistance to members of the media especially on work-related cases, particularly on libel issues).” “Bago pa man po nito matagal na po tumutulong ang PAO sa hanay ng media kaya po malaking bagay po ito lalo na po sa ating mga mamamahayag sa lalawigan na problema po ‘pag naasalto po ng libel o cyberlibel ay problema po nila kung paano po sila maghahanap ng abogado (Prior this MOA, PAO has been helping the media and that’s why this agreement is important especially to members of the media in the provinces who are facing libel or cyberlibel cases and don’t know where to get lawyers),” Gutierrez also said. Acosta explained that those who can seek PAO media legal assistance include “‘yung may mga ongoing cases ay pwede po rebisahain ng Public Attorney’s Office para po mabigyan hustisya ang mga kapatid natin sa media (those with ongoing cases so that justice can be served). “Gayon din po ‘yung mga hindi lang doon sa napapatay pati doon sa talagang lumalaban pa sa ating mga hukuman at may kaso pwede po marebisa at matulungan ng ating mga kasama Public Attorney’s Office subject to internal rules ng PAO po (Not only for those who have died but also those facing cases in court can be assisted by the PAO subject to the internal rules of the PAO),” she added. With the legal assistance, Gutierrez advised media practitioners not to abuse their profession now that the MOA has been signed. “Ito pong pipirmahan naming MOA on legal assistance po ng PAO ay hindi po natin gawin ika nga kalasag o instrumento para po abusuhin ang ating propesyon (This MOA on legal assistance with the PAO was signed not to be used as a shield or instrument in abusing our profession),” he said. At the same time, Gutierrez said that PAO also agreed, under the MOA to help the PTFoMS in conducting media summits that will be launched this September. “Ito ay bahagi naman po ng kampanya ng Presidential Task Force on Media Security na magkaroon po ng awareness ang atin pong lahat ng mga mamamahayag (This is part of the PTFoMS campaign to raise awareness to all media practitioners),” he explained. “Basically po itong ating media summit na ito magtuturo po sa atin, magpapaalala lalo na sa ating mga mamamahayag, yung mga datihan na po katulad ko at bagong sibol po na tinatawag natin, hinggil po sa kahalagahan po ng responsableng pamamahayag, ethical and responsible media practice (Basically the media summit is intended to teach and remind us, especially to media practitioners both old and new, about the importance of responsible journalism, and ethical and responsible media practice),” he added. He noted that both he and Acosta found the summit to be helpful “upang mabawasan ang mga pagbabanta, ang mga galit ng ibang sektor ng lipunan sa ating hanay po ng media (to reduce threats, and anger from different sectors of society against media).”