GENEVA - The conviction of journalist Frenchie Mae Cumpio and human rights defender Marielle Domequil in the Philippines on charges of financing terrorism is deeply troubling, UN experts* said today.
"Frenchie and Marielle have suffered six years of pre-trial detention and a fraught legal process with a string of charges that have been widely criticised as baseless and in retaliation for their human rights work," the experts said. "At a minimum, they should be released on bail while they pursue their appeal."
After months of 'red-tagging' and harassment attributed to State agents, Frenchie Mae Cumpio and Marielle Domequil were arrested on 7 February 2020, charged with illegal possession of firearms and explosives and detained with no legal possibility of bail. A year and half after they were arrested, an additional charge of financing terrorism was filed against them. The judicial proceedings started on 11 November 2024 - almost five years after their arrest - and, in January 2026, the Regional Trial Court of Tacloban City exonerated the two women of all charges except that of financing terrorism, for which they could face between 12 and 18 years in prison.
"Given the serious concerns about the unconscionable length of time that the two young women have already spent in detention and the lack of due process, but also a possibility now of provisional release, we urge the court to grant them bail without any further delay," the experts said.
"Frenchie and Marielle deserve to be free to fight for justice," they said.
The experts are in contact with the Government on this matter.
