The International

Federation of Journalists (IFJ) joins its affiliate the National Union of

Journalists of the Philippines (NUJP) in calling on The Philippines Commission

on Elections (Comelec) to immediately revoke Resolution No. 9615, which

requires that “prior approval” be given before election candidates can be

interviewed by broadcasters.

In a statement, The NUJP

has called the Resolution, issued on January 15, unconstitutional since it

constitutes ‘prior restraint’.

The

Resolution would preclude impromptu interviews, making it both an impediment to

press freedom and the public’s right to know.

In

addition, the NUJP has said that the Resolution could have dire consequences in

emergency situations, such as natural disasters, when officials, who may also

happen to be candidates, need to get information out as quickly as possible to

the public.

“We are greatly concerned by the continued

implementation of legal reforms that undermine press freedom in the Philippines,”

said the IFJ Asia Pacific. “We call on the Filipino government

to withdraw this resolution which undermines press freedom and directly

contradicts their stated

commitment to press freedom and pass the

longstanding Freedom of Information Bill.”

For

further information contact IFJ Asia-Pacific on +61 2 9333 0950 

The IFJ represents more than 600,000 journalists in 131

countries

Find the IFJ on Twitter: @ifjasiapacific

Find the IFJ on Facebook: www.facebook.com/IFJAsiaPacific