Maria Ressa, the courageous boss of the online news portal Rappler, had become the target of a persecution campaign that had included legal means because of her criticism of the bloody drug war of the Philippine President Rodrigo Duterte.

On the social media, she was also attacked by Duterte's supporters with savage insults.

Till Fähnders

Political Correspondent for Southeast Asia.

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The license was withdrawn in 2018 for the portal, which she co-founded in 2012 and of which she has been the boss ever since.

It had reported critically on the president's anti-drug war, in the course of which thousands to tens of thousands of people are said to have been killed by the police and undercover death squads.

"Death by a thousand cuts"

Duterte and his regime had repeatedly arrested the journalist and initiated new proceedings in court.

She once described Duterte's actions against her and her online magazine Rappler as "death by a thousand cuts".

Among other things, she was convicted of defamation last year.

Ressa, who worked for CNN for many years, is one of the most famous journalists in the country. She was born in the Philippines but moved to the United States with her parents when the dictator Ferdinand Marcos declared the country a state of emergency. In America she studied at Princeton University before returning to the Philippines. In 2018, Time magazine named her Person of the Year for her advocacy of freedom of the press and democracy.

Human rights activists saw the journalist's persecution as an increasingly authoritarian president.

In addition to Rappler, the television station ABS-CBN had also lost its broadcasting license.

The 76-year-old president announced his retirement from politics just a few days ago with the end of his term in office next year.

According to the constitution, Duterte is not allowed to run for office a second time.

Former police chief and Senator Ronald "Bato" dela Rosa officially submitted his candidacy for president on Friday.

He is considered to be one of the main culprits in the president's drug war.