S1L16 – How to guard yourself against cyberlibel, introducing Juan Dimacaawat
Mister Juan Dimacaawat, are you around?”
My favorite law student is a stocky fellow from Mankayan, Benguet, the son of a retired miner who now owns a welding shop fabricating “ball mills” for neighborhood pocketminers.
I like calling him during recitations because he is never afraid to be wrong, oftentimes giving me wonderful openings to lecture off of his mistake. He is never embarrassed and never nurses a grudge. I keep telling him he would make a great lawyer—someday—sturdy and durable in the face of adversity. Many stern judges I know would have a heart attack first before they can make him blush.
“I’m here in the back, sir!”
“Alright, Mr. Dimacaawat, read Section 4 of your Article III, Bill of Rights.”
“1987 Constitution, sir?” his classmates were giggling already.
“No, 1935—let’s study that one first, we have plenty of time, I’m only 58… of course I meant 1987 Constitution!”
“Yes, sir! Section 4… ‘No law shall be passed abridging the freedom of speech, of expression, or of the press, or the right of the people peaceably to assemble and petition the government for redress of grievances.”
“So, Mr. Dimacaawat, does that law tell the people that they can speak freely, express themselves freely, gather freely, publish freely and demand that the government listen to their grievances?”
“Oh, yes, sir!!”
Wrong. Sit down.
Listen carefully, class. The Bill of Rights tells the people NOTHING. Every word in the Bill of Rights is addressed to the STATE, not the people. In Section 4, which is sometimes called your ‘SEPA’ clause (for Speech-Expression-Press-Assembly), the Constitution is telling the government, particularly Congress, to “allow the people to speak, don’t try to stop them” But the Bill of Rights is not telling the people what they can or cannot say. Why is that, Mr. Dimacaawat?
“Sir, because you can think of anything under the sun and say THAT.”
Correct. So it’s impossible to lay dowSen in advance the criteria of what is safe to say, and what would have consequences if you say it. You cannot be stopped from saying something libelous. But if you say something libelous in the exercise of your right to say anything, what you said is STILL libelous. You can still go to jail. That’s the meaning of the phrase, “the freedom of speech is not the freedom to libel“
In this day and age of pervasive social media, the tendency to “blow off some steam” can get netizens into trouble.
The old saying is “what happens in Vegas STAYS in Vegas.” It’s a colloquialism for it’s safe to do shameful things in a shameless place. Nobody would mind it in a place where everybody is doing it. Whatever “it” is.
But the internet has extended the borders of Sin City. Now “what happens in Vegas stays on Facebook.” Later on it had extended everywhere else to cover everything else. If you’re not careful, a little profanity you intended only for Juan Dimacaawat is being shared on both hemispheres of the globe. What’s worse, thousands would still be talking about it long after you have logged off, you would have no clue it is now YOU they are talking about. As they say, if you’re not at the table, you’re on the menu.
Ordinarily, it’s hard to prove libel because it’s difficult to establish “malice aforethought.” You need to probe deep into the mind of the person, trying to piece together what his intention was.
Unfortunately, netizens are as talkative as circus canaries, explaining not only their intentions but every last detail of their hopes, dreams and aspirations. Contrary to popular misconception, it is a thousand times EASIER to prove cyberlibel.
“So what’s the moral, Mr. Dimacaawat?”
“Sir, to be safe from cyberlibel, whatever you would not say verbally in public, never say on Facebook!”
“I hate to admit it but you are correct, Mr. Dimacaawat.”
He had a big stupid smile on his face as he sat back and put one arm around the shoulder of a pretty seatmate who was proudly looking at him with sparkling eyes. The lucky devil.
The author is a writer and lawyer based in Baguio City, Philippines. Former editor of the Gold Ore and Baguio City Digest, professor of journalism, political science and law at Baguio Colleges Foundation (BCF). He is a photographer and video documentarist. He has a YouTube channel called “Parables and Reason”