CA ruling on Erap's film smacks of undue censorship - Pimentel

Senate Minority Leader Aquilino Q. Pimentel, Jr. (PDP-Laban) today said the Court of Appeals went overboard when it imposed certain conditions before the government can lift the ban on the public exhibition of a documentary film on former President Joseph Estrada.

The CA's 12th division upheld Malacanang's decision of Jan. 5, 2007 requiring the producer of Estrada's biographical film, "Ang Mabuhay Para sa Masa" to recognize the Supreme Court's verdict on the legality of the transfer of power from the deposed leader to President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo in the aftermath of the so-called EDSA Dos in January, 2001.

"The Court of Appeals' decision affirming the ban on Erap's bio-flick smacks of undue censorship," Pimentel said.

"Even wrong information in films falls under the mantle of freedom of speech. The administration can rebut it but it can't bar the views that it doesn't like."

The appellate court also required the film's producer, Public Perception Management Asia, Inc. (Publikasia) to include in the film the side of persons who were allegedly "defamed" by the documentary that claims that Estrada was illegally removed from office.

Originally, the Movie and Television Review and Classification Board (MTRCB) ruled that "Ang Mabuhay Para sa Masa" was unfit for public exhibition on the ground that it tended to undermine political stability and it was libelous and defamatory.

Pimentel expressed the view that the purpose of the documentary film, which is to present the Estrada's version on what he called a "conspiracy" to oust him from power, is well within the freedom of expression guaranteed by the Constitution.