CAGAYAN DE ORO CITY — The Presidential Task Force on Media Safety (PTFoMS) has given the green light for local journalists to create a localized structure of the task force to closely monitor and coordinate safety issues of media practitioners in the line of duty.
Col. Rechie Duldulao, a PTFoMS consultant, said local media groups seeking accreditation only need to write a formal letter to the task force.
“After this seminar, you can immediately create your own PTFoMS. That’s the reason why we have this (event),” Duldulao said in response to one of the querries during Thursday’s event organized by PTFoMS and attended by Mindanao-based journalists from at least six regions.
Duldulao, who was one of the resource speakers, talked about media security protocols as stipulated in the “Handbook on Personal Security Measures for Media Practitioners”.
The handbook, which was the result of brainstorming and consultative meetings with different media organizations, are also being distributed to government agencies, such as the Philippine National Police, Department of Justice, and the National Bureau of Investigation.
PTFoMS officials also explained the implementation of Administrative Order (AO) No. 1 signed on Oct. 11, 2016 by President Rodrigo Duterte.
Cagayan de Oro City Police media relations officer, Supt. Mardy Hortillosa, said the police plays a big role in identifying the culprits of media killings in the country.
He added that the Philippines ranks second all over the world in terms of unsolved media killings.
“This seminar is very useful to us, especially the guidelines of PTFoMS Protocols,” Hortillosa said.
PTFoMS Executive Director, Undersecretary Jose Joel Sy Egco, encouraged local journalists to report threats to the task force so it could monitor and, if necessary, provide assistance to threatened members of the media. (Ercel Maandig/PNA)
