The Supreme Court (SC) on Tuesday, February 18 struck down some provisions of Republic Act 10175 or the Cybercrime Law but upheld most of the controversial law as constitutional. Struck down were provisions on unsolicited commercial communications, real-time collection of traffic data, and blocking access to computer data by the government. But the court upheld the constitutionality of online libel with the condition that it only applies to the original author of the libelous statement. The court decision, penned by Justice Roberto Abad, comes a little over a year after oral arguments were first heard on January 15, 2013. The Cybercrime Prevention Act was signed into law in September 2012, 11 years after a first version was filed in Congress. Reaction to the decision was mostly positive. Senator Tito Sotto, who introduced the provision on online libel, said the court’s decision vindicates his position that ‘libel is libel.’ But Bayan Muna Representative Neri Colmenares said his group will file a motion for reconsideration on the constitutionality of online libel.
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