14/03/2026
๐ข๐๐๐๐๐๐๐ ๐ฆ๐ง๐๐ง๐๐ ๐๐ก๐ง | On campus press freedom violations against the University of Mindanao student publication PRIMUM
MSU LANTAW, the alliance of campus journalists in Mindanao State University in Marawi City, stands in firm solidarity with its fellow campus journalists at the University of Mindanao and its official student publication PRIMUM.
On March 10, 2026, the official page of the PRIMUM was deleted and its editor-in-chief stepped down.
Prior to this, the PRIMUM published a now-deleted story where they referenced the former President Rodrigo Duterte who is now detained in The Hague, The Netherlands for his crimes against humanity, on his 2021 remarks that presidency is "not a women's job", following his daughter Vice President Sara Duterte's two years early declaration for 2028 presidential elections.
Days after the deletion of the said story, the PRIMUM released a statement that they are in talks with the university administration over the takedown article.
No public response from the administration.
However, on March 14, 2026, the PRIMUM was officially restored and opened for applications. In the same post, the newly-revived page PRIMUM said that it "moves forward in accordance with the policies of the University of Mindanao".
The publication materials used are seen with the logo attachments of the University of Mindanao alongside its Office of Student Affairs and PRIMUM. This is unusual and new from the PRIMUM's design postings before its initial deletion.
Without a doubt, this is a clear CAMPUS PRESS FREEDOM VIOLATIONS as defined by the College Editors' Guild of the Philippines as named in the following: censorship and administrative intervention.
From 2023 to 2024, the Guild has recorded 206 cases of campus press freedom violations across the country. This doesn't include the recent viral cases and the unreported and undocumented cases.
A culture of impunity strives when no one is held accountable. When a campus press was censored, controlled, and worse case was abolished, a school administration hid from the vague definition of "academic freedom" which violates the academic rights and constitutional rights of its students.
What we see is a pattern: the figures who are supposed to protect them inside the campus are the ones who take away their rights from speaking up.
We strongly condemn any form of censorship, intimidation, and administrative intervention that seeks to silence campus journalists. Such actions directly undermine the independence of campus publications and stand in clear contradiction to the spirit and provisions of the Campus Journalism Act of 1991 (Republic Act No. 7079), which upholds the freedom of student journalists to write, report, and publish without fear of suppression.
Student publications are not mere organizations โ they are institutions of truth within the university, spaces where student voices are heard, issues are examined, and accountability is demanded. When these voices are silenced, it is not only the student journalists who are affected, but the entire academic community that loses a vital pillar of democratic discourse.
We are calling the attention of the Commission on Higher Education for an immediate action to these campus press freedom violations. Not just limited to PRIMUM's case but to all campus press under censorship, administrative intervention, state surveillance, red-tagging, and other campus press freedom violations.
The passage of the CAMPUS PRESS FREEDOM BILL must be passed now into law.
We urged President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. to prioritize the bill that truly and genuinely protects campus journalists from attacks from inside and outside the campus.
We call upon the University of Mindanao to respect the autonomy of its student publication PRIMUM and uphold the rights of campus journalists, and ensure that no publication is subjected to censorship or undue interference.
Campus journalists have always stood in the pursuit of truth. No page deleted, no editorial board dissolved, and no act of censorship can erase the principles that campus journalism stands for.
An attack on campus press is an attack on press freedom.
We stand with PRIMUM, and with every campus journalist who continues to defend truth, transparency, and the freedom of the press.
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The Conservator
The Blueprint
The Pedon
The Lamp Publication
Ember
Bidlisiw
Mindanao Varsitarian
Daluyong
The Cursor
