Lawyers for individuals dubbed as the CERNET 27 have succeeded in having dismissed the three-decade long “terrorism financing” case, or violation of the Terrorism Financing Prevention and Suppression Act of 2012. The court’s May 15 decision in Cebu City granted the Motion to Dismiss filed by the victims’ lawyers.
CERNET 27 consists of former and current leaders and staff of Community Empowerment Resource Network (CERNET) Inc and activists based in Central Visayas. They include doctors, lawyers, a judge, pastors, church workers, development workers and activists who stand with poor communities.
“The dismissal of the case marks a major victory for human rights defenders, development workers, and civil society organizations that have long been subjected to harassment, vilification, and legal persecution by State forces, particularly the NTF-ELCAC and its legal task force,” CERNET Board of Trustees chair Dr. Oliver Gimenez said.
Gimenez added that the decision exposes the dangers of weaponizing anti‑terror laws against legitimate humanitarian and development work. He said state security forces have, for years, used the Anti‑Terror Financing Law and similar policies to intimidate and silence government critics and those who help the poor.
“The dismissal of the CERNET 27 case affirms a fundamental principle: serving poor and vulnerable communities is not terrorism. Development work, humanitarian assistance, and human rights advocacy must never be criminalized,” Gimenez said.
The CERNET 27 case
The Armed Forces of the Philippines (AFP) filed a complaint with the Department of Justice (DoJ) in May 2023,alleging “terrorism financing” against the CERNET 27. CERNET first learned of the case in August 2023 when its office received a subpoena from the DoJ.
The AFP based its case on a purported “witness” former CERNET staff Bernabe Nieves. Nieves had long been dismissed for grave misconduct and violations of the organization’s code of ethics. Nieves’ account claimed that CERNET gave ₱135,000 to the New People’s Army (NPA)‑Southeast Negros in Dumaguete City in September 2012.
Led by Senior Deputy State Prosecutor Peter Ong, the DoJ’s Task Force on Counter‑Terrorism and Terrorism Financing ruled in favor of the AFP complaint on May 8, 2024 and filed charges in a local court in Cebu. On May 13, 2024, the court in Cebu issued arrest warrants against the CERNET 27.
For temporary freedom, 23 of the 27 accused posted bail on the same month. The court set bail at ₱200,000 per person, despite the DoJ’s recommendation.
The Regional Trial Court‑Branch 74 in Cebu City dismissed the “terrorism financing” complaint the DoJ and AFP filed against Geraldine Labradores and Msgr. Merlin Logronio, two of the CERNET 27, on June 24, 2024 further proving the case’s weakness. Both were already deceased when the case was filed.
The CERNET 27 filed criminal and administrative complaints with the Office of the Ombudsman‑Visayas on July 30, 2025 against DoJ officials. They did this to hold accountable the government officials for weaponizing the law to harass them and other progressives.
The legal standard
The court conclusively dismissed the CERNET 27 case on the ground that the accusations against them did not amount to a crime. The National Union of People’s Lawyers explained that the case was dismissed because the NPA had not yet been “designated” as terrorists in September 2012, when the alleged offense occurred.
Section 15 of the Anti‑Terror Financing Law requires the Department of Foreign Affairs to publish a list of “designated persons” before such designation becomes legally effective in the Philippines. No publication existed in September 2012.
A published list of “designated terrorists” only appeared on December 5, 2017 under Proclamation No. 374 by Rodrigo Duterte and again in December 2020 via a resolution of the Anti‑Terrorism Council.
“We note, however, that the prosecution’s reliance on earlier foreign designations to supply the missing element is constitutionally untenable on an additional ground,” the NUPL said. A Supreme Court decision also bars automatic designation as terrorists on the basis that foreign countries or institutions have designated them as terrorists.
“Without official publication, there was no legally operative ‘designated person or organization’ that could serve as the basis for a charge under [the law],” the NUPL said. The group emphasized that one of the essential elements of the crime was missing from the outset. “The case should never have been filed,” it said.
At a gathering on May 29, the CERNET 27 thanked the lawyers who assisted and stood with them during the three‑year legal battle. The group’s lawyer‑members from the NUPL were among those honored. They presented plaques and awards to their lawyers.
CERNET 27 and their lawyers said they plan to file appropriate criminal, administrative and civil cases against the individuals and government agencies responsible for the wrongful prosecution and persecution.
