After airing her opinion on President Rodrigo Duterte’s granddaughter Isabelle Duterte last Monday, Kathryne Cortez of Radyo Ni Juan in Davao City started receiving death threats.
In the show, Cortez criticized Isabelle’s glamorous and controversial photo shoot that was held in Malacañang, the presidential palace, and compared it to the extravagance of the Marcoses.
During President Duterte’s campaign last year, he would often mention his simple lifestyle as evidence that he is not corrupt.
After making those comments, Cortez started receiving threats through text from an unknown number.
“Hey, stop with your craziness. You might not live long enough to see 2018 [as] it is clear you are a communist! One bullet for you. Merry Christmas!” one message said.
One text also called her a communist ally.
“Take it easy, you’re still young,” the text message read in Cebuano, a language spoken in the southern Philippines. “You always criticize the government as if you are correct! Stop siding with the communists!”
The Duterte family, led by President Duterte, has ruled Davao City politics since 1986. Isabelle is the daughter of current Davao City Vice Mayor Paolo Duterte.
According to Inquirer, Cortez filed a report with the anti-cybercrime division of the regional police office.
The latest report released by international organization Reporters Without Borders revealed that the Philippines is the most dangerous country for journalists in Asia. The report said that of the five journalists shot in the Philippines last year, only one survived.
