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Sixty-five percent of Filipinos said it is dangerous to report critical stories against the Duterte administration, a Social Weather Station (SWS) survey said on Friday.

In their survey last November 21 to 25, 2020, SWS found that 65 percent agreed with the statement that “it is dangerous to print or broadcast anything critical of the administration, even if it is the truth” while 18 percent were undecided and 16 percent have disagreed.

“Freedom of speech has been probed 46 times from 1985 to the present. In the six times it was surveyed in the time of President Rodrigo Duterte, it ranged from a moderate +23 to a strong +49,” it said.

Those who agreed that publishing or reporting anything critical of the administration is highest in Mindanao at +58, followed by Visayas at +55, Balance Luzon at +47 and +30 in Metro Manila.

Duterte is the first elected president from Mindanao.

“Compared to July 2020, net agreement rose sharply from moderate to very strong in Mindanao, up by 30 points from +28,” SWS said.

The survey also found that 65 percent also agreed that they can say anything they want and without fear while 16 percent were undecided and 19 percent disagreed.

SWS said the number of people who believed that what they can say cannot be controlled is the highest since January 2001.

Net personal freedom to speak freely rises in the Visayas at +59 and Mindanao at +55 but falls in Metro Manila at +28, SWS added.

The survey was conducted using face-to-face interviews of 1,500 adults, the first in 2020 due to the COVID-19 pandemic. Ella Dionisio/DMS