This is
The Manila Times editorial for today, April 10. You can find the commentary as published
here. It seems to be a particularly popular piece; it was #2 in our top 5 trending stories this morning, although the last time I checked, it had gotten bumped by my column for today.
***
PEOPLE in the Philippines, and perhaps even our government
officials may not be aware of it, but the Philippines is being widely praised
online for its swift arrest of Russian-American YouTuber and streamer Vitaly
Zdorovetskiy after he harassed multiple people in Bonifacio Global City. “Prank
videos” and “nuisance streaming” are wildly popular and having been growing in
recent years, but the mainly American phenomenon is starting to be met with a
well-deserved backlash; videos of content creator miscreants being meted harsh
consequences for their behavior are nearly as popular as the videos of their
antics. Our officials should take heed, and provide the strong example the vast
online audience seems to be hoping for.
To recall, Zdorovetskiy was arrested at his hotel in Pasay
on April 3 after being declared an “undesirable alien” by the Bureau of
Immigration, following several complaints about his actions in BGC on April 1,
which were filmed for his livestream on the Kick platform by a still-unnamed
Filipino companion. Among other things, the video showed Zdorovetskiy harassing
several people, stealing several items, attempting to steal the service firearm
from one security guard and a motorcycle from another, and threatening to rob
an elderly woman.
Although the BI initially stated they would have
Zdorovetskiy deported, at a press conference on April 8 where Zdorovetskiy was
presented to the media, a visibly furious Department of Interior and Local
Government Sec. Jonvic Remulla said that Zdorovetskiy would be kept in custody
to face the numerous criminal charges filed against him. These include unjust
vexation, alarm and scandal, and attempted theft. Remulla also added, rather
darkly, that Zdorovetskiy would be subjected to “tactical interrogation” in
order for the police to learn the name and whereabouts of his cameraman, who is
a Filipino, and that individual would face charges as well.
The 33-year-old Zdorovetskiy, who was born in Russia but
resides in Florida, has been arrested numerous times for various offenses, all
of which were recorded for entertainment content on his YouTube or streaming
channels. The most serious of these was an incident in April 2020, in which
Zdorovetskiy physically attacked a female jogger, injuring her seriously enough
to send her to the hospital. Zdorovetsky was charged with aggravated assault in
that case, which came just four months after he was arrested and briefly jailed
in Egypt after filming himself climbing the Great Pyramid at Giza. He had at
least four arrests between 2014 and 2017 as well, all connected to his “content
creation.”
There is no denying that the provocative content of “prank
videos” and “nuisance streaming” is popular; Zdorovetskiy’s YouTube channel has
more than 10 million subscribers, and he is by no means unique. But there is
growing frustration that the behavior of vloggers and streamers eager to cash
in on what can be an extremely lucrative business for successful channels is
getting out of hand, becoming more provocative, confrontational, and dangerous.
The biggest complaints can be heard from successful content creators with more
peaceful interests, such as travel, or food, or fashion, who fear that a few
bad actors will ruin opportunities for everyone.
That is what makes
cases such as that of Vitaly Zdorovetskiy important, beyond addressing the
direct physical or emotional harm he inflicted on our citizens, and the evident
disrespect for our laws. Everyone agrees that restrictions on online content
and expression should be as minimal as they can possibly be, and only imposed
to the extent necessary to ensure the safety of others. And even then, how much
content moderation and restriction are too much is hotly debated. However, one
sure way to prevent the creation of truly unacceptable content in the first
place is to make it clear that real-world consequences when laws are violated
and communities are threatened will be immediate, consistent, and severe. In
that respect, the message of our officials that all visitors are welcome but
illegal and disruptive behavior will not be tolerated is appropriate and
welcome. It is one thing to say that, however, and quite another to demonstrate
it. We urge our law enforcement and court officials to follow through the due
process of Mr. Zdorovetskiy’s case as transparently and swiftly as prudence
allows.
***
A little bit of additional information that came out since this was written (yesterday morning), and some additional context: In an interview with ANC News, DILG Sec. Remulla said that Zdorovetskiy is facing a total of five charges as of now, and there may be more. There was a separate report that the National Bureau of Investigation's (NBI) cybercrime unit was reviewing whether he could also be charged under the cybercrime or cyberlibel laws. I would think Zdorovetskiy would probably cop one charge out of that, but as it is he's looking at five criminal charges (they don't really make a distinction between felonies or misdemeanors here) that tally up to about 24 years in prison and about P500,000 (about $10,000) in fines, if they really throw the book at him, which they seem inclined to do.
The Department of Interior and Local Government is a powerful position; besides being the overseer of local government units (from the village level up to provinces), the Secretary is also responsible for the Coast Guard and the Philippine National Police. As an added bonus, Jonvic Remulla's older brother, Jesus Crispin "Boying" Remulla, is the Justice Secretary.
The Remullas are a powerful political clan in Cavite, the province just south of Metro Manila, and they are not the sort of people you want to piss off. In Jonvic's case (I've met him), he could personally mop the floor with this Zdorovetskiy character if he wanted to; he's a short guy, maybe about 5'5", but he is totally jacked, and apparently has had training on how to use it.
What Zdorovetskiy is facing now is pretty grim. Having been declared an "undesirable alien" by the Bureau of Immigration, he can be kept in custody indefinitely, or until any legal cases he faces are resolved and they decide to deport him. The BI detention center is called Camp Bagong Diwa, and it is located in a shit neighborhood on the south end of the metropolis; it is populated by foreigners awaiting deportation and/or for their court cases to run their course. If someone is going to just be deported, but has no money to pay for his ticket, a 3-4 year stay in the detention center before the Philippine government puts him on a plane is typical, unless there's some diplomatic reason to expel someone quickly, which there isn't in this fool's case. In the interview with ANC, Remulla said he would expect Zdorovetskiy's court cases to take 2-3 years to complete; then he would be sent to the regular prison to serve out his sentence, and then he would be returned to the detention center to await deportation.
So at a minimum, this gobnik loser is looking at probably 10 years altogether, and possibly as much as 30 or 32 years. In a Philippine prison, and yes, it's just as bad as you've probably heard or could imagine.
