Art Borjal
{{Philippine name|Acosta|Borjal}}
{{Infobox officeholder
| name = Art Borjal
| image =
| alt =
| caption =
| office = Member of the Philippine House of Representatives for the disabled
| appointed = Corazon Aquino
| term_start = 1990
| term_end = June 30, 1992
| predecessor = Estelita Juco
| successor = none
| birth_name = Arturo Acosta Borjal
| birth_date = {{Birth date|1938|4|15}}
| birth_place = La Paz, Abra, Philippine Commonwealth
| death_date = {{Death date and age|2002|6|6|1938|4|15}}
| death_place =
| resting_place =
| monuments =
| nationality = Filipino
| other_names =
| alma_mater = Ateneo de Manila University (BA Humanities)
(Bachelor of Laws)
| occupation = journalist, newspaper president, activist, legislator, lawyer
| known_for = co-founder of the Philippine Star
principal author of Magna Carta for Persons with Disabilities or RA 7277){{cite book |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=P2bAfabd-98C|pages=75–84|title=Affirmative Action in the Employment of Ethnic Minorities and Persons with Disabilities
|date=1997|website=Google Books|first=Arturo|last=Borjal|publisher=International Labour Organization (Eds. Jane Hodges-Aeberhard and Carl Raskin)|isbn=978-92-2-109521-7 }}
Borjal vs Court of Appeals{{cite web |url=https://elibrary.judiciary.gov.ph/thebookshelf/showdocs/1/29796|website=Supreme Court of the Philippines|title=[G.R. No. 126466, January 14, 1999] ARTURO BORJAL A.K.A. ART BORJAL AND MAXIMO SOLIVEN, PETITIONERS, VS. COURT OF APPEALS AND FRANCISCO WENCESLAO, RESPONDENTS.|accessdate=January 6, 2025}}
}}
Arturo "Art" Acosta Borjal (April 15, 1938 – June 6, 2002) was a Filipino journalist, newspaper president and co-founder, legislator, and lawyer.
Jaywalker was the daily column of Borjal for years at the Philippine Star.
Early life and education
Being crippled by polio at the age of three, Borjal was carried by his mother on her back to attend school. He had leg braces and crutches and went on to finish humanities and law studies at Ateneo de Manila University while tripling as editor-in-chief of The Guidon, president of the debating team and the Supreme Student Council.{{cite web |url=https://ncda.gov.ph/featured-filipino-pwd/arturo-a-borjal/|website=National Council on Disability Affairs|title=Arturo A. Borjal|date=n.d.|accessdate=January 6, 2025}}
As congressman for the disabled
President Corazon Aquino appointed Borjal as a congressman for the disabled, one of its sectoral representatives in the 8th Congress. Borjal worked on the approval of the Magna Carta for Persons with Disabilities, it being approved in 1992.
As journalist and leader of journalists
Borjal wrote the column Jaywalker on The Philippine Star, the newspaper that he had co-founded. The column's title was a pun on the fact that since he was crippled, he cannot be arrested for jaywalking.
Borjal was president of the Manila Overseas Press Club and the National Press Club.{{cite web |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=wXkLAQAAMAAJ|title=Much ado about rebels|website=Google Books|publisher=Asiaweek Limited, Volume 14|date=1988|pages=28–30|accessdate=January 6, 2025}}{{cite web |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=0sc7AAAAMAAJ|title=Record of the Batasan - Volume 6|page=194|date=1985|accessdate=January 6, 2025|website=Google Books |last1=Batasang Pambansa |first1=Philippines }}{{cite book |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=nVT0AAAAMAAJ|accessdate=January 6, 2025|website=Google Books|title=The Philippines: U.S. Policy During the Marcos Years, 1965- 1986. : Guide and Index, Volume 2|date=1990 |page=154|publisher=National Security Archive and Chadwyck-Healey |isbn=978-0-89887-077-0 }}
"In Borjal v. Court of Appeals," a Supreme Court decision wrote, "the enumeration under Art. 354 is not an exclusive list of qualifiedly privileged communications since fair commentaries on matters of public interest are likewise privileged. We stated that the doctrine of fair commentaries means "that while in general every discreditable imputation publicly made is deemed false, because every man is presumed innocent until his guilt is judicially proved, and every false imputation is deemed malicious, nevertheless, when the discreditable imputation is directed against a public person in his public capacity, it is not necessarily actionable. In order that such discreditable imputation to a public official may be actionable, it must either be a false allegation of fact or a comment based on a false supposition." Thus the petition of Borjal and Max Soliven was granted, and the Decision of the Court of Appeals of 25 March 1996 and its Resolution of 12 September 1996 denying reconsideration were reversed and set aside, and the complaint for damages against petitioners was dismissed.{{cite web |url=https://lawphil.net/judjuris/juri2009/nov2009/gr_184315_2009.html|website=lawphil.net|title=G.R. No. 184315 (November 25, 2009), ALFONSO T. YUCHENGCO, vs. THE MANILA CHRONICLE PUBLISHING CORPORATION, ROBERTO COYIUTO, JR., NOEL CABRERA, GERRY ZARAGOZA, DONNA GATDULA, RODNEY P. DIOLA, RAUL VALINO and THELMA SAN JUAN, Respondents}}
As an activist and humanitarian
Philippine Permanent Representative to the United Nations Ambassador Alfonso Yuchengco described Borjal: "Art was not only a fine journalist, he was a humanitarian who used his popular column to give comfort to many people who needed help – the sick, the poor, the harassed and the oppressed."
Former Vice President Emmanuel Pelaez once told Borjal, "Thank God for the man for others that you are."{{cite web |url=https://www.philstar.com/headlines/2002/06/07/163733/borjal-writes-14530146|newspaper=Philippine Star|date=June 7, 2002|title=Borjal writes '30'|accessdate=January 6, 2025}}
Death
Before his death on June 6, 2002, Borjal had been fighting cancer for three years.{{cite web |url=https://www.philstar.com/opinion/2002/06/07/163696/when-you-lose-old-friend-|date=June 7, 2002|first=Max|last=Soliven|accessdate=January 6, 2025|title=When you lose an old friend...|website=The Philippine STAR }}
References
{{Reflist}}
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Category:Ateneo de Manila University alumni
Category:The Philippine Star people
Category:20th-century Filipino journalists
Category:Sectoral members of the House of Representatives of the Philippines
Category:Politicians from Abra (province)