The Philippines justice department has dropped its foreign ownership case against Nobel laureate Maria Ressa, but other charges remain.

Ressa, who is now 60, was acquitted on five charges of tax evasion earlier this year.

Now the DOJ has dropped a charge claiming she illegally put Rappler under foreign control through the 2015 sale of foreign depositary receipts to US investment firm Omidyar Network. The offence would have carried a penalty of up to 21 years’ jail

Ressa said in a statement that she would “continue to hold the line”.

“Again, facts win. Truth wins. Justice wins.”

However, Ressa could still be jailed for up to 15 years on a separate case stemming from the Omidyar investment. She and a former colleague are also appealing a cyber libel conviction that carries a nearly seven-year jail sentence.