SC decision outlaws red-tagging, protects activists’ rights

by Casandra Peñaverde

With the Supreme Court’s (SC) latest to declare red-tagging as a threat to life, liberty, and security, the witch hunt on progressives, who are falsely accused of being involved in the nation’s communist insurgency, is hoped to finally end.

The SC’s decision came after it overturned a lower court’s dismissal of a petition from activist Siegfred Deduro. In 2020, Deduro sought a writ of amparo, a legal remedy designed to protect individuals whose rights to life, liberty, and security are threatened. Deduro’s petition detailed how the military linked him to the revolutionary group New People’s Army despite the lack of clear basis, putting his life at risk.

“I hope that this landmark SC ruling will benefit thousands of other activists and political dissenters, like me, who are victims of political persecution and red-tagging. Having said that, I still fear for my life, liberty, and security amid the continuing impunity in extra-judicial killings, enforced disappearances, and illegal arrests and detention on trumped-up charges in our country,” Deduro stressed.

Human rights lawyer and Free Legal Assistance Group chairperson Chel Diokno released a statement welcoming SC’s decision on red tagging. Diokno noted that the Civil Service Commission and all government offices “should direct their officials and employees to desist from red-tagging and abide by the rule of law.”

This appears to be a small win for the victims of red tagging as the National Union of Peoples’ Lawyers president Ephraim Cortez stated that red-tagged individuals can now report serious threats made against them.

On another note, Human Rights Watch senior researcher Carlos Conde urged President Ferdinand Marcos to publicly endorse the Supreme Court’s decision and implement formal protocols to end red-tagging.

“The Supreme Court ruling affirms that red-tagging is a dangerous form of harassment and violates the rights of individuals targeted. The Marcos administration should abandon red-tagging and ensure its counter-insurgency and counter-terrorism programs are consistent with international human rights law,” Conde said.

With the state’s dependence on red-tagging to silence the administration’s staunch critiques, this ruling, although insufficient, is expected to serve as a shield for those persecuted under the guise of national security, which has proven to trample on the lives of many Filipinos through the years.