“When you are red-tagged in the times we live in, it’s like a target has been pinned on your back.”
Free Legal Assistance Group lawyer Raffy Aquino finds himself in a peculiar situation as a client of his own group, as he became one of the 27 people falsely tagged by the military on January 22 as University of the Philippines graduates who allegedly joined the New People’s Army (NPA).
The Armed Forces of the Philippines (AFP) said they later died after joining the NPA, or were captured by the military. Many are alive and well.
A day after the list came out, he and other alumni told reporters they were eyeing a cyber libel complaint. The group included former Philippine Health Insurance Corporation (PhilHealth) CEO and President Alexander Padilla, and playwright and Palanca awardee Liza Magtoto.
The AFP later apologized, and Defense Secretary Delfin Lorenzana ordered the firing of Deputy Chief of Staff for Intelligence Alex Luna. Still, the UP alumni say the damage has been done.
On Friday, January 29, Rappler researcher-writer Michelle Abad talks to Aquino, Padilla, and Magtoto about the dangers of being red-tagged, its effects on democracy, and demanding accountability also for the sake of intelligence reform.
Watch the interview live on Rappler on Friday evening, January 29. – Rappler.com
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