Death Warrant
In the Philippines, a communist label could be your death sentence.
The 60-year conflict between the state and the Communist Party of the Philippines’s armed guerilla, the New People’s Army (CPP-NPA), has been the longest ongoing communist insurgency in the world. Many presidents have promised, in one way or another, the demise of the ‘most dangerous opponent to the status quo’. For the administration of current Philippine President Rodrigo Duterte, it has been bloody.
Large tarpaulins gleam in barangay and highway outposts of people identified, suspected of, or simply labelled as “terrorists”. In most cases, red tagging in the Philippines can be in the form of social media posts and even government press briefings . This may be deemed an effective solution to the general public but with the current statistic — 300 civilians killed, 2,500 illegally arrested — it’s fair to say that sinister events lie beyond
In the 60 years that the state has tried to suppress insurgency, the PNP and AFP has not set specific and clear guidelines on how to distinguish between communists, armed guerrillas, activists, and civilians. To add, according to the UN Council of Human Rights, there have been a surge of cases globally where red-tagging is used for personal reasons — may it be business, politics, or land use. In the country, those who have been red-tagged have been mostly human rights activists, union leaders, and Indigenous peoples. With this, how can we be sure that red tagging, the disinformation campaign of “us vs reds” is effective, forthright, and factual? Are all red tagging activities really for the interest of the state or the wealthy one percent?
As the Filipino public’s criticisms over the administration grew, so has the number of red-tagged individuals — actresses, lawyers, union leaders, IP leaders, and even high-ranking government officials that sit on the other side of the political compass of the President. The immense amount of red-tagging has caused not only mass hysteria among the general public but serious consequences for these individuals as well — online harassment, fake news campaigns, and even extrajudicial killings.
They say even the strongest wind cannot destroy a tree with strong roots. Insurgencies do not emerge merely from surface-level issues; one does not leave their possessions behind to join the NPA all because of a doctrine. Insurgencies in the Philippines are rooted in the unheard plight of the minority — from land-grabbing, low wages, lack of education, corruption, to corporate greed among others. In a society where only the wealthy and powerful are heard, where the proletariat are continuously taken advantage of, and where the greedy and violent remain in power, for some of these minorities, insurgency may be the best, if not the only, perceived fighting chance.
There are and have been countless solutions to insurgency; red-tagging isn’t one. This act of branding individuals and organizations as subversive is simply a swift means to silence members of civil society who denounce what are perceived as violent and irrational. Red-tagging not only poses a cause for hysteria both for the individual and the general public, but also as an unsolicited death warrant. Instead of band-aid solutions like red-tagging, there is a need for a long-term settlement- one that is inclusive, one that brings all issues, solutions, and political forces to the table; one that prioritizes the minority over the wealthy.
