The Supreme Court has been asked to provide protection against alleged threats and denunciation by President Rodrigo Duterte and his officials against cause-oriented groups—a euphemism for militant associations—as being fronts of the Communist Party of the Philippines.
Human rights group Karapatan led the filing of the petition for the issuance of a writ of amparo and habeas data along with the Rural Missionaries of the Philippines and Gabriela.
“Our filing of the petition for the writs of amparo and habeas data is a response to the worsening attacks, terrorist—tagging by the Philippine military and the ongoing smear campaign against human rights defenders,” the petitioners told the SC magistrates.
“Human rights advocacy is not a crime, yet human rights workers are being killed, threatened, harassed, and jailed on trumped up charges. We have never taken all these attacks sitting down, as we continue to work to confront this perilous political climate with all available remedies,” they said.
A writ of amparo is a remedy available to any person whose right to life, liberty and security is violated or threatened with violation by an unlawful act or omission of a public official or employee, or of a private individual or entity.
On the other hand, a writ of habeas data is a remedy available to any person
whose right to privacy in life, liberty or security is violated or threatened by an unlawful act or omission of a public official or employee, or of a private individual or entity engaged in the gathering, collecting or storing of data or information.
The petitioners, through the National Union of People’s Lawyers, are seeking the destruction of all files or record on the petitioners gathered by the government.
Named respondents in the 45-page petition were President Duterte, National Security Adviser, Defense Secretary Delfin Lorenzana, Presidential Spokesperson Salvador Panelo, Armed Forces of the Philippines Chief of Staff Benjamin Madrigal, AFP Deputy Chief of Staff Maj. Gen. Antonio Parlade Jr; National Security Council Deputy Director General Vicente Agdamag, Philippine National Police Directorate for Investigation and Detective Management Senior Supt. Omega Jireh Fidel, Palace Undersecretary and Executive Director of the Presidential Task Force on Media Security Joel Sy Egco, Presidential Human Rights Committee Secretariat Undersecretary Severo Catura and Presidential Communication Operations Office Undersecretary for New Media and External Affairs Lorraine Marie Badoy; and National Intelligence Coordinating Agency Director General Alex Paul Monteagudo.
The petitioners lamented that labeling them as fronts of the communist movement by the current administration had resulted in numerous killings and other human rights violations against their human rights workers.
“Moreover, the red tagging and labeling which emanated from the national task force to end local communist insurgency further aggravated the threats against the life, liberty and security of the petitioners because it is an expression of a government policy directed against legitimate civil society organizations, activist and human rights defenders in this case,” the petitioners stressed.
The organization cited the killings of its human rights workers and paralegals from 2002 up to the present administration.
The petitioners said from 2001 to 2019, at least 48 human rights defenders of Karapatan had been killed by state forces.
According to them, since Duterte accused the petitioners of being fronts of the CPP-NPA, several officers and members of the groups have been subjected various forms of threats, harassments and intimidations.
“Petitioners, who are legitimate organizations, recognized both here and abroad, including their officers and members, have become open targets of human rights violations. The glaringly numerous incidents of threats, harassments, and killings are aimed at curtailing their rights to freely exercise their advocacies,” the petition read.
Members of Karapatan’s National Executive Committee and National Council filed the petition on behalf of the alliance, which includes Lubi, Palabay, Karapatan National vice chairperson Reylan Vergara, Deputy Secretary General Roneo Clamor, Treasurer Kiri Dalena, and NC members Dr. Edita Burgos, Fr. Wilfredo Ruazol, and Jose Mari Callueng.
“We are appealing to the Supreme Court to see the merit of our petition, the dangers of our work, and eventually decide in favor of human rights defenders who have courageously stood alongside marginalized sectors in the country. We call on the Supreme Court to recognize that our work and activism involves the full exercise of our civil and political rights, and is in no way tantamount to a crime,” Palabay said.