Ombudsman reprimands Parlade, Badoy over red-tagging

MANILA, Philippines — The Office of the Ombudsman reprimanded former National Task Force to End Local Communist Armed Conflict (NTF-ELCAC) officials, Lorraine Badoy and Antonio Parlade Jr., for making statements linking a lawyers' group to communist rebels. 

In a 17-page decision released on Thursday, the Ombudsman stated, "WHEREFORE, this Office finds respondents Antonio Parlade, Jr. and Lorraine Marie T. Badoy GUILTY of Conduct Prejudicial to the Best Interest of the Service and imposes upon them the penalty of REPRIMAND pursuant to Rule III, Section 10 of Administrative Order No. 7, as amended by Administrative Order No. 17."

"The above-mentioned respondents are sternly warned that a repetition of a similar offense would be dealt with more severely," it added.

A first-time offense for "Conduct Prejudicial to the Best Interest of the Service" leads to a suspension of six months to a year, according to Revised Rules on Administrative Cases in the Civil Service. This would involve individuals paying an amount equal to their previous salaries while suspended. However, Badoy and Parlade have been given a warning instead of suspension.

The decision dated March 23, 2023 came after the National Union of Peoples' Lawyers (NUPL) filed a complaint against Badoy and Parlade, accusing them of actively participating in the government's policy of labeling progressive organizations and their members as "communist terrorists" or "fronts" of the Communist Party of the Philippines, New People's Army, and the National Democratic Front of the Philippines.

The investigation revealed that Badoy and Parlade had made critical comments about NUPL's activities, which included a forum on dissent and an information campaign aimed at educating the public about their rights, particularly in light of concerns over rights violations during the COVID-19 lockdown.

"These matters are not communist propaganda," the Ombudsman said. 

The Ombudsman also said that the statements made by Badoy and Parlade against NUPL had a detrimental impact on the image of NTF-ELCAC, creating an impression that it was being used to stifle dissent instead of effectively pursuing its core objective of achieving lasting peace and resolving conflicts with communist rebels.

Meanwhile, the complaint against Hermogenes Esperon Jr., another former NTF-ELCAC official, has been dismissed since the only statements attributed to him were in defense of Parlade and Badoy. 

"Nevertheless, his defense appears to be tempered especially since he had stated that while he agreed that the CPP-NPA had underground operation with legal fronts, he was not concluding that the NUPL is part of the CPP but that some of its members are allegedly part of these organizations working for the CPP," the Ombudsman said.

Activists, human rights workers and even journalists have long been targeted through a practice known as "red-tagging." 

In Philippine law, "red-tagging" is the act of labeling, branding, naming and accusing individuals and/or organizations of being left-leaning, subversives, communists or terrorists (used as) a strategy… by state agents, particularly law enforcement agencies and the military, against those perceived to be ‘threats’ or ‘enemies’ of the state."

The Commission on Human Rights has strongly criticized "red-tagging," saying it goes against the constitutional principle of innocent until proven guilty and can seriously affect the safety and freedom of those accused.