Lawyers' group says erroneous AFP list shows anyone can be red-tagged
The erroneous list recently released by the Armed Forces of the Philippines (AFP) of alleged University of the Philippines (UP) alumni who joined the New People’s Army (NPA) showed that anyone can be a victim of red-tagging, an organization of lawyers warned on Tuesday.

“The latest goof further validates the danger of red-tagging,” National Union of People’s Lawyers (NUPL) president Edre Olalia said.
“It is not only ‘the usual suspects’ being victimized indiscriminately and damaged irreparably, it could just be anybody at all,” he said.
The NUPL has criticized the government for tagging persons as members or linked with communist groups since this has led to killings and arrests based on trumped up charges.
Olalia issued the statement after Defense Sec. Delfin Lorenzana and the AFP apologized for the release of the list on social media which has become viral.
The list named 27 persons which the AFP alleged are UP alumni who joined the NPA and have either died or been captured.
“The gloating list by the military of captured-but-free and dead-but-alive alleged NPAs supposedly from UP shows again that the red-bashers have really gone berserk,” Olalia said.
“The indefensible and inexcusable foul-up was bound to happen,” he added.
Olalia pointed out this is not how the government should address the communist insurgency in the country.
“With enormous resources and with all hands on deck, the government is still missing and messing the point on how to really address the armed conflict in our country,” he said.