De Lima calls for passage of bill criminalizing red-tagging after terrorist label on IBP lawyer
Opposition Senator Leila de Lima on Friday joined the legal community in condemning the red-tagging of another lawyer who is providing legal assistance to arrested youth activists.
De Lima slammed the red-tagging of Carlos Castillo, Jr. of the Integrated Bar of the Philippines-Zambales Chapter, whom she said, is also now being called a terrorist. Castillo was red-tagged by a certain Facebook page named “Lakbay Kapayapaan.”
“For responding to the call for urgent legal assistance of arrested youth activists, Atty. Castillo is now being called a terrorist. A death sentence for anyone who is considered an enemy of the State,” De Lima said in a statement.
De Lima recalled another lawyer, Angelo Karlo Guillen, who was stabbed by unidentified assailants last March, was also previously red-tagged after responding to detained activists in Iloilo City.
Castillo, on the other hand, served as the legal counsel of the arrested “Zambales 11” students who were allegedly members of the League of Filipino Students (LFS) when they underwent inquest.
The detained senator said the passage of Senate Bill No. 2121 or the proposed bill criminalizing red-tagging activities would help address the issue on lawyers serving the rights of people to defend themselves against red-tagging activities of the National Task Force to End Local Communist Armed Conflict (NTF-ELCAC).
“Goaded by the NTF-ELCAC, the vilification and harassment of those who stand for truth and justice continues,” De Lima said.
“A threat to our lives and our practice of the legal profession also imperils the lives and future of those who seek legal recourse, especially the poor,” she said.
“The government’s response to our call for government aid and efficient health programs amid the pandemic is red-tagging and more red-tagging. This must stop,” she pointed out.
That is why, she said, she is urging her colleagues in the Senate to act on the immediate passage of Senate Bill No. 2121 and her proposed Senate Resolution No. 689 that seeks to enact measures that would secure the safety and welfare of professionals serving the people and fighting against injustice in the country.
“We should end red-tagging! Defund the NTF-ELCAC, and restore justice,” De Lima stressed.