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Manila Bulletin devider Philippines devider National devider NUPL supports P2M damage suit filed by journalist Atom Araullo vs ex-NTF-ECLAC spox Badoy, Celiz

NUPL supports P2M damage suit filed by journalist Atom Araullo vs ex-NTF-ECLAC spox Badoy, Celiz

Published Sep 13, 2023 02:24 am

A group of human rights lawyers expressed its support to the P2 million damage suit filed by journalist Alfonso Tomas “Atom” P. Araullo against former National Task Force to End Local Communist Armed Conflict (NTF-ELCAC) spokesperson Lorraine Marie T. Badoy-Partosa and television host Jeffrey “Ka Eric” L. Celiz for allegedly “red-tagging" him and his mother.

“Court cases against red-taggers are important opportunities to test the strength, truth, and reason of their speech,” the National Union of People’s Lawyers (NUPL) said in a statement.

The NUPL pointed out that the court proceedings will “be able to determine once and for all if any of their statements are supported by evidence, and what damage has been caused.”

It lamented that Araullo has been “maligned and vilified in the same breath as his mother for far too long.”

“Red-tagging is a peculiar attack not only on reputation, but on physical safety as well,” NUPL explained.

“This is why it is urgent to expose the peddled lies and confront the serious prejudices against activists, journalists, civic leaders, and all those who simply dare speak up,” it stressed.

NUPL alleged that “Badoy-Partosa and Celiz are two of the most consistent and most vicious of the attackers.”

It said that while the Office of the Ombudsman (OMB) has reportedly dismissed the criminal and administrative cases against Badoy and Celiz due to a lack of a law against red-tagging, this does not mean that what they are doing is “a good and noble activity.”

Araullo, with lawyers from the Movement Against Disinformation (MAD), filed last Monday, Sept. 11, a P2 million damage suit against Badoy and Celiz.

The filing of the civil case is in line with Articles 19, 20, 21, 26, and 33 of the New Civil Code of the Philippines, which are designed to safeguard every individual's personal rights, human relations, and dignity, MAD said.

It said that Badoy and Celiz allegedly committed defamatory assaults “through their talk show, ‘Laban Kasama Ang Bayan,’ aired on the SMNI News Channel, and an online video interview of Celiz posted on the ‘Today’ Page on Facebook.”

The complaint stated: “Specifically, throughout early 2022 to the end of January 2023, Mr. Araullo and his mother, Dr. Carol P. Araullo, found themselves at the center of a ‘red-tagging spree’ initiated by Celiz and Badoy-Partosa. They faced serious accusations, being branded as ‘spawn’ of an ‘active CPP Central Committee leader,’ among other derogatory remarks. Further, Mr. Araullo was falsely painted as an orchestrator of attacks against the government, accused of membership in the ‘communist party,’ and vilified as a journalist producing content that aligns with the alleged propaganda of the CPP-NPA-NDF (Communist Party of the Philippines-New People’s Army-National Democratic Front)."

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