Civil society and media organizations hailed United Nations (UN) special rapporteur Irene Khan’s report on her official visit to the Philippines in early 2024.
Khan presented her report at the ongoing 59th Regular Session of the UN Human Rights Council in Geneva, Switzerland on Wednesday, denouncing red-tagging by state forces that continue under the Ferdinand Marcos Jr. government.
In the Philippines, the Concerned Artists of the Philippines (CAP) said Khan’s report rightly calls attention to red-tagging and how it stifles freedom of expression in the country.
“Her recommendations, including the abolition of the National Task Force to End Communist Armed Conflict (NTF-ELCAC) responsible for rampant red-tagging along with the abolition of the Anti-Terror Law (R.A. 11479), decriminalization of libel, the long-overdue passage of the Freedom of Information Act, and the release of imprisoned community journalist Frenchie Mae Cumpio—affirm what artists, journalists, and rights defenders in the country have long been fighting for: genuine democratic spaces, justice, and protection for all who dare to speak truth to power,” CAP said.
The People’s Alternative Media Network (Altermidya) said it agrees with Khan’s recommendation to have NTF-ELCAC abolished as it “plays a wicked role in red-tagging media workers, human rights defenders, and civil society actors.”
“The task force has become a nefarious driver of state-sponsored vilification, harassment, and legal persecution of dissenting voices,” the network said.
“Khan’s report confirms what independent media and rights groups have long raised: that red-tagging is not only ongoing but institutionalized. More than 450 red-tagging incidents were documented in the first half of 2024 alone—most attributed to government actors,” it added.
The Center for Trade Union and Human Rights (CTUHR) for its part said Khan’s final report “rightly captures the Ferdinand Marcos Jr administration’s hypocrisy and inaction as regards protecting freedom of opinion and expression and labor and human rights.”
“It shows how the government has been trying to earn brownie points from the international community while refusing to carry out crucial steps to truly protect journalists, media workers, labor and human rights defenders and civil society actors,” the center said.
“We affirm Ms. Khan’s analysis that despite the government’s high-profile actions, ‘Critical voices in civil society are still being subjected to threats, vilification and harassment. Arbitrary detention, including prolonged pretrial detention, and the prosecution… for legitimate political expression continue…’” CTUHR added.
In Geneva, delegates of the Philippine UPR (Universal Periodic Review) Watch and the Fight To Express Network unanimously hailed Khan’s report they said showed “unrelenting” violations of human rights under Marcos Jr.
“The Philippine UPR Watch commended Khan for bringing to the attention of the UN Human Rights Council how the supposed fight against terrorism is used to trample on civil and political rights, including the right to free expression and opinion,” the watch said.
Philippine UPR Watch delegates to the ongoing UNHRC session are composed of the National Council of Churches in the Philippines, Karapatan, the National Union of People’s Lawyers, Kalikasan People’s Network for the Environment, United Church of Christ in the Philippines, and IBON Foundation.
The #FightToExpress network also thanked Khan for reiterating the call for the release of community journalist Frenchie Mae Cumpio, Rural Missionaries of the Philippines lay worker Marielle Domequil and human rights defender Alexander Philip Abinguna.
The network is represented by the National Union of Journalists of the Philippines. # (Raymund B. Villanueva)