Amid red-tagging, media workers’ pursuit of people’s stories continues
CAGAYAN DE ORO — Telling people’s stories continues.
Iggy Anton John Lami-ing, a contributor of Baguio-based alternative news outfit Northern Dispatch, vowed this despite the recent red-tagging incident, labeling him, together with four others, as a recruiter of the Communist Party of the Philippines, the New People’s Army, and the National Democratic Front (CPP-NPA-NDF).
Lami-ing, who also serves as regional coordinator of the College Editors Guild of the Philippines (CEGP), knew this day would come. Still, he was surprised and worried, considering what happened to the Toboso 19.
However, he said this won’t affect his pursuit of highlighting stories that would expose the current situation of marginalized Filipinos. The 24-year-old journalist focuses on the plight of farmers, coastal communities affected by dredging operations, and other human rights violations in Ilocos Sur.
On April 30, Lami-ing received a photo from his colleagues. It is a picture of a flyer seen in Barangay San Eugenio, Aringay, La Union, containing the photographs and names of five people, including him, labeling them as recruiters of the revolutionary movement.
The others were Northern Dispatch contributor Juan Jose Buenaventura, Niño Oconer of La Union Peace and Justice Alliance, Chano Domingo of Kabataan ng La Union Para sa Pagbabago (KALAP), and Angelica Galimba of Kabataan Party-list.
Based on a flyer forwarded to Bulatlat, a group called Tagapagtanggol ng Bayan Laban sa Komunismo (Tabako) appeared to be the distributor.
This incident prompted the victims to file a complaint before the Commission on Human Rights (CHR) Ilocos region on May 5.
This practice of labeling individuals or organizations as terrorists or communists without evidence has been declared by the Supreme Court as a threat to a person’s right to life, liberty, and security. The CHR recent report on red-tagging also concluded that other human rights could be violated by red-tagging, including a person’s right to privacy.
Read: Rights commission report affirms detrimental outcomes of red-tagging — groups
In his complaint, Lami-ing stated that five alleged soldiers from the Philippine Army’s 50th Infantry Battalion went to the house of his two former colleagues on March 17, 2025, asking for his whereabouts. He suspected that the recent red-tagging was a continuation of last year’s alleged state surveillance toward him.
“This incident has brought me a lot of stress and I fear that the attacks against me and other activists and progressives in the Ilocos region will only escalate into more grievous attacks,” he stated.
Lami-ing told Bulatlat that these accusations forced him to make some adjustments, as he needed to take precautionary measures to ensure his safety.
Read: Attacks on community journalism meant to silence people’s issues
Prior to this, on April 24, flyers were also reportedly distributed in Barangay Manueva, Santa, Ilocos Sur, tagging several activists as NPA recruiters. It was also allegedly perpetrated by Tabako. No information is available online regarding the identity of this group.
This recent red-tagging incident drew strong condemnations from media and human rights groups, pointing out that state accountability cannot be ignored.
“The NTF-ELCAC (National Task Force to End Local Communist Armed Conflict) is responsible for normalizing this action, making victims vulnerable to state violence and its agents,” the People’s Alternative Media Network (Altermidya) and Northern Dispatch said in a joint statement, urging the concerned local governments in Ilocos Sur and La Union to take appropriate and immediate action.
The Ilocos chapter of CEGP, an alliance of tertiary student publications, also urged the CHR to look into the possible cooperation of the state with the so-called Tabako, which it claimed was a “fake organization.”
Aside from putting an end to red-tagging, Lami-ing called for the resumption of peace negotiations to address the root cause of armed conflict. (RVO)
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