Bayan Muna slams DSWD for alleged ‘red-tagging’ seminars

MANILA, Philippines — Party-list group Bayan Muna has slammed the Department of Social Welfare and Development (DSWD) after inviting its employees to the “Knowing The Enemy” (KTE) seminars, claiming that this would only be an avenue for red-tagging.

Rep. Carlos Zarate said that such seminars are problematic as the agency seems to focus more on such programs rather than putting its energy on the distribution of the social amelioration program (SAP) for families affected economically by the COVID-19 pandemic.

“It is condemnable that instead of focusing on releasing the second tranche of the social amelioration program and helping more of our people, the DSWD is engaging in misinformation and helping an intensified crackdown against those working for the protection and advancement of human rights,” Zarate said in a statement.

According to a copy of the alleged memorandum forwarded by Bayan Muna on Thursday, interested employees can join the KTE trainings, a series of webinars or online discussions spearheaded by the National Task Force to End Local Communist Armed Conflict (NTF-ELCAC).

INQUIRER.net has sought the side of DSWD on the issue, but it said the department is still formulating a reply as of posting time.

Zarate noted that the memorandum, supposedly signed by DSWD Undersecretary Rene Glen Paje, is similar to a tactic used during former president Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo’s term, implemented by former Maj. Gen. Jovito Palparan.

Palparan is now serving time after his conviction for the kidnapping and serious illegal detention of two University of the Philippines student-activists in 2006.

“It appears now that they are using an updated version but still based on the convicted Jovito Palparan’s rabid kill, kill, kill philosophy,” he said.

“This is clearly made to vilify and redtag critics of the administration and in preparation for a terror law induced massive crackdown.We will file a resolution to probe this waste of people’s time and money in this period of grave crisis aggravated by the COVID-19 pandemic,” he added.

Left-leaning groups have recently complained of red-tagging activities from state parties themselves, with various official Facebook pages of police offices linking Zarate and other lawmakers from the Makabayan bloc to the communist armed group New People’s Army.

The posts stemmed from the Makabayan bloc’s stand against the Anti-Terrorism Law, which amends the Human Security Act of 2007.

According to the groups, and other rights organizations and opposition personalities, the anti-terror law may be used to stifle free speech and legitimate dissent, as the government can brand people as terrorists, arrest them without warrants, and detain them for over 14 days.

However, supporters of the law including Senator Lacson Panfilo Lacson and Defense Secretary Delfin Lorenzana insist that there are safeguards to ensure that human rights are not abused.

EDV