Palace to UN: Terror tag for rapporteur, others ‘not a witch hunt’

MANILA, Philippines — Malacañang on Saturday assured the United Nations that a government petition recently filed in court seeking to declare 600 alleged communist insurgents, including a Filipina special rapporteur, as “terrorists” is not a “witch hunt.”

That was after the move was strongly criticized by human rights watchdogs, with some describing the petition as a “virtual hit list.”

“I assure everyone, including the international community, that it is not a witch-hunt on UN special rapporteurs,” presidential spokesperson Harry Roque told a press conference.

“Instead, perhaps, the UN rapporteur system should fine tune its selection process to ensure that individuals identified with terrorist groups are not given any mandate by the UN Human Rights Council,” he added.

In a petition filed in a Manila court last month, the Department of Justice said it wants the Communist Party of the Philippines and its armed wing, the New People’s Army, tagged as terrorist organizations.

The move came on the heels of President Rodrigo Duterte’s vow to eliminate the communist movement following the breakdown of peace talks with rebels.

The petition included UN special rapporteur on the rights of indigenous peoples Victoria Tauli-Corpuz, who described the complaint as “baseless, malicious and irresponsible,” Reuters reported.

Two other UN experts expressed “grave concern” about the inclusion of Tauli-Corpuz in the list, saying the government petition was an “act of retaliation” for speaking up against some of Duterte’s controversial policies.

UN special rapporteur on extrajudicial killings Agnes Callamard has also earned the administration’s ire for criticizing the government’s bloody drug war, which has left scores dead.

‘Reinforce’

According to Roque, the DOJ was just “reinforcing” the US State Department and the European Union’s classification of the CPP-NPA as terrorist bodies.

He said that based on “intelligence information,” the Filipina UN expert was connected to the underground left.

“She (Tauli-Corpuz) can dispute the classification in the Regional Trial Court where the petition to declare the CPP-NPA as a terrorist group is currently pending,” Roque said.

“In our legal system, we adhere to the rule of law, and hence, Ms. Victoria Tauili Corpuz can submit controverting evidence to what I am sure the DOJ already has, taking her with the terrorist group, the CPP-NPA,” he added.

Duterte’s order to declare the CPP-NPA as terrorists has raised concerns among activists in the national democratic movement that legitimate organizations could be targeted as supporters of terrorism.

Membership in or support of a national democratic activist organization is not equivalent to affiliation with the communist movement.

By listing groups and individuals as terrorists, the state can freeze and forfeit their properties or funds, among other measures.