Read this in The Manila Times digital edition.
(UPDATE) FORMER president Rodrigo Duterte has insisted that the Communist Party of the Philippines (CPP) and its armed wing, the New People’s Army (NPA), are terrorist organizations no matter what any court says.
He was referring to a recent decision of Manila Regional Trial Court Branch 19 Presiding Judge Marlo Apalisok Magdoza-Malagar that junked the Department of Justice’s (DoJ) 2018 proscription petition to declare the CPP-NPA as terrorist groups.
“There is no need for anybody to declare them terrorists. They’ve long been terrorists. They’ve long been our enemies,” the 77-year-old ex-leader asserted during the 40th anniversary celebration of the Partido Demokratiko Pilipino-Laban ng Bayan (PDP-Laban) during a general assembly in Pasay City on Thursday, September 29.
“You don’t need a license or a new mandate to fight them. It’s a continuing [mandate to fight the] CPP,” he said.
It was during Duterte’s term that the government permanently shut down peace negotiations over the Philippine Left’s perceived insincerity to reach an agreement.
Instead, Duterte ordered intensified localized peace efforts spearheaded by the National Task Force to End Local Communist Armed Conflict (NTF-Elcac).
The task force’s former spokesperson, Lorraine Badoy, has gained support from the anti-insurgency group that she used to work with under the Duterte administration, lauding her “active position” when she chided Magdoza-Malagar in a now-deleted social media post.
“We commend her active position as a champion for NTF-Elcac in her own private capacity,” the task force said in a statement on Friday.
“[The NTF-Elcac] would not have been able to accomplish its many remarkable gains if not for the Filipino people, both from the government and private sector, who have courageously and tirelessly championed the advocacy of this coalition,” it added.
Badoy had called out Magdoza-Malagar for her decision to dismiss the proscription case seeking to declare the CPP and the NPA as terrorist organizations.
The Supreme Court on Wednesday said inciting violence and harm against judges and their families can be considered as contempt against the High Tribunal.
It also said the court will be dealing with the matter “accordingly.”
“The court sternly warns those who continue to incite violence through social media and other means which endanger the lives of judges and their families, and this shall likewise be considered a contempt of this court, and will be dealt with accordingly,” the Supreme Court added.
Chief Justice Alexander Gesmundo took notice of Badoy’s statement and vowed to protect the judges and judiciary workers.
Nueva Vizcaya Rep. Luisa Lloren Cuaresma had said the Philippine National Police (PNP) had informed them that they will investigate Badoy over her social media post.
Cuaresma, who sponsored the budget proposal of the Department of the Interior and Local Government (DILG), made the remark after Kabataan party-list Rep. Raoul Manuel pointed to the post of Badoy.
The PNP is under the DILG.
Badoy has denied that she made any threats against Magdoza-Malagar.
I did not threaten anybody. Especially the judge. There are no threats [Especially the judge. There were no threats],・ she said in a radio interview.