The rift between the Marcos and Duterte camps, the potential impeachment of Sara
Duterte, and Rodrigo Duterte’s trial at the ICC have shaped political discourse in
the Philippines in 2025. These developments are likely to drive narratives around information
disorder in the country until they are resolved.
As the government moves to regulate disinformation, this raises questions about where
civil society fits in and whether policymakers will incorporate civil society’s feedback
to ensure that human rights considerations are reflected in their decision-making.
On red-tagging, 2025 has continued the positive developments seen in 2024. The 2024
Supreme Court ruling condemning red-tagging, the suspension of the Laban Kasama ng
Bayan program hosted by Lorraine Badoy and Jeffrey Celiz on SMNI, and the landmark case
filed in December 2024 by journalist Atom Araullo—after he and his family were red-tagged
by Badoy and Celiz338—have all set a positive precedent for addressing this issue. If a law
criminalizing red-tagging is enacted, it will mark a major milestone in the Philippines’ efforts
to tackle the problem.
338.
Torres-Tupas, Tetch. “Atom Araullo Wins Red-Tagging Civil Suit vs Badoy, Celiz.” Inquirer.net, 13 Dec. 2024,
newsinfo.inquirer.net/2015321/atom-araullo-wins-red-tagging-civil-suit-vs-badoy-celiz.
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