Reacting to the Supreme Court ruling that slammed red-tagging for endangering the life, liberty or security of victims, the HRW also asked Marcos to either punish or prosecute government officials who engage in the said practice.

The human rights watchdog was apparently referring to the National Task Force to End Local Communist Armed Conflict (NTF-ELCAC) as the body that should be abolished.

Red tagging has been used against individuals linked to communist groups or the legitimate political opposition as early as the time of Marcos’ father, the late former President Ferdinand E. Marcos Sr., but became more prevalent during the Duterte administration.

In a ruling released by the SC En Banc on Wednesday, the court granted the writ of amparo sought by former Bayan Muna Rep. Siegfred Deduro as he became a victim of red-tagging initiated by the military and other rightist groups.

The High Court defined red-taggin as an act that jeopardizes thelife, safety and security of an individual

“The Marcos administration should abandon red-tagging, including eliminating the abusive task force promoting the practice,” said HRW Asia researcher Carlos Conde.

He added: “Foreign governments that have spoke out of this issue should press the government to put the Supreme Court ruling into effect.”