Palace: Dr. Naty Castro's arrest not a case of red-tagging

Malacañang on Tuesday defended the arrest of Dr. Natividad Castro, saying it was not a case of red-tagging and proper procedures were followed.

"Hindi po iyon dahil sa sinasabing red-tagging. If you look at the facts of the case, the arrest was made by virtue of an arrest warrant issued by the Regional Trial Court for serious illegal detention and kidnapping... They had all [the] opportunities to contest it from that point na nag-preliminary investigation," acting presidential spokesperson Karlo Nograles said at a news conference.

(It was not a case of red-tagging. If you look at the facts of the case, the arrest was made by virtue of an arrest warrant issued by the Regional Trial Court for serious illegal detention and kidnapping...From the preliminary investigation stage, they had all the opportunities to contest it.)

"If they did not agree with the findings of the prosecutor, they also had legal remedies after that," he added.

Nograles insisted that the authorities did not violate the law.

"All law enforcement authorities and all legal authorities maintain that the proper procedure was followed," he said.

Castro was taken into custody last Friday by the Philippine National Police and Armed Forces intelligence operatives in San Juan City on the basis of a warrant of arrest issued in January 2020 by a trial court in Bayugan City, Agusan del Sur.

Police have accused Castro—a physician and a longtime advocate for Lumad and poor communities—of being a ranking member of the Communist Party of the Philippines. She is facing kidnapping and serious illegal detention charges.

The Commission on Human Rights, however, said Castro has been red-tagged for her work.

Castro's lawyer, Wilfred Asis of the Free Legal Assistance Group in Caraga, has questioned the arrest warrant for Castro since the doctor's name did not appear on it.

Former Commission on Elections Commissioner Luie Guia, a lawyer who is also assisting Castro's family, also said that lawyers were denied access to Castro and that the arresting officers refused to identify themselves.

Her brother, Jun Castro, has since appealed for help and vehemently denied that his sister committed those charges. — VBL, GMA News