ANGPahayagan ng Partido Komunista ng Pilipinas

Pinapatnubayan ng Marxismo-Leninismo-Maoismo

Engl ish Edition

Vol . L No. 21

November 7, 2019

www.cpp.ph

EDITORIAL

Steel the peopleand firmly resist

AFP-PNP sustains

39 casualties

AT LEAST 19 elements of theArmed Forces of the Philippines(AFP) and Philippine National Po-lice (PNP) were killed and 20 werewounded in various military of-fensives launched by the NewPeople's Army amid intensifiedmilitary operations this October.These military actions took placein Mindoro, Masbate, Samar,Negros and Mt. Province.

In Occidental Mindoro, Redfighters blasted two militarytrucks of the 4th IB in SitioAmaling, Barangay Manoot, Rizallast October 28. About 60 soldierswere aboard in the said vehicles.At least 10 AFP troopers werewounded.

Prior to this, a soldier waskilled while two elements of the4th IB were wounded in an am-bush by NPA fighters last October23. The offensive was conducted

In times of brutal suppression, the people are called to steel themselves,gather all courage and wage utmost resistance. They should firmly de-mand genuine change to end oppression and all sufferings.

The Duterte regime's abuse ofpower is relentless. It uses the mil-itary and police and absolutepowers under undeclared martiallaw in the form of Executive Order70, Memorandum Order 32 andopen military rule in Mindanao.Killings and rights abuses arerampant.

Last October 31, 57 activistsand mass leaders of workers, peas-ants, women and media practition-ers were arrested en masse in Ba-colod and Escalante in Negros. Thisis now the worst case in the ongoingnationwide crackdown. At almostthe same time, five other massleaders were arrested in Manila,while a working class leader wasshot dead in Laguna. There are now

at least 266 victims of killings and545 political prisoners.

Democratic organizations arebeing targeted because they milit-antly uphold the interests of themasses. Across the country, thereare threats of arrests and murder,especially against mass leaders, keyofficers and organizers of mass-oriented groups.

State-sponsored killings andterrorism have no other aim but todrive fear into the hearts of thepeople. Duterte seeks "peace." Tohim, it is peaceful if no one de-nounces low wages and salaries.When no one opposes contractual-ization. When no one protests landgrabbing, high land rent and usury.

"39 casualties...," continued on page 3"Steel...," continued on page 2

November 7 , 2019 ANG BAYAN2

Vol . L No. 21 | November 7, 2019

ContentsANG

instagram.com/prwcnewsroom

@prwc_info

cppinformationbureau@gmail.com

When no one resists the construc-tion of destructive dams, mines, in-frastructure and tourism projects,and the expansion of plantations tothe detriment of peasants andminorities. When no one raises ahowl amid rising prices and jobless-ness. When no one exposes corrup-tion and crime perpetrated by themilitary and police.

Duterte wants peace for bigbourgeois compradors, landlordsand bureaucrat capitalists. So theycan accumulate wealth in peace,wring the blood of workers andpeasants, plunder the public cof-fers, rape the environment and giveup the country's sovereignty.Duterte wants everyone to remainsilent in the face of his scheme toperpetuate himself in power. Hedoes not even want to hear mum-blings over his failing health.

The people must not let fearand silence reign. Everyone mustpersist in the arena of struggle.Never allow terror and tyranny torule. Unite the broadest ranks of thepeople to fight for democracy. Raise

the people's voices to shatter thesilence.

Everyone must persevere in de-fending and exercising their right toorganize and free expression. Theymust hold Duterte and his armedminions accountable for abuse oflaw and for trampling on thepeople's freedoms, including thoseguaranteed by the reactionary 1987constitution.

There is still space for legalstruggle albeit reduced by the fas-cist state. All democratic mass-ori-ented organizations must asserttheir legal rights. The struggles ofvarious sectors for their well-beingmust be advanced assiduously:

higher wages, scrapping rice importliberalization, genuine land reform,subsidy for education, public healthand other social services, funds forcalamity relief, and others.

While persevering in legalstruggle, mass leaders, officers andorganizers must be good at usingclandestine methods to frustratethe enemy's campaign of murderand imprisonment. Learn to keepsecret one's day-to-day activitiesto keep the enemy blind and deaf.Creatively adopt methods to reach,arouse, organize and mobilize thepeople. The broad masses will serveas their thick forest of protectionand support.

Mass leaders and activists be-ing persecuted by the tyrannicalregime face difficulties and greatsacrifices. They must draw inspira-tion and courage from the massesand their aspirations for justice andfreedom. On the other hand, theymust serve as models of courageand perseverance.

The Duterte regime's campaignof all-out suppression will fail. As itintensifies, more and more areroused and are encouraged to joinmass-oriented organizations andtake part in democratic struggles.They overcome their fear and aredetermined to resist and put an endto the brutal, traitor, corrupt andcriminal regime.

All those being persecuted bythe fascist regime are always wel-come in the guerrilla base areaswhere they can be protected by thepeasant masses under the people'sdemocratic government. All units ofthe New People's Army (NPA) areready to provide them their neededprotection.

Because of fascist state re-pression, more and more peopleseek to join the NPA and wagearmed struggle. The NPA must per-severe in waging people's war. Vic-torious tactical offensives streng-then the people's determinationbecause they know they have anarmy they can rely on.

Ang Bayan is publ ished fortnightly by the Central Committee

of the Communist Party of the Phi l ippines

Ang Bayan is publ ished in

Pi l ipino, Bisaya, I loco,

Hi l igaynon, Waray and Engl ish.

Ang Bayan welcomes

contributions in the form

of articles and news items.

Readers are encouraged

to send feedback and

recommendations

for improving our newspaper.

"Steel...," from page 1

Editorial: Steel the people and firmlyresist 1AFP-PNP sustains 39 casualties 1Military bombs barrio in Samar 3Activist leader murdered 3The continuing struggle of Ekserya 4Evidence planted against activists 4Crackdown in Metro Manila 5Inhumane treatment of prisoners 5Fascism in earthquake-stricken areas 7Living democracy in Cordillera 6Journalists face danger 7Widening gap between rich and poor 7Protests on Peasants' Month 7Corruption in BoC widespread 7March of millions worldwide 8Anti-imperialist conference in Cuba 8

ANG BAYAN November 7 , 2019 3

"39 casualties...," from page 1 Military bombs barrio

in Samar

ON OCTOBER 26, at six in themorning, the Philippine AirForce’s FA-50s dropped three227-kilo bombs in BarangayCaputoan, Las Navas, NorthernSamar.

These landed at around akilometer away from the baran-gay center. The airstrikes dam-aged farms of at least 13 famil-ies, as well as their their homes,harvested rice and other per-sonal belongings. The operationwas ordered by the Joint TaskForce Storm of the Armed Forcesof the Philippines Central Com-mand and 8th ID.

After the airstrikes, a heli-copter indiscriminately fired atthe area. Troops of the 8th IDbragged about the photos theytook showing destroyed coconuttrees and civilian homes. MGenPio Diñoso heads the fascist 8thID.

Fearing for their lives, morethan 24 families fled their homesand evacuated to Barangay L.Empon and Barangay Paco and tothe town proper. According tothe residents, more than 140soldiers patrolled their barrioand conducted intense militaryoperations. These troops are partof the 500-strong combinedforces of the 20th IB and 81stRecon Coy treacherously lurkingin the area. Farmers were pro-hibited from visiting their farmsaffected by these operations.These operations by the 8th IDhave been going on for almost amonth now, costing some P6 mil-lion of public funds.

Activist leader murdered

REYNALDO MALABORBOR, 64, was shot dead in front of his house inKatapatan Subdivision, Cabuyao City, Laguna last November 4, at9:00 p.m..

in Sitio Mantay, Barangay Monte-claro, San Jose, in the sameprovince.

Since April, AFP and PNP forceshave been conducting focused milit-ary operations in the towns of Rizal,San Jose, Magsaysay in OccidentalMindoro, and Victoria and Socorroin Oriental Mindoro. These opera-tions gravely affect the livelihood ofMangyan people and peasants inthe area.

In Masbate, NPA fighters am-bushed elements of the 2nd IB op-erating on the border ofbarangays Mabiton and Taguilid inClaveria last November 1, at11:00 a.m.. Five AFP trooperswere killed while one waswounded. Subsequently, anotherunit of the NPA-Masbate harasseda detachment of the 2nd IB inBarangay Togoron, Monreal, ataround 3 p.m.. Last October 31,Red fighters ambushed a truckcarrying troops of the 2nd IB inBarangay Panisijan, Uson.

In Northern Samar, NPA unitssuccessfully overcame intense mil-itary operations of the 20th IB and81st Division Reconnaissance Com-pany in Las Navas since the firstweek of October. During the armedactions launched by the NPA lastOctober 6-16, 11 AFP trooperswere killed while three werewounded.

NPA-Northern Samar paid trib-ute to Roger Pajenado Cocoya (KaUno) who was killed during an en-

counter last October 12. The NPArecognized Ka Uno as a tireless or-ganizer among fellow youth andfarmers. He was an active memberof a militia unit before joining as afulltime member of the people'sarmy.

During the span of the militaryoperations in the area, several hu-man rights violations were reportedin Barangay Epaw, and residents ofBarangay Sag-od were forcibly dis-placed and many cases of harass-ment and intrusions into thepeaceful lives of peasants in thearea were recorded.

In Negros Occidental, a soldierwas killed while three werewounded as Red fighters fired onthe combined forces of the 62nd IBand PNP in Sitio Basak, BarangayTan-awan, Kabankalan City. Beforethis, NPA units fired upon patrollingtroops of the 62nd IB in BarangayBuenavista, Himamaylan City lastOctober 6. Red fighters also at-tacked troops of the 94th IB in SitioCabangahan, Barangay Bantolinao,Manjuyod, Negros Oriental last Oc-tober 3.

In Mt. Province, members of theNPA successfully defended them-selves against the operating troopsof the 5th ID last October 24 inSuquib, Besao. A soldier of the 5thID reconnaissance company waskilled while another was wounded.After the armed encounter, soldiersstrafed residents' farms and mor-tared the area.

Malaborbor was a member ofPagkakaisa at Ugnayan ng Mag-sasaka sa Laguna (Pumalag) andMakabayang Koalisyon ngMamamayan-Timog Katagalugan.He was a former political prisonerwho was arrested last October 5,2010 and was released on 2015.

Malaborbor was known inLaguna as a veteran activist. Be-fore he was murdered, he as-sisted in organizing the laborstrike in NutriAsia in Cabuyaolast July. He was alsoMakabayan's coordinator duringthe May elections.

November 7 , 2019 ANG BAYAN4

Barangay Ekserya's continuing struggle

Residents of Ekserya, a barangay in Negros, have long been fighting fortheir right to land amid the intense campaign of suppression in the is-

land. They continue to defend their victories, along with their militia unit andlocal Party branch.

Evidence planted against 57 activists

Combined forces of the police and 3rd IB soldiers illegally arrested 57 act-ivists in Negros in the evening of October 31 and on November 1. This is

considered as the third wave of the bloody and illegal Oplan Sauron in the is-land. In the attempt to legitimize the operation, soldiers and police plantedguns as evidence in the offices of the arrested activists in Bacolod and Escal-ante.

The police also planted explos-ives as evidence to prevent the vic-tims from posting bail. More than 30pistols and various ammunitionswere placed in different areas of theoffice and were presented asevidence against the activists. Onemember of an alternative media out-fit was able to get a footage of thepolice while pretending to obtain abag filled with firearms and

ammunition planted in the vicinity.Among those illegally arrested

were leaders and members of BayanMuna, Gabriela, National Federationof Sugar Workers, and KilusangMayo Uno (KMU). Included amongthe arrested are 21 workers of CeresBus Line who were in consultationswith KMU at the time.

Members of Teatro Obrero andTeatro Bungkal were also arrested.

Most of their members are childrenand youth who were rehearsing foran upcoming event in the province.A member of the alternative mediaPaghimutad was also arrested. Theywere all accused members of theNew People's Army and werecharged with trumped-up cases.

Karapatan said that the massillegal arrest signals the intensifyingrepression not only in the island butthroughout the country. It aims tosilence progressives, activists andcritics of the Duterte regime. TheInternational Coalition for HumanRights in the Philippines and Am-

Comrade Dereba was one ofthose who witnessed the develop-ment of the revolutionary movementin their barrio since 1983. She nar-rated the beginnings of the revolu-tionary movement and how the res-idents immediately came together.The people of Ekserya swiftly un-derstood and practiced the essenceand principles of the revolution, sheadded. They immediately launchedmass struggles against despoticlandlords in their area. At first,their fight was focused on loweringland rent. Eventually, they wereable to win in the struggle to ac-quire lands without sharing theirharvests to the landlord.

Ka Dereba said that the barriois one with the twists and turns ex-perienced by the revolution. In the1980s, they suffered problems as aresult of several errors and weak-nesses in ideology, politics and or-ganization. Between 1985 to 1992,they also encountered defeats. Atthis time, the residents and fellowcomrades faced great difficulties.The landlord took advantage of the

confusion among the ranks of Partycadres and the low morale of Partymembers and the people to regaincontrol over the lands. Militariza-tion and killings worsened.

After the Party called for recti-fication and reaffirmation of basicprinciples, reconstruction of themass base in Negros began. Duringthe mid-1990s, mass campaignsagainst mining and land grabbing inEkserya began. At the onset, 500residents joined the campaign.

From hereon, the Party branchwas reconstituted to implement thetasks under the rectification move-ment. They organized Party groupsand committees and hastened re-cruitment to the New People'sArmy. The local Party branch covers300 families.

In the middle of all these, thereactionary state has been relent-less in its attacks. Ka Dereba recallsthe onslaught of Oplan Bantay Layaof the US-Arroyo regime and OplanBayanihan of the US-Aquino regime.Along with intense military opera-tions are human rights abuses

committedby the AFP,killings,arrests,suppres-sion andother hu-manrights violations. All of these at-tacks were confronted and defeatedby the people of Ekserya.

The organization, along withthe militia unit, ensured the secur-ity of the barrio residents. Theylaunch military actions as activedefense against the enemy and alsoas support to the tactical offensiveslaunched by the New People's Army.The Party branch empowers com-mittees of mass organizations, par-ticularly the committee on produc-tion. They regularly extend supportto the Red fighters.

Duterte currently placed Negrosunder de facto martial law. In theface of all these, Ekserya perseveresin defending their land and the vic-tories which its residents haveachieved. The local Party branchcontinue to function independently.Therefore, supporting the advance-ment of the NPA's comprehensivework in the area.

"Evidence...," continued on page 5

ANG BAYAN November 7 , 2019 5

Crackdown in Metro Manila

THE POLICE ILLEGALLY arrestedactivist couple Cora Agovida andMichael Tan Bartolome inside theirhome in Paco, Manila last October31, at 5:00 a.m.. The arresting unitcame from the Manila Police Districtand Criminal Investigation and De-tection Group.

The PNP planted explosives asevidence in filing trumped-up char-ges and to prevent the victims fromposting bail. Agovida chairs Gabri-ela-Metro Manila while Bartolome iscurrently the campaign officer ofKadamay-Metro Manila.

Afterwards, police forces raidedBayan-Manila office in Clemente St.,Barangay 183 in Tondo, Manila lastNovember 5, at 1:00 a.m.. Elementsof the PNP also planted evidencesand illegally arrested Ram CarloBautista, campaign director ofBayan-Manila, Alma Moran, memberof the secretariat of Manila WorkersUnity and Ina Nacino, coordinator ofKadamay-Manila.

CPP slams militarization in

earthquake-affected areas

After the tragedy brought by several earthquakes in Mindanao last Octo-ber, the Communist Party of the Philippines (CPP) and its regional units

in Southern Mindanao and Far South Mindanao called on to the people tofrustrate the US-Duterte regime's militarism. The island was shaken by atleast five successive earthquakes last October 16-31. Gravely affected by thetremors were Davao del Sur and North Cotabato.

According to the CPP, Depart-ment of National Defense Sec.Delfin Lorenzana's order to set upcheckpoints in most affected areasis unacceptable. "Lorenzana im-poses his counterinsurgency mind-set in distributing immediate re-lief," the CPP said. Lorenzanamakes it difficult for those whowant to extend help. This will alsoresult in massive corruption andpilferage of relief supplies. Worse,he may even order the arrest of re-lief workers on the pretext thatthey are not "authorized".

Rubi del Mundo of the NDF-SMRreported that in the hardest hitareas, victims are being forced tovalidate and justify their status asvictims, or else be subjected todistressing searches and interroga-tions that makes it difficult for themto seek help and refuge.

Ka Gary Angeles of NPA-FSMR

said that victims are already com-plaining of the AFP's surveillance ofrelief and services provided by hu-manitarian groups and civilian or-ganizations, and is slowing down theprocess of relief distribution.

Despite the reactionary re-gime's militarism, undergroundmass organizations especially NPAunits continue to extend aid andconduct rehabilitation among thevictims, according to the NDF-SMR.Mass organizations and allies ex-tend food relief and other materialsto the victims. Red fighters, on theother hand, assist in the repair ofhomes and farms and in salvagingcrops of farmers in hinterlandareas.

Del Mundo urged organizationsand individuals to challenge the re-gime's militarism in the face of thecrisis and investigate the situationof victims in evacuation centers.

Inhumane treatment of prisoners condemned

MEMBERS OF KAPATID described conditions of prisoners inside the Na-tional Bilibid Prison (NBP) in Muntinlupa as being "critical." Kapatid is anorganization of families and supporters of political prisoners. Twenty nineinmates died as a result of a lockdown in NBP. They died due to pneumoniaand other diseases.

The lockdown prohibited visitorsand demolished makeshift homes ofNBP inmates which served as theirsleeping quarters. Eduardo Sarmi-ento, NDFP consultant imprisoned inthe NBP, said that after the demoli-tion of the shanties, inmates are nowcramped in tiny spaces inside themaximum compound. Most of themare sick and elderly. Some are forcedto sleep on the grounds or seek shel-ter anywhere with a roof. There areat least 27,821 inmates in the NBP.

In a media conference last Oc-

tober 25, Kapatid said Bureau ofCorrections officials purposely de-nied the inmates of medical atten-tion. The group also slammed vari-ous fees in the NBP, includingelectricity cost in each prison cell.Drinking water is also sold at P150while a can of sardines costs P100.

Sarmiento also demanded forthe transfer of political prisoners inone building inside the maximumcompound. There are more than 60political prisoners housed in manybuildings of the NBP.

nesty International also condemnedthe mass arrest.

Consecutive actions condemningthe arrests were launched by nationaldemocratic organizations in Negrosand Metro Manila. Progressivegroups picketed Camp Crame inQuezon City last November 4. Pro-gressive organizations based in Mel-bourne, Australia and in Los Angeles,California and New York in the USalso denounced the illegal arrests.

On November 6, Makabayan andother activist groups spearheaded inBacolod #PadayonNegros: NationalSolidarity Mission. They visited thearrested activists and condemnedthe state's harassment of progress-ives and its critics. Karapatan on itspart went to the Quezon City Hall ofJustice to question Judge CecilynBurgos-Villavert's issuance of sim-ilar warrants used by the PNP inBacolod and Manila.

Similar protests were held inCebu and Iloilo."Evidence...," continued on page 5

"Evidence...," from page 4

November 7 , 2019 ANG BAYAN6

From the regions

Living democracy in resolving conflictsamong tribesAmid the reign of fascist tyranny, democracy flourishes inthe people’s struggles. It is found in mass organizations,organs of political power and the people’s government, theCommunist Party and New People’s Army.

In Cordillera, democracy thrives between its indigenouspeoples and the Communist Party of the Philippines and the

New People's Army. This is found in situations wherein cadres ofthe Party and the people's army mediate in conflicts that occasionally risebetween tribes in the region. In these cases, revolutionaries firmly abide bythe mass line which unites the oppressed and exploited people and settlescontradictions among them in a non-antagonistic manner.

Red fighters serve as mediatorsin order to avoid the eruption of tri-bal wars and solve misunderstand-ings in a peaceful way. The call "Re-volutionary people's war, not tribalwar" is given highest importance.

One featured experience waswhen an NPA unit was confrontedwith a case of murder of threeAgawa natives by Baclingayan nat-ives last May. The Baclingayans arefrom the Belwang tribe of Sadanga,Mountain Province while theAgawas are from Barangay Naba-nig, Besao of the same province.The incident occurred in the forestboundary of Besao and Tubo, Abra.

After learning of the incident,the NPA unit covering the areapromptly took action to help in theswift resolution of the incident. Toprevent a tribal war from erupting,the comrades urged the panglakay-ens (tribal leaders) to stand for aquick and peaceful solution to theissue. The NPA's investigationshowed that the incident is based ondisputed resources and territory.Both the Agawa and Baclingayantribes consider the forest as theirterritory.

With the result of the NPA's in-vestigation as basis, the CordilleraPeople's Democratic Front called onthe panglakayens to avoid war.Cadres and fighters sought ways forboth sides to meet in order to re-solve the conflict as soon as pos-sible. A few days after the incident,

panglakayens from both tribesagreed to a dialogue to be mediatedby the NPA. Here, the NPA's initialinvestigation on the incident wasreported and statements from theaccused were heard. The Bac-lingayans agreed to surrender theconvicts and submit them to thebagta or the laws of bodong.Bodong refers to the peace pact ofthe Cordillera tribes.

This is just one of the many in-cidents confronted and resolved bythe NPA in Cordillera. In caseswhere there are witnesses, theirstatements are collected. All ofthese are heard by the panglakay-ens of both tribes. The tribes agreeupon the reasonable damages togive justice to the victims. In theserelations, unity of the tribes is up-held under the traditional bagta.

For more than four decades ofrevolutionary work, the NPA con-tinues to develop the practice indealing with contradictions betweentribes. Application of mass line andintegration with the communitiesare the comrades' methods. As aresult of principled resolution toconflicts, the tribes have respectsand recognizes the revolutionarymovement.

The comrades' lengthy practicein resolving contradictions haveproven that they are impartial. Theresolutions they offer are likewisefair and just. Because of this, thetribes themselves seek the parti-cipation of the Party and the NPA indialogues.

With the help of the tribes, thecomrades persevere in opposing theenemy's perversion of indigenousculture and tribal structures.Hence, the defense of the right toself-determination and democracyin Cordillera.

IN CONTRAST TO the revolutionary movement's practice, the AFP andthe reactionay state exploit indigenous culture and institutions like thebodong to compound misunderstandings between the tribes in the Cor-dillera. During military operations, soldiers often incite conflicts tocause disputes among tribes. The AFP and the state exploit discordamong them to push for burdensome and anti-people projects in theirancestral lands such as dams, energy plants and others.

History demonstrates how the AFP's coercion has led to its armingof tribes. In the 1980's, it armed the Basao tribe to break up the unityof the tribes against the Chico River Dam Project. This is also theprimary objective of the Duterte regime's "IP-centric" counterinsur-gency program.

AFP's coercion of tribes

ANG BAYAN November 7 , 2019 7

Journalists face danger in the Philippines

FOR THREE CONSECUTIVE years, the Philippines remains 5th in countrieswith the highest Global Impunity Index (GII), according to a report by theCommittee to Protect Journalists (CPJ) last October 29. The GII calculatesthe number of unresolved cases of extrajudicial killings of journalists. TheCPJ recorded 41 cases in the Philippines, which is considered the largest inthe world.

Included in the list are war-torn countries Syria and Iraq. Alsoincluded are Somalia, South Sudan,Afghanistan, Mexico, Pakistan andBrazil.

Under the Duterte regime, 13journalists have been killed as re-ported by the National Union ofJournalists of the Philippines.Duterte has threatened the journ-alists many times and and even en-couraged state forces to kill them.

In October, three cases ofmurder and harassment of journal-ists were recorded. In Arayat, Pam-panga, Jupiter Gonzales, a writer for

Remate, was killed after being shotby unidentified suspects on October20. Benjie Caballero, president ofSultan Kudarat Provincial Task Forceon Media Security and manager ofRadyo ni Juan, was shot multipletimes on October 30.

Anne Kreuger, journalist forPaghimutad, was among the 57 act-ivists illegally arrested by the PNPlast October 31 in Bacolod City.

These cases occurred a fewdays before the commemoration ofthe International Day to End Im-punity for Crimes against Journal-ists last November 2.

Gap between rich and poor widens

ANOTHER INCREASE OF wealth by the richest bourgeois compradors in thecountry was reported by Forbes last October.

Corruption in BOC widespread

MORE THAN P234 billion in taxes were not transfered to the public coffersin 2016-2017 because of corruption in the Bureau of Customs (BoC). Thiswas exposed by House Deputy Speaker Rep. Rodante Marcoleta in a resolu-tion he filed in October. He said falsification of lists inside the BoC to de-fraud the accounting of taxes to be payed by customs brokers iswidespread.

Protests on Peasants'

Month

HUNDREDS OF MEMBERS ofpeasant organizations and theirsupporters trooped to Mendiolalast October 21 to commemoratePeasants' Month. Farmers fromCentral Luzon, Ilocos, Mt.Province and Southern Tagalogjoined the protest action.

They demanded the junking ofrice liberalization law or RA 11203because of its failure to lower riceprices. Instead, palay farmgateprices dropped to P7 due to theincrease of imported rice.

Aside from this, thousands offarmers were displaced due to thecontinuing land conversion andland grabbing. An example ofwhich is the New Clark City whichcovers 9,450 hectares of lands inPampanga and Tarlac, and theAurora Pacific Economic Zone andFreeport Authority which covers12,953 hectares.

The farmers also opposedmilitarization in their communit-ies. In Southern Tagalog, 15 AFPbattalions were deployed in theregion. Cordillera farmers' liveli-hoods were affected by the pres-ence of the military in their farms.

The rally paid tribute topeasant leaders who weremurdered for defending theirright to genuine land reform.Karapatan said that 216 farmerswere murdered under Duterte.

Corruption is chronic in theBoC. "Benchmarking" and "tara"systems have been pervasive in theagency. "Benchmarking" pertains tothe swiftest way of clearing and re-leasing shipment at the port ofentry. "Tara" on the other hand is

the bribe from importers or theirbrokers.

In every change of reactionaryregime, a "cleanup" is undertaken.In reality, the ruling clique re-arranges the agency to place itsown personnel and monopolize the

The article revealed that thenet worth of nine out 10 richest bil-lionaires in the country increasedaltogether. Hans Sy, son of the latecapitalist Henry Sy, tops the list(16%, up to P140 billion). This ex-plains why the Philippines ranked9th among the countries with thewidest gap between the rich andpoor, a report released by Credit

Suisse last October said.Under Duterte, the value of

properties of the ten richest com-pradors rose to 14%, from P2.5trillion last 2016 to P2.7 trillion in2018. On the other hand, conser-vative data of the reactionary statereveals that almost 28.8 millionFilipinos (3 out of 10) live on belowP70 everyday.

billions in funds from the BoC'sanomalous transactions.

November 7 , 2019 ANG BAYAN8

THE CUBAN ANTI-IMPERIALISTSolidarity Conference for Demo-cracy and Against Neoliberalismwas held in Havana, Cuba inNovember 1-3. The conferencewas organized by the Commun-ist Party of Cuba and was atten-ded by more than 1,200 deleg-ates from 95 countries.

The conference served asthe expression of the globalpeoples' struggle against imper-ialism. The activity was markedby discussions on the worseningcrisis of the world capitalistsystem and the intensifying at-tacks by imperialism on ideo-logy, politics, economy and cul-ture. Discussions were also heldon neocolonialism, racism andother forms of oppression.

The conference was dividedinto five groups which outlinedconcrete steps in combatingneoliberal policies imposed bythe US and preventing wars thatit launches. Also, steps weretaken to oppose US violations ofinternational laws, human rightsand policies on trade and navig-ation.

Protests erupted in Chile,Ecuador and Lebanon. These wereaimed at policies imposed by theIMF-World Bank such as price andtax hikes, and budget cuts on socialservices. In Guinea and Iraq, thepeople rose up against the obscenecorruption of the ruling classes wholive lavishly in the face of wide-spread poverty, joblessness andhunger. People's protests alsoerupted in Spain condemning thedetention of 12 activist leaders formerely participating in a 2017 ref-erendum and Catalan's subsequentdeclaration of independence.

Largest of these was in Chile'scapital Santiago last October 25with more than 1.2 million protest-ers. Demonstrations broke out lastOctober 7 in a campaign against the4% increase in railway fare ($.04 orP2). With the protest movementquickly spreading, Pres. SebastianPiñera was forced to declare a stateof emergency on October 18 to al-low the entry of the Chilean Army inthe country's major regions and tosuppress the people's struggle. Thisresulted in the death of at least 20civilians, with 2,500 otherswounded and 2,840 arrested. Hun-dreds were abducted and are yet tobe surfaced.

In the face of suppression, thepeople persist with their protestsand have achieved great victories.In Lebanon, Prime Minister SaadHariri was ousted last October 29.Other regimes were likewise pushedto withdraw neoliberal reforms theyhave implemented. Before the pro-tests started in October, giganticdemonstrations have already beenstaged in France (Yellow Vests),Iraq, Russia and Algeria. Protests inHongkong are now on the sixthmonth.

Apart from the massive num-bers, most of these protests rosefrom the people's anger against oneor two particular policy. But in ashort time, the demands expand andan increasing number of sectors, or-ganizations and parties launch theirown actions. A broad united front isbuilt and their activities becomemore organized. These groups mo-bilize through sustained calls, dis-cussions and motivations to urgepeople to get involved, participateand take action for their rights andwelfare. Using internet channelsparticularly social media, calls aremade widespread, intensified andrelentless. Alongside this, traditionalforms of propaganda among thepeople are widespread, includingleaflets, statements, artworks andothers. The protests, initiatedmostly by students, grew largerafter workers and professionalsjoined in.

These protest movements facemany challenges. Historically,movements such as these are diffi-cult to sustain, as they seeminglylack a central leadership. While themovements are able to persuadethe broad section of the people,these also attract small anarchistgroups and saboteurs. While themajority protest in peace, violentforms by the few are highlighted.The ruling states exploit violent in-cidents to strike on the protestersand retaliate with intensified viol-ence. Moreover, foreign powers rideon the legitimate struggles of thepeople in order to intervene in thecountry.

The Communist Party of thePhilippines expressed unity with theprotest movements. The Party saidthat the wave of protest actionsserve as inspiration to the peoples

Millions march in streets worldwide

Millions upon millions of peoples took to the streets and continue tosurge in different parts of the world to call for an end to oppressive

policies in their countries. These past weeks, huge protests werelaunched in Latin America, Europe, Middle East and Africa to opposeneoliberal economic policies, severe inequality, corruption and na-tional oppression amid worsening crisis of the world capitalist system.

Anti-imperialist conference

launched in Cuba

of the world in launching their owndemocratic struggles and advancethe fight for social justice and na-tional liberation. The Party saidthat the proletariat must perseverein leading these popular strugglesand pave the way for the resur-gence of the international prolet-arian revolution.