Pahayagan ng Partido Komunista ng Pilipinas

Pinapatnubayan ng Marxismo-Leninismo-MaoismoANG

End neoliberal policies!

It is right to confront the upcoming leaders' meeting of Asia-Pa-cific Economic Cooperation (APEC) members with the Filipinopeople's strongest protest. They must hold the APEC account-

able for serving as an instrument since 1993 of US imperialism andother imperialist countries in railroading neoliberal policies.

The scourge and damagecaused by three decades of neolib-eral policies on the Philippine eco-nomy and the livelihood of theFilipino people are unprecedented.These are the policies pushed andupheld by APEC, in partnership withthe International Monetary Fund(IMF) and the World Bank, as wellas with the General Agreement onTariffs and Trade (GATT) and theWorld Trade Organization (WTO).

These policies aim to intensifythe exploitation of the workingclass and the toiling masses, andthe dismantling of measures thatprotect the national patrimony ofbackward semicolonial countries.

Neoliberal policies were carriedout in the Philippines through gov-ernments that toed the US linesince the early 1980s. Not a singleregime stood contrary to US imper-ialist impositions; instead they havebeen outdoing each other in leavinga legacy as the most ardent ad-vocate of neoliberalism.

All past govern-ments implementedwidespread liberal-ization in trade andinvestments;privatization of en-terprises and publicservice; deregulationand giving capitalists

Vol XLVI N o. 1 4

N ovember 7, 2 01 5

www. phi l i ppi nerevol uti on. net

Editorial

full-freedom to accumulate max-imum profits; and denationalizationpolicies that favor the entry andoperation of foreign big capitalists.

Tariffs on imported commodit-ies were reduced or completelyeradicated, together with the re-moval of quantitative restrictionsresulting in the dumping of surpluscommodities in the country. Lawsand orders that took advantage ofloopholes in the reactionary 1987constitution were passed to allowforeign investors to own up to100% of enterprises that operate inthe Philippines andplunder the country'smineral and othernatural resources.

Policies to attractforeign investorswere priorit-ized. Vastenclaves

were cleared as myriad incentiveswere offered to entice foreign in-vestors to locate their factoriesthere. Policies prohibiting unionsand other restrictions were put intoeffect. Foreign capitalist investorscould easily come and go.

Under neoliberalism, exploita-tion of workers became more re-lentless. Various policies giving bigcapitalists all-out freedom to ex-ploit cheap labor of Filipino workerswere issued. The national minimumwage was dismantled and contrac-tualization and other forms offlexible labor were promoted. Thecoercive instruments of the statewere used to suppress the workers'organized strength.

Production inside the enclavesare part of the global chain of pro-

November 7 , 2015 ANG BAYAN2

Ang Bayan i s

publ i shed i n

Pi l i pi no, Bi saya,

H i l i gaynon,

Waray and

Engl i sh.

I t can be downl oaded from the

Phi l i ppi ne Revol uti on Web Central at

www.philippinerevolution.net

Ang Bayan wel comes

contri buti ons i n the form of arti cl es

and news i tems. Readers are

encouraged to send feedback and

recommendati ons for i mprovi ng our

newspapers. Send your messages to

cppinformationbureau@gmail. com

Ang Bayan i s publ i shed forthni ghtl y by the Central Commi ttee

of the Communi st Party of the Phi l i ppi nes

Vol XLVI N o. 1 4 | N ovember 7, 2 01 5

ANG

duction of multinational corpora-tions. They bring in capital wherelabor is cheap. They push for neo-liberal policies to allow the easytransfer of capital.

These are disjointed from anddo not contribute to local manu-facturing and industries. In fact,over the past three decades, thePhilippine manufacturing sectorhas shrunk. Over this period, em-ploymentshare in

the sector is stagnant at 15% evenas its capacity to generate newemployment remained weak.

The number of new jobs gener-ated over the past five years is thelowest in the past four decades.Last year, more workers found jobsoverseas than within the country.This proves the continuing stagna-tion of the local economy.

Foreign big capitalists are ag-gressively venturing intoagribusiness. There is

continued expansion oflarge plantations and landcontrolled by such foreign

big companies as Doleand Del Monte. Theyare also pushing forthe conversion ofvast lands into

palm oil plantations. Onthe other hand, localproduction of rice isinsufficient res-ulting in in-creasing annualrice imports.

In line

with neoliberalism, the budget forsocial services such as education,health, public utilities and infra-structure were subjected toprivatization. Instead of servingpublic welfare, water andelecticity distribution, as well ashospitals and schools, roads andtrains were operated in the in-terest of profits. These have be-come a heavier burden on theFilipino people.

Widespread unemployment,low wages, contractualization andother vicious forms of exploitingworkers, skyrocketting prices ofcommodities, land grabbing, in-adequate and deteriorating socialservices and other problems haveworsened as direct consequences

of these policies.The Filipino

people must holdUS imperial-ism, all itshegemonicinstruments

such as theAPEC and all

puppet regimesaccountable for car-

rying out liberalization,privatization, deregulation anddenationalization under the neo-liberal doctrine.

The three decades of neolib-eral policies have plunged thePhilippines deeper into the semi-colonial and semifeudal system.The people must repudiate allneoliberal policies and their ad-vocates.

The poverty and sufferingsthese have brought the Filipinopeople further underscore theneed to put an end to the rottenruling system through revolution-ary struggle. The Filipino peoplemust continue to amplify theirclamor for genuine land reformand national industrialization askey in lifting the country and thepeople from crisis and poverty.

Editorial: End Neoliberal Policies 1

Journey of the Lumad 3

Attacks on Lumad schools 4

Contractualization at CAT 5

Charges against patriotic scientists 6

NPA armed actions in Bicol 7

NPA releases 2 POW in ComVal 7

Counter-revolutionaries punished 8

Centennial of the October Rev 9

Participation in election 10

Two aspects of US 11

Contents

ANG BAYAN November 7 , 2015 3

Manilakbayan 2015: Journey ofthe Lumad

The Manilakbayan continues to gain victories on the second week of itsjourney.

The struggle of the Lumad andpeoples of Mindanao gained moresupport from various sectors in theNational Capital Region and otherparts of the country that theypassed through.

About 700 peasants, youth, wo-men, human rights advocates andother sectors from Mindanaotraveled through Visayas and Luzonto amplify to the entire countrytheir clamor for justice and for anend to the killings and plunder inMindanao.

The journey started with asend-off rite called "Panubad-tubad", a Lumad ritual asking forguidance and protection. Theirjourney featured marches, cara-vans, programs and welcomingactivities.

The people of Surigao City, Tac-loban City, Gubat (Sorsogon), Tabu-gon (Camarines Norte), LucenaCity, Los Baños and Calamba City inLaguna, Alabang and Baclaran wel-comed them militantly. Wherever

they marched, they found solidaritywith the people on such common is-sues as poverty brought about bylandlessness, unjust wages, massdisplacement and other social is-sues.

Students from different uni-versities in the countries' capitalwarmly welcomed the Manilakbay-an participants. Political prisonersin Camp Bagong Diwa, Bicutan,Taguig City also expressed theirsupport.

The University of the Philippinescampus in Diliman, Quezon Cityprovided them accomodations for aweek. UP students and teacherstogether with other sectors showedtheir support for the Lumad. Dif-ferent activities were held to sharetheir experiences, their plight andaspirations.

Many groups devoted their timeto integrate with and listen to theLumad people. Manilakbayan del-egates shared stories of Lumads'courage in confronting intensifying

militarization. They un-masked the real aim of stateviolence against them,which is to subject their

ancestral land toplunder by big min-ing companies and

plantations.Intensified

military violencehas forced some40,000 Lumadsto leave theircommunities. As

much as 63Lumad leaders

and activists havebeen persecuted. Close

to 250 community lead-ers are facing trumped-up charges filed by the

Aquino regime. As many as 95Lumad schools are under attack bymilitary forces and paramilitarygroups.

After a week's stay in the UPcampus, Manilakbayan participantsmarched to Liwasang Bonifacio.They will be staying there in thenext few days to share experienceswith other sectors.

Manilakbayan will be joining theprotest rally against the APECmeeting in Manila.

Suppressing anti-APEC protestactions

The Aquino regime is mobilizinga large number of its police force tosuppress protest actions on theAPEC leaders' meeting to be held onNovember 18-19. Aside from the2,500 Metropolitan Manila Devel-opment Authority personnel, theywill be assigning PNP personnelfrom Regions 3 and 4.

Major roads such as parts ofEDSA, NAIA and Roxas Boulevardwill be closed to the public for ex-clusive use of APEC delegates. Theseroutes will also be closed for protestactions. There are also plans toclear the urban poor along theroute. To hide the street-dwellersfrom the delegates, each family willbe given P4,000 to look for tempor-ary shelter.

The scheduled APEC meeting hasdrawn a lot of criticism. Last October10, members of League of FilipinoStudents protested in front of theMendiola Peace Arch in Manila, sim-ultaneous to the APEC Transporta-tion Ministerial Meetings in Cebu.

At the end of the APEC HighLevel Policy Dialogue on Food Se-curity and the Blue Economy inIloilo last October 5, fisherfolk un-der PAMALAKAYA gathered in aparallel activity to condemn policieson the liberalization and privatiza-tion of water resources.

November 7 , 2015 ANG BAYAN4

Attacks on Lumad schools are war crimes

There have been no less than 95 cases of attacks on Lumad schools in thewhole Mindanao since September 2014. All of these are violations of in-

ternational rules of war that strictly prohibit targeting civilians and theirproperty.

Forcible closure of Bukidnonschool

Among the latest state attackson Lumad schools is the forcibleclosure last October 23 of the Fr.Pops Tentorio Memorial School, aprivate elementary school estab-lished by the Mindanao InterfaithServices Foundation Inc. (MISFI)Academy in White Culaman, Ki-taotao, Bukidnon. The closure wasled by barangay captain FelipeCabugnason. Under direct instruc-tions of military overlords in thearea, Cabugnason with several civil-ians under threat by the military,accompanied by soldiers in plain-clothes, attacked the school anddestroyed its gate.

According to the residents, thesoldiers and Cabugnason forcedthem at gunpoint to destroy theschool to make it look like a “volun-tary” act of the community. Cabug-nason confiscated the cellphonesand cameras of the teachers andstudents and prevented them fromtaking pictures and videos.

The confrontation traumatizedthe teachers and the 24 studentsinside the school at that time. Mostof the students there are from thePulangion and Matigsalug Manobogroups. According to a teacher,their fear of being hogtied and killedby the soldiers was sogreat that they evacu-ated the school andtrekked more than threehours towards Arakan inNorth Cotabato to find shel-ter. The destroyed educa-tional facility was a boarding-type school where studentsand teachers stayed duringschool days.

The attack was made despitethe direct order of the Departmentof Education against the closure.The military denied involvement inthe attack, but its spokesman him-self announced the permanentclosure of the school.

Last October 30, Kitaotao'smayor, vice-mayor and entire mu-nicipal council filed charges againstCabugnason. The 8th IB was alsoordered to vacate and stop the oc-cupation of the private school.

Earlier, on October 6, the milit-ary burned down four houses in thehilly portions of Malinao in WhiteCulaman. It was feared that theschool would be next.

According to Prof. Mae FeAncheta-Templa, convenor of theSave our Schools (SOS) Network inMindanao, eight attacks are carriedout monthly since 2014 againstteachers and students in Lumadschools.

Guidelines to defend the schoolsThe attacks on the Lumad

schools are being carried out inspite of the participation of thePhilippine government (GPH) in themeetings to draft the “Guidelinesfor Protecting Schools and Uni-versities from Military Use DuringArmed Conflict.” While the final

document was not signed by theGPH, it was endorsed by the UnitedNations and international chil-dren's organizations such as theUnited Nations Children's Fund(Unicef) and other multilateral or-ganizations. The guidelines treatattacks on schools as “war crimes”except in extreme cases wherethese become legitimate militarytargets. While the Aquino regimecan justify that the GPH did notratify the guidelines, and thereforeis not obligated to follow these,the basis of these guidelines areinternational conventions longratified by the GPH. Among theseare the Law Studies of the Inter-national Committee of the RedCross (ICRC).

The guidelines contain the follow-ing:1. Functioning schools anduniversities should not be used bythe fighting forces of parties to thearmed conflict in any way in sup-port of the military effort;2. Schools and universitiesthat have been abandoned or evac-uated because of the dangerspresented by armed conflict shouldnot be used by the fighting forces ofparties to armed conflict for anypurpose in support of their militaryeffort;3. Schools and universitiesmust never be destroyed as ameasure intended to deprive theopposing parties to the armed con-

ANG BAYAN November 7 , 2015 5

flict of the ability to use them in the future;4. While the use of a school or university by thefighting forces of parties to the armed conflict in supportof their military effort may, depending on the circum-stances, have the effect of turning it into a military ob-jective subject to attack, parties to armed conflictshould consider all feasible alternative measures beforeattacking them;5. The fighting forces of parties to the armed con-flict should not be employed to provide security forschools and universities;6. All parties to the armed conflict should, as far as

possible and as appropriate, incorporate these into, forexample, their doctrine, military manuals, rules of en-gagement, operational orders, and other means of dis-semination, to encourage appropriate practicethroughout the chain of command.

The Aquino government cannot use the excuse ofnot having any knowledge of these guidelines. Rep-resentatives of the AFP attended the first conferenceconducted to draft the guidelines in May 2012. TheOffice of the President of the GPH also attended aconference to finalize the guidelines in November2012.

Cojuangco sugar mill contractualizes workers

When the milling season starts this November, only contractual work-ers will work at the Central Azucarera de Tarlac (CAT) after almost

700 regular workers were fired last May and required to sign “voluntary re-tirement” papers.

This came after Martin Lorenzobought the CAT in 2014 and underwhose management workers weredismissed en masse in the name ofrevitalizing the purportedly ailingsugar mill. Appearing to be undernew ownership, CAT claimed theright to lay-off workers with the aimof destroying the trade union. Butthe fact is, the Aquino-Cojuangcofamily retains control of the sugar-mill through its president and ChiefOperating Officer,Fernando

Cojuangco, Aquino's first cousin.According to John Milton Loz-

ande, Unyon ng mga Manggagawasa Agrikultura (UMA) chairperson,Cojuangco used the CAT Resourceand Asset Holdings Inc. to ownshares of other Aquino-Cojuangcocorporations within Hacienda Luis-ita, such as the Luisita Realty Corp.(LRC) and Luisita Industrial ParkCo. Consequently, the Aquino-Cojuangco family remains the realowner of CAT and corporations

within Hacienda Luisita,although they can nowcircumvent obliga-tions required by thecourt. Meanwhile,the supposed benefi-ciaries who were

previously workers inHLI will return to theold system of “kapatas”(labor contracting) and“pakyaw” (job con-

tracting).Lorenzo also plans to sell

505 hectares of land underCAT and LRC so that theCojuangco-Aquino family can

evade paying its debts to the farm-workers.

On April 24, 2012 the SupremeCourt ruled in favor of distributingthe entire 6,453-hectare HaciendaLuisita to the farm workers. Theruling included paying the workerstheir share in the previous sale of580 hectares to Rizal CommercialBanking Corporation, CentenaryHoldings and land used by a portionof the SCTEX, an expresswaypassing through the hacienda,bringing to P1.33 billion the amountof the Cojuangco-Aquino family’sdebt to the farmworkers.

Up to now, none of these havebeen paid, and the land which thefarmworkers have fought for aregradually being retaken through theleaseback system (aryendo).

Last February 2014, the LRCasked the Philippine Economic ZoneAuthority to declare the 260 hec-tare farmlands in Barangay Balete,Luisita to be part of the Luisita In-dustrial Park-Special EconomicZone. Since 2013 these lands havebeen tilled by the farmworkers andmany have been hurt in the defenseagainst the repeated attacks byarmed goons of the Aquino-Cojuangcos. The crops of the farm-workers were bulldozed and theirhuts burned down.

November 7 , 2015 ANG BAYAN6

Charges filed against patriotic scientist

Dr. Romeo Quijano, a toxicologist, faced harassment anew last Octoberfor a research he published 16 years ago about the dangerous effects of

pesticides on community health and the environment. A previous case of"unprofessionalism", which the court dismissed in 2010, was resurrected bythe same people who filed the case years ago.

According to Rafael Mariano ofthe Resistance and SolidarityAgainst Agrochem TNCs (RESIST),this case is “the fourth in a plethoraof banana industry-orchestratedcases filed against Quijano … Thebanana industry appears hell-benton making sure that no one gets inthe way of their hazardous prac-tices.”

Quijano is an expert witness inrecent congressional hearings onHouse Bill 3857 seeking to ban aeri-al spraying of pesticides for its ad-verse effects on the residents of thecommunity.

This is not the first case of har-assment of scientists who hone anddevote their scientific skills to servethe masses. It can be recalled thatphysicist Prof. Kim Gargar was ar-rested and detained by the 67th IBon October 1, 2013 in Sityo SpurDos, Barangay Aliwagwag, Cateel,Davao Oriental, while doing re-search on a reforestation projectfor Balsa Mindanao and Panalipdan.

He was accused of being amember of the NPA and chargedwith illegal possession of explosives,firearms and ammunitions; murderand multiple attempted murder; andviolation of the election gun banbased on fabricated evidence.

Prof. Leonard Co,botanist and ethno-pharmacologist, wasslain by soldiers of the19th IB in Kananga,Leyte on November 15,2010, together withforest guard JuliusBorromeo and SofronioCortez, a farmer. The military al-leged that they were members ofthe NPA. Instead of dispensingjustice for the victims, the Depart-ment of Justice and National Bur-eau of Investigation cleared thekillers of the three. The military of-ficer who led the attack was evenappointed head of the AFP office forhuman rights.

Meanwhile, Dr. Richard Heck,84, chemist, expired from an acuteillness on October 10 at the EastAvenue Medical Center where hewas brought after being denied ad-mission by a private health care fa-cility.

Heck was known for the NobelPrize for Chemistry which he re-ceived in 2010, jointly with two Ja-panese scientists, for their break-through of a new chemical process.This process, known as the “HeckReaction,” had many applications.This had widespread application in

cancer treatment research andother medical questions; the cre-ation of drugs such as naproxen,used to treat arthritis; industrialand technological processes such asthinner computer and cellphonescreens. Heck has been a Philippineresident for almost a decade.

According to Rep. Emmi de Je-sus of Gabriela Women's Party,Heck’s tragic death exposesAquino’s “straight path” and illus-trates why the Philippines was in-cluded in “the worst places to die,”in the 2015 Quality of Death Indexstudy. The Lien Foundation rankedthe Philippines 78th in their study of80 countries.

De Jesus added that it puts toshame the P128 billion governmenthealth budget for 2016 because“..Like in the past years’ budgets,the biggest allotments are allocatedto PhilHealth and the Health Facil-ities Enhancement Program, whichdo not address the poor patients’health needs.”

Advocates of Science andTechnology for the People (Agham)estimates that Philhealth coversonly 27% of patients’ expenses inpublic hospitals. The average cost ofconfinement in a public health fa-cility is 43 times more than theminimum wage, while that in privatefacilities is 66 times.

ANG BAYAN November 7 , 2015 7

NPA launches armed actionsagainst the 9th ID in Bicol

Red fighters in Bicol launched a series of coordinated armed actions from Oc-tober 25 to November 2. This was reported by Comrade Maria Roja Banua,

National Democratic Front (NDF)-Bicol spokesperson.

The NPA-Bicol seized four high-caliber firearms in 18 different tactic-al offensives by provincial commandsunder the Romulo Jallores Commandagainst elements of the 9th ID in theregion. Up to nine enemy soldierswere killed and nine others wounded.

These offensives are blows to the9th ID's attempt to declare Masbateand Sorsogon as “conflict-manageableareas” before the 2016 elections,while keeping its focus on Albay'sthird district, Libmanan in CamarinesSur and Labo, Camarines Norte. Theseare also blows against the costly andextravagant show for the Asia PacificEconomic Cooperation's foreign del-egates in November 16-18. Above all,these serve as salute and tribute tobrave comrades who were killed in adefensive battle in Juban, Sorsogon.

Masbate: At 8:00 p.m., a team ofRed fighters harassed a 9th IB de-tachment in Barangay Danao, San

Jacinto in Ticao Island on October 31.On the same day, at 12:00 midnight,another NPA unit harassed the Divi-sion Recon Company's headquartersat Sitio Catindong, BarangayMaingaran, Masbate City. A soldierwas killed and another wounded.

Meanwhile, at 2:30 a.m., the NPAthrew a grenade at the temporarybarracks of a military section inBarangay Dayao, Mandaon. The sta-tioned soldiers serve as guards ofHitone Construction Company undercontract to build a road. Two soldierswere killed and another wounded.

On November 1, a team from theJose Rapsing Command detonated abomb inside a safehouse of the 9thIB's 18-member unit in Barangay Po-blacion, San Jacinto, Ticao Island.The NPA opened fire after the explo-sion. Four soldiers were reportedlykilled and an undetermined number ofsoldiers wounded.

NPA releases 2 POWs in ComVal

THE New People's Army-Southern Mindanao Region released two prisoners-of-war from its custody last November 3 in the afternoon in Laak, Com-postela Valley in accordance with the directive issued by the National Demo-cratic Front of the Philippines (NDFP). The NPA captured Pfc. Marjon Añoverand Pfc. Niño Alavaro, both of the 25th IB, last September 30 in BarangayCasoon, Monkayo, Compostela Valley.

According to Rubi del Mundo, NDFP representative in Mindanao, the sol-diers were released because they expressed remorse for their crimes againstthe people and that “they voluntarily pledged not to commit anymore crimesagainst the people”. The 25th IB is notorious for its long list of crimesagainst the residents in the province.

In an interview with a Davao-based newspaper, Pfc. Alavaro recountedthat the Red fighters treated him well. He was amazed by the equal relationsbetween officers and fighters, which is very different from the conduct of hissuperiors. He also said that he saw how Red fighters struggled not for them-selves, but for the people.

Davao City Mayor Rodrigo Duterte, Regional Peace and Order Councilhead, together with the prisoners' families, received the POWs. The religiousgroup Exodus for Justice and Peace served as a third party facilitator.

Sorsogon. On November 2,at 2:45 p.m., the Celso MinguezCommand ambushed the GubatPNP Patrol in Barangay Mari-nas while on their way to themunicipal hall. Five police of-ficers were wounded and twokilled in the ambush.

Albay. At 8:30 a.m. onNovember 1, a team from theSantos Binamera Commandharassed the 2nd IB's detach-ment in Barangay Bascaran,Daraga. Simultaneously, theNPA launched demolition oper-ations in Barangay Villaher-mosa, Daraga againt elementsof the Provincial Public SafetyCompany based in the area.

Camarines Sur. At 9:00p.m. on October 25, a teamfrom the Edmundo Jacob Com-mand harassed the 22nd IB'sdetachment in Barangay SanPedro, Iriga City which haslong been a haven for abusersin the city.

At 8:00 a.m. on October 28,the Norben Gruta Commandattacked the Charlie Companyguarding the road project for aforeign mining company andthe local government's eco-tourism project in Pag-oring,Libmanan. A soldier was killedand an M16 rifle was seized bythe NPA. On the same day, theNPA launched harassment op-erations against a 42nd IB unitthat was encamped at thebarangay hall and within thepremises of Bilwang, Lupi.

Red fighters from the Ed-mundo Jacob Command har-assed patrolling forces fromBarangay San Pedro, Iriga Cityon October 31. Simultaneously,another unit from the NorbenGruta Command harassed aunit of the 42nd IB encampednear the houses and barangayhall in Calabigan and Villa So-corro in Libmanan. The attackis in response to the people'scomplaints against operatingtroops who intrude on their

November 7 , 2015 ANG BAYAN8

NPA punishes notorious counter-revolutionaries

activities, disrupt production and raise fears of abuseswith military presence in their barrio.

Camarines Norte. At 11:00 p.m. on October 31, aplatoon under the Armando Catapia Command am-bushed troopers from the 49th IB who were then guard-ing the EUS Construction in Barangay Daguit, Labo. TwoM14 and an M16 were seized from the enemy during thebattle. A soldier and a member of the Civilian Armed

Auxiliary of the 22nd IB were killed while another soldierwas wounded.

Meanwhile, the NDF-Bicol and the revolutionarymovement paid tribute to three Red fighters who werekilled in an enemy raid in Barangay Tinago, Juban, Sor-sogon on October 21. The NDF-Bicol identified them asDomingo Llantos (Ka Joel), Jaypee Matimtim (Ka Iresh)and Manuel Adol (Ka Jhony).

The people of Davao del Norte and adjoining areas celebrated the NewPeople's Army's punishment of Loreto Mayor Dario Otaza and his son

Daryl Otaza in Barangay Baan, Butuan City last October 15

The Otazas are known as theorganizers and leaders of the para-military "Bagani" groups which havesown terror among thousands ofminority peoples in Loreto andnearby municipalities. Four Bush-master rifles, two .45 caliber pistolsand two 9mm pistols were seizedfrom the Otaza house.

The punishment meted out bythe NPA was in accordance with theorder of the people's court and wasimplemented by operatives of theComval-North Davao-South AgusanSubregional Command, in coordina-tion with the Northern MindanaoRegional Operations Command.

The elder Otaza was proven tohave masterminded numerous crimesperpetrated by the Task ForceGantangan, a major component ofOplan Bantay Laya 2. Otaza is behindthe paramilitary group "Bagani”,which the military supports and usesagainst the revolutionary movement.

He also led in the creation andmaintenance of intelligencenetworks inside NPA baseareas in Agusan del Surwhich conducted infiltration,espionage and sabotage ofNPA units. They forced theLumad people to join para-military groups to serve ascounter-revolutionaryspies and used them tolaunch armed actionsagainst the revolu-

tionary movement and civilians.The younger Otaza led these

operations. He is also known as anotorious drug lord in Loreto.

The Otazas went on with theircounterrevolutionary activities andcrimes against civilians after theelder Otaza was elected Loretomayor. Over the last four years,they have displayed staunch sup-port for the US-Aquino regime'sOplan Bayanihan. This is despiterepeated warnings by the revolu-tionary movement and appeals bythe suffering masses to cease theircriminal activities.

They were remorseless andcontinued with their counter-re-volutionary ways. They continued tobe hostile towards the people, es-pecially in the face of their collab-oration with large mining and log-ging companies operating in thedenuded forests of Agusan. They

have enriched themselves byfacilitating the sale of

more

than 30,000hectares of lands in

Loreto to a foreign palm oilplantation company.

They continued toemploy the “Bagani” and

other paramilitary troopsto remain in power, andrefused to return to non-

violent civilian governance. Hence,the NPA considered them as legit-imate targets.

In Dario Otaza's trial, thepeople's court identified him as themastermind of the brutal murderand torture of Benjie Planos, killedSeptember 13, 2013; Gabriel Alindaokilled October 10, 2013, both fromKauswagan; and Gerry Villamor ofDatu Ampunan, killed September 10,2014, all in Loreto, Agusan Del Sur.

It was also proven that Otazaplanned and directed the operationto poison and murder five Redfighters and capture another onSeptember 5, 2009. This was car-ried out by two intelligence operat-ives who were ordered to infiltratethe said unit. The said operativesshot the Red fighters when they hadlost consciousness and were alreadyhors de combat. Otaza committedthis crime in cahoots with CaptainGusi, then head of the 4th ID's Mil-itary Intelligence Battalion underTask Force Gantangan.

Otaza was also responsible forthe frustrated murder and robberyof residents in Km. 16, BarangayDatu Davao, Loreto on September 9,

2014 perpetrated by BukakangBanggaan and certain Augit and

Intoy who are members of theOtaza-created Taptap paramilitarygroup.

Aside from these crimes, Otazawas also identified as the main im-plementor of intense militarizationcarried out by his “Bagani” forces,together with the 26th IB whichresulted into the following grue-

ANG BAYAN November 7 , 2015 9

Celebrate the Centennial of theOctober Revolution!

The Communist Party of the Philippines (CPP) calls on all tobegin on November 7 a two-year celebration to com-

memorate the centennial of the October Revolu-tion in Russia. The CPP encourages the launchingof seminars, the publication and propagation ofMarxist-Leninist-Maoist writings, the creation ofart works, the holding of assemblies and mountingcultural presentations.

On October 25, 1917, the Octo-ber Revolution ended the oppressiverule of the bourgeoisie in Russia andgave birth to the first socialist na-tion in the world. October 25 of theold calendar falls on November 7 inthe new Gregorian calendar used bymost countries today, including thePhilippines. Under the socialist stateestablished, all properties of foreign

monopoly capitalists, local bigburgeoisie and the Romanov dyn-asty, were confiscated and nation-alized and used for the benefit ofthe people.

Lands of the gentry were na-tionalized and the economy was de-veloped in a centralized way. Thepeoples and nationalities were uni-fied under the Union of Soviet So-

some rights abuses against civilians:a. Torture of four minors fromBarangay San Isidro, Loreto, two ofwhom have also been subjected toillegal arrest and illegal detention;b. Hamletting and imposition offood and economic blockade in fivevillages in Barangay Kauswagan,Loreto.c. Forced evacuation, which alsotranslated into the economic dislo-cation of at least 459 indigenousManobo individuals from BarangayKauswagan and other villages ofLoreto. Many from among theevacuees have not reclaimed theirland to this day as their villages con-tinue to be Otaza's Bagani war zone.d. Divestment and destruction ofnot less than 100 hectares of agri-cultural land and farms which hadbeen rehabilitated and tilled by theevacuees after typhoon Pablo;e. Attacks against and closure oftwo schools

Otaza's "Bagani" Force colludedwith the 26th IB in committing hu-man rights abuses against Lumadevacuees even after entering anagreement brokered by Davao City

Mayor Rodrigo Duterte with theevacuees that no retaliatory attackswill be waged against those who willreturn from evacuation. They alsocarried out forcible arrests, fakesurrenders, arbitrary detention,psychological warfare, harassmentand threats against the families ofknown NPA fighters.

Otaza also masterminded thearson and destruction of the homesof farmers in Barangay Kauswaganby Otaza's paramilitary men MarielDioganon, Aki Dioganon, JordanDioganon, Abdon Dioganon, AbdonSinkok, Peping Maamib and LoloyCedilla in 2013.

Meanwhile, the NPA-WesternAgusan-Northern Agusan Subre-gional Command harassed pursuingtroops from the 23rd IB in Buenav-ista, Agusan del Norte. In the morn-ing of October 24, Red fighters firedon operating troops of the 23rd IB inSitio Tabon-tabon, Barangay Olave.Another encounter in Sitio Calaitan,Barangay Sangay took place the fol-lowing day. In both cases, the milit-ary sent a helicopter to retrievetheir casualties.

In related news, a team underthe NPA-North Central MindanaoRegion shot and killed Sgt. RicardoSulhayan when he attempted to fleeon October 7 in Barangay Camagong,Nasipit, Agusan del Norte. Sulhayanwas a member of the Army ReserveCommand with ID Number RES-AO7-E-M 3064 and was always armedwith a .45 calibre pistol. He was alsoan active member of the paramilitarygroup Bungkatol Liberation Front(BULIF)-Task Force Gantanganwhich has a long list of crimes filed inthe people's court.

The AFP coddles and arms ban-dit Lumad groups like the BULIF toinstill fear among Lumad communit-ies, thwart their struggles for theright to self-determination and pavethe way for local and foreign in-terests in logging, mining and plant-ations in their ancestral lands. Ac-cording to Cesar Renerio, NPA-NorthCentral Mindanao Region's spokes-person, BULIF members are criminalextensions of the reactionary armedforces, not ordinary civilians, andare thus legitimate targets of NPAactions.

November 7 , 2015 ANG BAYAN10

cialist Republics (USSR). In lessthan 30 years, the USSR rose froma backward capitalist country toone of the most powerful countriesin the world and directly challegedthe might of US imperialism. Itsurpassed the level of production ofcapitalist countries, which experi-enced repeated crises.

The USSR became a great rearof the socialist camp. Its Commun-ist Party assisted in establishingthe international unity of partiesand the struggle of nations againstimperialism.

The October Revolution provedthat the workers, through theirproletarian party, can lead and winthe revolution and liberate morethan a fourth of the people of theworld against US imperialism evenwhile the capitalist system stillprevailed on the whole. Eventually,upon the victory of the Chinese andVietnamese people, more than athird of the world’s people would beliberated under the banner of so-cialism.

When Krushchev seized powerin 1956, he dismantled the socialistgovernment and all the benefits thisinstitutionalized for the people.Revisionism was promoted, under-mining the proletarian party fromwithin. With generous help fromthe imperialist ideological offens-ive, the succeeding regimes con-cluded what Krushchev started un-til the final collapse of the USSR inthe early part of the 1990s.

Although the USSR no longerexists, workers’ movements and na-tionalist movements of differentcountries continue to struggleagainst US imperialism which is themain scourge in the world today.The far-reaching lessons of the Oc-tober Revolution continue to guideand inspire people of differentcountries fighting imperialism.

Participation in elections for the Tsarist

parliament

IN celebrating the centennial of the October Revolution, it is relevantfor the Communist Party of the Philippines to study the Russian people’sexperience in participating in the elections up to 1912. Led by the Rus-sian Social-Democratic Labor Party, they participated in the election ofthe Duma, which was then the Russian Parliament.

Although their party wasaware that the parliament wascontrolled by the ruling class,they opted to participate to pre-vent anti-people elements fromtaking the seats meant for work-ers’ representatives. And despitestrong repression and electionfraud aimed at disenfranchisingorganized labor, they succeededin securing six seats after aseries of widespread protestsagainst election fraud.

The tsar and the ruling classdominated the Duma. They usedsuch organizations as the Unionof the Russian People, and Unionof the Archangel Michael, whichrepresented the big landlords,and used lumpen elements andgoons who employed violencesuch that the people called themthe "Black Hundreds". Therewere also parties who posed aspublic servants and critics of thetsar but remained silent whenstriking workers were alreadybeing massacred.

But the representatives per-severed to use the Duma to stageextensive education among thepeople on the evils of the tsaristgovernment and to rouse them toact and organize themselves.Above all, they actively particip-ated in mass actions outside theparliament, while they were ap-proached by many workers, uni-

onized or not.Every act to repress them

within the Duma was answeredby widespread protests andworkers’ strikes outside. Theyalso worked with other politicalgroups within the Duma to carryout various protest actions insidethe parliament, such as inter-rupting the speeches of theprime minister and the budgetchairman and staging a walk-outagainst the discussion of the warbudget.

The Duma obstructed theapproval of any of the represent-atives’ bills such as the eight-hour working day and land re-form. The workers' representat-ives were frequently stopped inthe middle of their speeches, es-pecially when these were aboutthe repression and massacres ofstriking workers. Before the endof their term, they were im-prisoned for opposing the tsar’spolicies.

The courageous and persist-ent efforts of the workers’ rep-resentatives in the Duma aidedthe expansion and consolidationof the workers’ movement whichlater led and became the mainforce that toppled the tsar inFebruary 1917. The people's andworkers' genuine representativesgained freedom with the tsar’soverthrow.

ANG BAYAN November 7 , 2015 11

Two aspects of the US:Strength and crisis

[This is the last of a series of five articles on the National Security Strategy(NSS) document released by the Obama government of the US last February2015.]

There are two prevailing aspects of the US. On the one hand, itremains as the most powerful imperialist in the world. On the

other hand, it continues to suffer from a prolonged crisis and is ina stage of general decline.

The Obama regime declared inthe NSS: "We will lead withstrength. After a difficult decade,America is growing stronger everyday. The U.S. economy remains themost dynamic and resilient onEarth. We have rebounded from aglobal recession by creating morejobs in the United States than in allother advanced economies com-bined. Our military might is unri-valled."

The US remains the mostpowerful military force. Its annualdefense budget of more than $700billion is equal to the combined mil-itary budget of the next 14 coun-tries. The US maintains militarypresence around the world througha network of almost 1,000 militarybases, warships and around half amillion American troops spread inmore than 148 countries. It con-trols major trade sea routes.

US imperialism imposes neolib-eral economic policies in the entireworld. It uses its overwhelming in-fluence over the International Mon-etary Fund (IMF), the World Bank,the World Trade Or-ganization (WTO),the Asia-PacificEconomic Cooper-ation and othermajor financial in-stitutions or "freetrade agreements"to push for policiesof the WashingtonConsensus and thestrength of the

dollar in trade and investment.The US continues to accumulate

superprofits through the exploita-tion of workers and toiling peopleboth in the US and in other parts ofthe world. It continues to push forthe dismantling of all hindrances topull down the cost of labor-power inChina, in the Philippines and othercountries; to be able to plundermineral and other natural resource;and to freely bring in capital andrapidly transfer capital whereveradvantageous to extract maximumprofit.

Strategic declineWhile US imperialism remains

the most powerful, it has been on astrategic decline since the 1970swith the onset of stagflation fol-lowed by a series of worsening andprolonging economic crises. It lav-ishly spent on military expenseswhile suffering big losses in its warof aggression in Vietnam.

The US' general trend of declinewas eclipsed for a while by thesevere crisis and social turmoil inthe countries under revisionistgovernments since the 1980s. Fur-thermore, the US seemed to be onthe rise as it became the sole su-perpower with the collapse of theSoviet Union in 1991. Together withthe restoration of capitalism inChina since the end of the 1970s,the American monopoly-capitalistswere given a breathing space by theexpansion of its markets, sources ofraw materials and exploitation ofcheap labor. The US further pushedneoliberal globalization, togetherwith China, as well as with theGATT/WTO. The US also intensifiedits wars of aggression since the1990s against Iraq, Afghanistanand Yugoslavia especially since the2000s.

However, all these have failed inpreventing continued US decline asa capitalist power. Over the pastthree decades, the US economy hasfailed to substantially expand andhas confronted more frequent andbigger crises. Each worse crisis ispreceded by a financial bubble suchas the "dotcom boom" towards theend of the 1990s and the "housingbubble" from the early part of2000s. The decline of the financialmarkets in 2008 following the

mortgage crisis has resulted inprolonged recession, the

worst since the end ofthe 1930s.

In 2014, US debtwas more than $18 tril-

lion, more than its an-nual Gross DomesticProduct. The last timethat the US debt sur-

passed GDP was in therecession after WorldWar II. The US owesJapan and China the

November 7 , 2015 ANG BAYAN12

biggest in the form of US TreasuryBills.

Social crisis in the USObama's claims in the NSS of a

vibrant US economy and improvingconditions for the American peopleare all bluster. The US is caught in adeep social crisis. The masses ofworkers and toiling people in the USare experiencing severe problems ofunemployment, low income andrising costs of commodities, lack ofhousing, racism, suppression, sur-veillance and fascist state restric-tions. They are also the ones whoprimarily shoulder the social effectsof the US wars of aggression.

From 4.62% in 2007, the officialunemployment rate in the US hasreached 7.35% in 2013. However, alarge number of American workerswho are unemployed are no longercounted. The so-called "labor forceparticipation rate" or the number ofworkers who have jobs or are act-ively looking for work stands at amere 63.2%, the lowest over thepast 35 years. If workers who areno longer actively seeking employ-ment will be included, independent

analysts estimate that the actualrate of unemployment in the US inJuly 2015 stood at 23%, the highestover the past four decades.

The official poverty rate in theUS stands at 16.1% (50 millionAmericans). One out of every sevenAmerican children lives in poverty.Around 1.65 million families (in-cluding three million children) liveon less than $2 a day (the UNpoverty threshold). Among thosesuffering from poverty are Americ-an workers who receive minimumwages. Majority of American work-ers earn only $10 an hour, lowerthan the poverty threshold for a fa-mily of four.

There are cuts in social benefits(health, education and retirementpension). In 2012, 80 million Amer-icans or 43% of the US population,were not given medical attentionbecause they could not afford it.Yearly, more than a million studentsdrop out of high school. From 25%in 2003, 25-year old youths who aredeep in debt over student loanshave reached 43%. In 2000-2011,the debt of ordinary American fam-ilies increased by 50%.

The prisons system is beingused against the American people.There are now 2.2 million prisonersin the US. This is the country withthe biggest number of prisoners. Itcomprises 20% of the global prisonpopulation. This is beside the 4.5million people who are on parole orprobation. One in every 35 Americ-an adults have experienced prison.

The laws and prisons are sys-tematically used against the toilingmasses, especially against theblacks and the Latinos. In NewYork, as in many other places, 80%of people accosted by the police inthe streets (even if there is no in-dication of involvement in a crime)are blacks and other minorities.

Inequality has worsened. Whilepoverty is widespread, wealth ismore concentrated in the hands ofthe ruling classes. The wealth of therichest 400 individuals in the USincreased by 30%, from $1.7 to $2.2trillion in 2012-2013. The wealth ofthe top 1% is equal to the propertyof the bottom 100 million. As muchas 95% of the increased incomeduring 2009-2014 was pocketed bythe top 1%.