A MISLEADING Infographic from the Philippine Communications Office (PCO) making it look like the Philippine Communists are already laying down their Arms when in reality they just duped Bobong Bong Marcos (BBM) into Negotiations and a Ceasefire. If Polvoron Boy had any Brains, he would put a TIME LIMIT on the Negotiations

Israeli killings of nearly 2,000 Palestinian children are war crimes and warrant international condemnation 

Coni Ledesma | Head | Special Office for the Protection of Children | National Democratic Front of the Philippines | October 24, 2023

The National Democratic Front of the Philippines (NDFP) Special Office for the Protection of Children (SOPC) strongly condemns Israel’s relentless bombing campaign in Gaza that has killed nearly 2,000 Palestinian children. The US-backed indiscriminate airstrikes launched by the Zionist Israeli regime is tantamount to genocidal war crimes and warrant the condemnation of the international community.

By continuing to provide military aid and political support, the US further emboldens Israel as its key asset in a regional proxy war meant to consolidate US control over oil resources in the Middle East. This US imperialist agenda comes with the horrendous cost of the lives of thousands of Palestinian children killed. While we hold the Zionist Netanyahu regime responsible for these war crimes, the US must equally be held accountable for its conflict-goading and warmongering in the region.

The SOPC likewise condemns Marcos Jr’s “terrorist designation” of Hamas in its desperate bootlicking to curry favor from his imperialist master. Marcos Jr holds no moral ascendancy to call the Palestinian armed resistance “terrorist” especially considering its bloody record of state terror against the Filipino people. Akin to the national democratic revolution being waged by the New People’s Army in the Philippine countryside, the Palestinian struggle for liberation, self-determination and freedom from US-Israeli military occupation can never be considered an act of terrorism.

We stand with the Palestinian people and recognize their right to bear arms and wage armed resistance in the context of a long history of fascist military occupation and especially in the face of genocidal offensives launched by US-backed Israeli forces. We enjoin the international community to denounce Israel’s child-killing spree and demand the protection of children’s rights consistent with the rules of war and international humanitarian law.

The Death of Jose Maria Sison (Joma)

Jose Maria Sison, founder of the Communist Party of the Philippines, has died after two weeks of hospitalization. This news has led millions all over the world to mourn, as many count him as a freedom fighter. He is known for drawing up a thorough analysis of Philippine society through collective study and struggle that led other young cadre of the old Communist Party to leave and form their own. This analysis led the basis for the ongoing anti-fascist, anti-imperialist, anti-feudal revolution in the Philippines.

The CPP was especially relevant to the Unification Church as Marcos was ousted and the CPP taking power became an increasing threat. 

The CPP and the National Democratic movement were vital to the popular movement built up around ousting Marcos. Following the People Power Revolution, which ousted Marcos in 1986, the Unification Church’s institutions flooded the Philippines, organizing conferences with influential cultural figures, as well as active and retired agents of US and Philippine military and intelligence agencies. These conferences played a major role in forming the general counterinsurgency program of the Philippines following Marcos, which consisted of pro-US propaganda on the TV, radio, and education system, that also prepared Filipinos to have their labor exported abroad, as well as arming and developing autonomous anti-communist vigilante groups as the Philippine military slowly develops with the the active aid and mentorship of the US. This was all alongside ramping up neoliberal policies with empty or very limited land reforms, which of course increases the Philippine economy’s dependency on exporting Philippine labor. 

The Philippine Government has had an unending string of bad presidents following Marcos, coming from wealthy bureaucrat capitalist families that control the military, government, and economy, and secure the role of semi-feudalism and peasant exploitation in society, all while shamelessly using vigilante and vigilante-style tactics on those combatting their corrupt governments, from members of Communist organizations to LGBTQ+ activists, priests and nuns, teachers, social workers, etc. All of this violence has continually fed the movement for national democracy with a socialist perspective.

Prior to becoming a combatant, Sison was a professor and organizer in the old Communist Party. He organized among students and in his workplace. He is remembered for being a jovial, delightful man who never stopped organizing for the Philippine revolution, even after imprisonment and being exiled from the land he fought for. 

Today the Philippine revolution grows with thousands of combatants on all major islands of the Philippines, and growing bases among the peasantry and support among the working masses. The National Democratic revolution wages on, fighting on behalf of workers, LGBTQ+ people, women, seafarers, peasants, children, etc., despite the increased bombings and strafing in the countryside, despite the countless revolutionaries and activists who have been murdered the past few years by the police and army using Moonie-owned SNT Motiv weapons. 

These weapons are not the only way the Unification Church is complicit. The continued anti-communist murders of thousands of people in the Philippines is the ongoing legacy of the UC's organizing in the late 80s. CAUSA actively supported and organized vigilante groups, including Alsa Masa, a group responsible for the murder of thousands. 

The New People’s Army continues to swell with people who love the people. As the Revolution Selfie documentary remarks, more people get involved with the revolution because of Jesus than Marx. It was the Christian value of loving your neighbor that led so many to take up this struggle.

It was this Christian value that Sison embodied. And now Sison’s legacy lives on brilliantly in the people’s continued struggle. 

I hope we will all do what we can to support those on the front line fighting imperialism, as their fight is our own. The only way we can take down the enemy here is by having the enemy fall down all over the world.

Long live international solidarity!

Seasonally relevant video of Jose Maria Sison: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3PtaI-Ly9Js

NTF-ELCAC points to NDF as the top “terrorist groomer” in the Philippines

In its continuing fight against Leftist and terrorist forces, the National Task Force to End Local Communist Armed Conflict (NTF-ELCAC) reminded the public that the National Democratic Front (NDF) is still the top “terror-groomer” in the country, according to a Philippine News Agency (PNA) news article. To put things in perspective, posted below is an excerpt from the PNA news report. Some parts…

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Marcos Jr. sells out PH sovereignty for US war preparations vs China

NDF-International | National Democratic Front of the Philippines

April 10, 2024

Marcos Jr.’s trip to the United States for a trilateral summit with US President Joe Biden and Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida is an utter and complete sell-out of Philippine sovereignty to US war designs in Asia. The so-called “trilateral summit” is set to discuss “maritime security cooperation” between the three countries.

Marcos Jr. is willingly offering the Philippine archipelago to serve as a ‘theater of war’ by allowing the US to position its military arsenal on land, sea, and air. The Philippines is a crucial piece in the “US Island Chain strategy” to contain China. The Philippines’ strategic location allows the US to constrict regional waterways and position readily deployable military air power in close proximity to China. In order to achieve its objectives, the US is escalating war preparations in the region by encouraging Japan and other imperialist allies to join the geopolitical chess game.

In the said trilateral meeting, Marcos Jr. seeks to further increase US military footprint in Philippine soil while talks are underway with Japan for a reciprocal access agreement that will allow Japanese military presence in the country. In fact, preparations are already ongoing for the biggest Balikatan Exercises in history which is expected to draw at least 16,000 troops to participate. The Balikatan war games this year aims to test the so-called ‘Comprehensive Archipelagic Defense Concept (CDAC)’ patterned after US imperialist war plans in the region. These actions form part of the US strategy to provoke China into “firing the first shot” demonstrating the US government’s bloodthirst.

On the other hand, Marcos Jr.’s actions prove his outright subservience to US imperialist war preparations and his readiness to drag the Filipino people in the middle of a brewing inter-imperialist conflict. Marcos Jr. must be held accountable for his reprehensible sell-out of Philippine sovereignty and his blatant disregard for the lives of the Filipino masses. More importantly, the Biden administration must be denounced for its continued exportation of wars of aggression from Ukraine to Palestine and now using the Philippines as a pawn in its attempt to stifle China’s growing influence.

The Supreme Court has declared that red-tagging, vilification, labelling, and guilt by association threaten a person’s right to life, liberty, or security, which may justify the issuance of a writ of amparo.

This was the ruling of the Supreme Court En Banc in a Decision penned by Associate Justice Rodil V. Zalameda, where it granted the writ of amparo in favor of Siegfred D. Deduro (Deduro).

Deduro further claimed that posters were put up in different locations in Iloilo City with his image labeled as a criminal, terrorist, and member of the CPP-NPA-National Democratic Front (NDF). [...]

Deduro also said there were instances where unidentified men followed him.

He thus filed a petition for a writ of amparo before the Regional Trial Court (RTC) to enjoin Maj. Gen. Vinoya and his subordinates from red-tagging and harassing him.

The RTC dismissed Deduro’s petition, finding his allegations of red-tagging insufficient to be considered threats to his life, liberty, and security.

The Supreme Court found prima facie evidence in Deduro’s petition warranting the issuance of a writ of amparo. It ruled that red-tagging, vilification, labelling, and guilt by association constitute threats to a person’s right to life, liberty, or security.

Under A.M. No. 07-9-12-SC or the Rule on the Writ of Amparo (Rule), the petition for a writ of amparo is a remedy available to any person whose right to life, liberty, or security is violated or threatened by an unlawful act or omission of a public official or employee, or of a private individual or entity.

As being associated with communists or terrorists makes the red-tagged person a target of vigilantes, paramilitary groups, or even State agents, it is easy to understand why a person may fear that being red-tagged puts their life and security at risk.

As Deduro’s petition was not groundless nor lacking in merit, the RTC should not have dismissed the case without requiring Maj. Gen. Vinoya to first file a return. Under the Rule, within 72 hours after service of the writ, the respondent shall file a verified written return stating their lawful defenses, the actions they have taken to determine the fate or whereabouts of the aggrieved party, and all other information in their possession relevant to the threat against the aggrieved party.

In this case, by dismissing the petition without requiring Maj. Gen. Vinoya to first file a return, the RTC effectively denied both parties due process.

The Court further stressed that although it is uncertain whether such “red-baiting” threats ripen into actual abduction or killing of supposed “reds,” Deduro should not be expected to “await his own abduction, or worse, death, or even that the supposed responsible persons directly admit their role in the threats to [his] life, liberty, or security…”

Full text of G.R. No. 254753, Deduro v. Maj. Gen. Vinoya (July 4, 2023) at: https://sc.judiciary.gov.ph/254753-siegfred-d-deduro-vs-maj-gen-eric-c-vinoya-in-his-capacity-as-commanding-officer-of-the-3rd-infantry-division-philippine-army/

Full text of the Concurring Opinion of Senior Associate Justice Marvic M.V.F. Leonen at: https://sc.judiciary.gov.ph/254753-concurring-opinion-justice-marvic-m-v-f-leonen/

2024 May 8

Students express concern, felt mislead on red-tagging forum

Anti-cybercrime seminar led by the Philipine National Police – Regional Office 03 turns into a discussion of redtagging legal activists and progressive organizations as part of the communist rebels yesterday, September 22 at Saint Joseph Academic Hall.

The event, which was entitled “Seminar on Cybercrime & Anti-Drugs Measures Laws,” was organized by the university in collaboration with the College of Criminal Justice Education and Forensics, Office of the Student Affairs, and the Philippine National Police Region III.

Attendees were members of student organizations, publications, and council, who expressed dismay due to diverted orientation on deceptive recruitment, and discouragement to join rallies and progressive organizations.

“Yung simula ng seminar was a casual discussion, however it became strange to me nung natapos na yung anti drug abuse. The conversation became very conflicting nung sudden discussion na on anti-progressives. Very misleading,” said one student journalist.

Sensitive topics, including the alleged recruitment of youth leaders to the Communist Party of the Philippines, New People’s Army, and National Democratic Front (CPP-NPA-NDF), were discussed in front of freshmen attendees.

“Kung ano man yung nakaugalian ninyo na against the government, hindi naman sagot yung pagpoprotesta natin, o yung pagsama natin sa mga kaliwang grupo…ang magiging solusyon diyan [ay] yung mga sarili niyo,” said Police Captain Randy N. Pascasio of Regional Mobile Force Batallion 3, one of the speakers.

Gemma C. Labsan, a high school teacher, was introduced to state her testimony as a parent on the alleged recruitment of her child to Anakbayan – University of the Philippines Diliman, an organization she later on red-tagged.

Meanwhile, the University Student Council Secretary-General Emmanuel Manalastas has expressed his frustration over the seminar.

“Nakakabahala at nakakagalit na ang seminar na dapat para sa ikabubuti at kaligtasan ng mga dumalo ay nagdala ng takot at pangamba dahil sa mga naging diskusyon at pagbabanta ng mga kapulisan,” said Manalastas.

He also added that there is nothing wrong with joining rallies and becoming an activist, what is wrong is the suppression of youth and students to participate progressively in a democratic country.

Flyers and pamphlets containing the discussion were also distributed to the audience during the seminar.

Video: Talk to the Men (Speech) 7/26/2016

Video: Talk to the Men (Speech) 7/26/2016

Fort Ramon Magsaysay, Nueva Ecija 26 July 2016 President Rodrigo Roa Duterte met with the army officials and troops of the 7th Infantry Division in Fort Ramon Magsaysay, Nueva Ecija. In his statement, the President explained the government’s decision on the unilateral ceasefire with the Communist Party of the Philippines (CPP), National Democratic Front (NDF), and New People’s Army (NPA), saying…

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MANILA – Combined forces of the military and police killed Alvin Luque, spokesperson of the National Democratic Front in Mindanao, in Tandag City, Surigao del Sur, at around 1 a.m., Dec. 10, according to the Communist Party of the Philippines (CPP).

The CPP in a statement disputed claims of the Army’s 4th Infantry Division that Luque, also known as Ka Joaquin Jacinto, resisted arrest and fought back.

“Ka Joaquin was unarmed and was convalescing. He was detached a few months ago from the main office of the NDF-Mindanao to undergo medical checkups and to recuperate from partial paralysis,” the statement read.

The CPP added that a few months ago, Luque was physically debilitated and could not walk after he underwent intense physical struggles amid heavy enemy operations.

“This dastardly crime must not go unpunished. We seek the entire truth behind Ka Joaquin’s murder and seek an impartial investigation by an independent body,” the revolutionary group said.

𝑻𝒉𝒆 𝑰𝒓𝒐𝒏 𝑰𝒏𝒔𝒊𝒈𝒏𝒊𝒂 : 𝑫𝒖𝒕𝒆𝒓𝒕𝒆'𝒔 𝒍𝒆𝒈𝒂𝒄𝒚

For the past four years, the land we once thought a sanctuary and safe haven from the horrors of Dekada '70 has had seen its worst: a final nail in the coffin that would bury democracy for ages to come. Since the landslide victory of the strongman Duterte, the Philippines had been engulfed in the same ambiance as the Marcos yesteryears, with premier advocacy against illegal drugs and criminal agenda. He did not joke; merciless, ruthless, and extrajudicial--- those were the changes that he had promised during his presidential campaign. High-profile deaths such were the case of Kian delos Santos and Carl Arnaiz sparked controversy against the cold-blooded anti-narcotics campaign of both Duterte and his enforcers. But the killings do not stop there. The dead bodies continue to mount as the brutal manslaughter of the police continued with poor communities largely running through the knife’s blade. Duterte’s war on drugs--- gradually and eventually---became people’s war on terror; war against his people.   The motives and actions of his regime go as far as to establish a revolutionary government should anyone be a threat to his legitimacy in power. Duterte’s blacklist includes groups that lean left, with activists shouldering the inane accusation of being an enemy of the state. During the protests against Anti-Terror Law, many activists, and even by passers, were briefly imprisoned by state forces. Even the provincial police of Cebu did not spare even the House Representative Sarah Elago, as part of CPP-NPA-NDF---the communist guerillas in the country. Most recently, both Zara Alvarez, a social activist, and Randall Echanis, a peace consultant for the National Democratic Front (NDF) were slain with the latter being tortured before dying in his home. Not even the environmental activists were safe from the impudent vigilante-style killings perpetrated by Duterte’s paramilitary.  Zero accountability. The killing spree that took place in various regions in the country fostered a culture of violence and impunity.   As the country grapples with the coronavirus pandemic, the indifference and maltreatment of Duterte to healthcare workers and his constituents at large puts the country in a desperate direction of uncertainty. Instead of prioritizing the pandemic, his Orwellian and nonchalant solution to the crisis was that of military control, enforcing a law that would endanger dissent and publishing papers critical of the administration, pushing to change the 1987 Constitution and ultimately instituting Federal-Parliamentary system of governance in the Philippines --- all in all reminiscent of how the late Ferdinand Marcos ruled the country for over two decades. With a year and half remaining on Duterte’s term, one would wonder what legacy will he have in Philippine politics and history. Is it the tapang at malasakit slogan that made him a presidential bet? Where was the tapang in his four years term? Is it his aggression against his supposed enemies or were those merely an act of charisma that established his strongman figure among the Filipino people? Where was the malasakit when the coronavirus hit the country with a cruel stroke or what happened to the Mindanaoans after the damaging event in the Siege of Marawi? Indeed, one would wonder what legacy will a ruler who ruled with an iron fist leave a country

“Various proletarian-socialist, anti-imperialist, and democratic parties representing peoples from across the world gathered from 14 to 15 October 2023 in Amsterdam, the Netherlands for the Theoretical Conference on Imperialism and War convened upon the invitation of the National Democratic Front of the Philippines (NDFP).

The two-day conference provided a venue for proletarian-socialist discussions on burning theoretical issues with urgent political and practical significance. This aimed to help form the basis of common understanding in the forthcoming period of great turbulence in the global capitalist system.”

NegOr studes told to shun illegal drugs, terrorism 

#PHinfo: NegOr studes told to shun illegal drugs, terrorism 

NEGROS ORIENTAL, March 5 (PIA) -- Philippine Army troopers of the 302nd Infantry Brigade (IB) continue to visit schools to advise students to avoid illegal drugs and stay away from terrorism.

The ‘Achiever Troopers’ led by Brigade Commander Col. Noel Baluyan of the 302nd IB cautioned the nearly 500 students including teachers of Diaz College in Tanjay City against the harmful effects of illegal drugs and terrorism. 

The Anti-Illegal Drugs and Anti-Terrorism symposium held Tuesday was conducted through the Tanjay City Advisory Council.

It aimed to heighten awareness on the current situation of illegal drugs and orient the students on the insurgent exploitation and other destructive influence/activities of the Communist Party of the Philippines-New People's Army- National Democratic Front (CPP-NPA-NDF). 

A Philippine Army officer distributing Information, Education and Communication (EIC) materials on anti-insurgency during the symposium at Diaz College in Tanjay City. (KT/PIA Negros Oriental)

According to Capt. Khadaffy Tawantawan, information officer designate of 302nd IB, the activity intends to isolate the youth from the deceptive recruitment strategy of the communist terrorist groups.

This is also to enable the students to make the right choices and encourage more open communication between parents and children, said Tawantawan.

He warned students about the recruitment activities being done by CPP-NPA in schools.

Baluyan also encouraged the students to help the government in ending the insurgency.

“I urge you, as students and youth of this country, to be vigilant and be discerning in joining organizations in your school. This is because the CPP-NPA-NDF has mastered the art of deception," he said. 

The Philippine Army official asked the students to be wary of the organizations they are joining since some will only deceive them by filling their minds with hatred and violence.

He also encouraged the students to support Executive Order No. 70 and be part of the country's journey towards achieving genuine peace and development. (jct/PIA7 Negros Oriental)

***

References:

* Philippine Information Agency. "NegOr studes told to shun illegal drugs, terrorism ." Philippine Information Agency. https://pia.gov.ph/news/articles/1035748 (accessed March 05, 2020 at 05:31PM UTC+08).

* Philippine Infornation Agency. "NegOr studes told to shun illegal drugs, terrorism ." Archive Today. https://archive.ph/?run=1&url=https://pia.gov.ph/news/articles/1035748 (archived).

The International People’s Tribunal unanimously finds Philippine president Marcos Jr., former president Duterte, the Government of the Republic of the Philippines, US president Biden and the US government guilty of all charges of war crimes and violations of International Humanitarian Law (IHL).

For two days the tribunal heard moving testimonies from the witnesses, victims, and expert resource persons on the various violations of IHL by the US-backed Marcos Jr. and Duterte regimes in their US-directed ‘counterinsurgency’ in the Philippines. The overwhelming amount of compelling evidence presented by the Filipino people and the National Democratic Front of the Philippines (NDF) in their case, has left no doubt of the truthfulness of their assertion that the US-Marcos and US-Duterte regimes are guilty of various grave war crimes.

As Friends of the Filipino People in Struggle (FFPS) we applaud the Filipino people and their genuine representative, the NDF, on this great achievement in their pursuit of justice. This verdict is a testament to the strength of the toiling Filipino masses and their struggle for genuine social change. It plays an important role in exposing the violent US-puppet regimes of Marcos Jr and Duterte for their crimes against the Filipino people and bringing it to attention to the international community. Furthermore, it underscores the Filipino people’s right to self-determination and the justness of their struggle for national liberation.

We call on all solidarity allies and all those who support the Filipino people’s right to justice, to actively support and propagate the findings and verdict of the International People’s Tribunal!

CALL FOR A GLOBAL WEEK OF ACTION

In light of the International People’s Tribunal (IPT) of 2024 in which the Filipino people tried the US government and the US-backed Marcos and Duterte regimes to hold them accountable for their war crimes against them, Friends of the Filipino People in Struggle (FFPS) as one of the main convenors calls for urgently needed international support for the Filipino people and their cry for justice. Please join us in a Global Week of Action, 21-27 May 2024.

Global Week of Action: Condemn and end the war crimes of the US-backed Marcos and Duterte regimes! Support the Filipino people’s right to self-determination!

Background:

From former direct colony to neocolony, US stronghold over the Philippines as a strategic military outpost in Asia is crucial to the US government’s geopolitical agenda to maintain the entire Indo-Pacific region as the largest market for US surplus goods, a source of cheap raw materials, and source of cheap labor.

With increased US support under the Biden administration, the Duterte and now Marcos regimes have recycled and beefed up ‘anti-terrorist’ branding apparatuses such as the National Task Force to End Local Communist Armed Conflict (NTF-ELCAC) and the Anti-Terror Act (ATA), to legally justify the repression of dissent of a growing social movement for legitimate pro-people demands.

Both regimes have implemented US-directed so-called “counterinsurgency” operations against civilians and non-combatants in the Philippines and their repression of Filipino activists and solidarity allies abroad viciously terrorize the people, in clear violation of International Humanitarian Law (IHL).

The War Crimes Tribunal will examine violations of international humanitarian law both as to the means and methods of warfare and the objects and subjects of attack, including extrajudicial and summary killings of civilians and hors d’ combat, desecration of remains of combatants, massacre of civilians and other forms of collective punishment, torture, enforced disappearances, mass arrests, indiscriminate firing, indiscriminate aerial bombing of communities and use of white phosphorus bombs, hamletting, terrorist labelling and use of repressive terror laws, assassination of civilians, attacks on schools, fake or forced surrenders, attacks against  peace consultants and other forms of suppression.

To justify their war crimes, the US-Marcos and US-Duterte administrations have continuously tried to put up a vague and false framework of fighting against “terrorism”. In reality, the resistance of the Filipino people is a mass movement that steadfastly and comprehensively advances their democratic rights and their right to self-determination. When they take up arms, they do so to defend the right of the toiling people to their land and of all Filipino people to be free of national and social oppression and exploitation. As such the National Democratic Front of the Philippines (NDFP), the united front organization of the fighting Filipino masses, represents the Filipino people and their aspirations for national liberation and genuine social change.

The NDFP has demonstrated to the international community not only the necessity and justness of the people’s war in the Philippines, but that armed struggle is a legitimate exercise of the Filipino people’s inherent right to self-determination, as recognized through various international laws and intergovernmental declarations, and whose conduct is bound to the rules of war outlined in International Humanitarian Law.

The time is urgent for the international community to heighten its response to the loud cry of the Filipino people for justice and accountability and to expose the war crimes of the US-Marcos regime and its predecessor, the US-Duterte regime.

Let us express our unwavering support with the Filipino people’s right to self-determination and stand in international solidarity with their struggle for just and lasting peace in the Philippines.

Read more about the International People’s Tribunal 2024 on: https://peoplestribunal.net/

The particular objectives of the Global Week of Action are to:

Amplify and support the Filipino people’s cry for justice and the outcome (verdict of the tribunal and witness testimonies) of the International War Crimes Tribunal on the US-directed ‘Counterinsurgency’ in the Philippines, IPT 2024.

Expose and oppose US imperialism and its role in the “counterinsurgency” war on the Filipino people and to further expose and isolate the criminal and bloody US-Marcos and US-Duterte regimes from the international community.

Express our unwavering support for the Filipino people’s right to self-determination and for us to stand in solidarity with the Filipino people’s struggle for just and lasting peace in the Philippines.

Engage with key parliamentarians, policy-making bodies, and institutions to further isolate the US-backed Marcos and Duterte regime by promoting the findings of the IPT and advocating for the demands of the victims of the ongoing war crimes for justice.

How can you join?

Mobilize! Hold demonstrations and other actions on 21-27 May 2024 to amplify and support the Filipino people’s cry for justice. These can include militant demonstrations, creative media actions, direct actions and art initiatives, symbolic actions at key institutions such as by submitting the verdict to selected Philippine embassies/consulates, to the EU parliament, the ICC, the UN, national parliament/congress, etc., and any other ways to achieve above mentioned objectives.

Engage your local, traditional and new media for wide coverage, tag @peoplestribunal for all your social media propaganda and contact [email protected] for further media coordination or liaisoning. Some of the witnesses may be available to attend such activities in Europe if planned in advance, kindly reach out to [email protected] to coordinate your actions.

We urge organizations to come up with their own statements of support for the IPT and the findings/verdict of the tribunal. Other actions may include organizing info sessions to promulgate the verdict or social media campaigns (i.e., #PeoplesVerdict, #USGuilty, #DuterteGuilty #MarcosGuilty, etc.) to highlight the cases of IHL violations filed against the US-Marcos and US-Duterte regimes.

To support the Filipino people’s cry for justice we are also calling for lobbying efforts through dialogues with key personalities, such as parliamentarians, government officials, church leaders, and others with the objective of garnering broad support for the IPT, its verdict and for the Filipino people’s struggle. Let us stand in full solidarity with the Filipino people as they resist the onslaught of US imperialist violence and the war crimes committed by the US-backed Marcos and Duterte regimes!

Suggested slogans:

“Justice for the Filipino people!”

“Marcos and Duterte, war criminals!”

“US imperialist, #1 terrorist!”

“Stop the bombings in the Philippines!”

“Stop arms sales and military aid to the Philippines!”

“End US-Marcos state terrorism in the Philippines!”

“End US aggression in the Philippines!”

“We support the Filipino aspiration: National Liberation against US imperialism!”

“Wage militant actions against US imperialist war-mongering!”

“Just and lasting peace in the Philippines!”

“Support genuine democracy, support the NDFP!”

There will be a final version of the verdict, including detailed accounts and summaries of the cases presented, made available in due time. You can read the full initial verdict here: https://peoplestribunal.net/wp-content/uploads/2024/05/IPT-2024-INITIAL-Verdict-18-May.pdf

If you are a political prisoner in the Philippines, the statistical outlook is dim: data show that the average period they spend in jail while on trial without judgment is four years.

Rappler obtained this dataset from rights group Karapatan and Kapatid. In their records, there are 801 political prisoners in the whole country, and 672 or most of them are pre-trial detainees or those still waiting for judgment. [...]

Of the 672 Persons Deprived of Liberty or PDLs, the bulk were arrested and jailed during the administration of former president Rodrigo Duterte, or from 2016 to 2022. Under the government of President Ferdinand Marcos Jr., 90 activists have been arrested and are currently in jail.

The four-year wait is way beyond what the Supreme Court envisions, which is six months on average for a trial to finish and mete out a judgment.

One political prisoner has been languishing in jail for 18 years without a judgment. There are 27 political prisoners who have spent more than 10 years in jail awaiting judgment.

Most political prisoners are charged with common crimes, often with illegal possession of firearms and explosives, which would fall out of the government’s count of political prisoners. Activists used to be charged with subversion and related crimes, but “now we are being criminalized for our political offense,” said Vicente Ladlad, the 74-year-old peace process consultant detained at the Bicutan City Jail.

Although the charge is a common crime, the charge sheets accuse these prisoners of being armed communists. Simply, they are red-tagged. Being a member of the Communist Party of the Philippines (CPP) is not a crime in the Philippines, so the legal charge that could stand is illegal possession of firearms. Activists have long claimed that the arms and explosives are planted during raids.

The dataset shows that only 13 of the political prisoners on trial are confirmed to be affiliated with the National Democratic Front (NDF), the political wing of the CPP, either as local spokespersons or consultants.

2024 Feb. 8

Coalition government sa NPA, tinabla ni Mayor Isko Moreno

Hindi pabor si Aksyon Demokratiko presidential bet at Manila Mayor Isko Moreno na magkaroon ng coalition government ang Pilipinas sa Communist Party of the Philippines-New People’s Army-National Democratic Front (CPP-NPA-NDF). Ito ang binigyang diin ng alkalde sakaling maupo siya bilang pangulo ng bansa. Ayon pa sa alkalde, para sa kapayapaan ng bansa; handa siyang kausapin […]Coalition…

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