Pahayagan ng Partido Komunista ng Pilipinas ANG Pinapatnubayan ng Marxismo-Leninismo-Maoismo

English Edition Vol XLV No. 11 June 7, 2014 www.philippinerevolution.net

Editorial Oust the regime that reeks of corruption! enigno Aquino III and his regime reek of corruption. After other big comprador bour- close to four years of endless chatter about "clean govern- geoisie. Bidding for such big- Bance," Aquino has shown that he is no different from past ticket projects as the MRT main- presidents in promoting, and benefiting from, bureacrat capitalist tenance contract and the "mod- corruption. ernization" of the Philippine Or- thopedic Hospital have been in- The Janus-faced Aquino bank accounts in the form of variaby rigged. This clearly rode on the people's anger at kickbacks for government offi- demonstrates that Aquino's PPP the corruption of the previous cials. projects have actually already Arroyo regime and peddled the Aquino has favored his cro- been negotiated and awarded "righteous path" slogan. Howe- nies and other wealthy families among his closest big bourgeois ver, it was merely a means to in awarding infrastructure con- comprador supporters. Such ne- cover up the breadth and depth tracts under the Public-Private gotiations are handled directly of corruption in the Philippine Partnership Program. The big- by Aquino through his sisters, as government under his rule. gest beneficiaries of government in the case of the reported in- The use by government offi- contracts are also the biggest volvement of Ballsy Aquino in cials of state power and privi- contributors to the Aquino's the government contract to pur- lege for personal gain or to fa- 2010 presidential cam- chase new train coaches for the vor their families or patrons re- paign—Eduardo "Danding" Coju- MRT. mains rampant under the Aqui- angco, Henry Sy, Manuel Pangi- Aquino has stepped up no regime. linan, the Ayalas, Consunjis and smuggling through legal and ille- Aquino makes use of public funds to strength- en his hold on political power. In particu- lar, he has used the Priority De- velopment Assistance Fund (PDAF) and the Disbursement Acceleration Program (DAP) to force congressmen and sena- tors, and even local government officials to toe the line. He likewise uses public funds to ensure the loyalty of Liberal Party members. These funds are transferred to private gal channels. One year into the big comprador companies. The nents. Anti-Aquino senators Aquino regime, it was estab- Aquino regime's tax policies are have been charged, but none of lished by the International Mon- heavily skewed in favor of big the pro-Aquino officials accused etary Fund (IMF) Direction of business. Up to 40% of the top of receiving kickbacks or bribe Trade that smuggling has wor- 100 companies in the Philip- money. Meanwhile, it continues sened threefold compared to pines are not among the Bureau to bungle the corruption and previous regimes and now of Internal Revenue's list of top plunder cases against former amounts to $19 billion per year. 500 corporate taxpayers. Many president Gloria Arroyo and In 2013, Aquino made a big foreign big business operations, provide her with privileges in show of removing the chief of including oil and mining compa- detention. the customs bureau, making nies, are among the biggest There has been no funda- loud accusations that certain of- beneficiaries of tax exemp- mental change in the orientation ficials have not been following tions. of the ruling system. Govern- his "righteous path." Yet, not a Aquino has been covering up ment remains an instrument of single official has been charged the involvement of his key offi- the ruling classes of big com- or punished. This means that cials and pro-Aquino congress- pradors, landlords and big bu- such drama was only meant to men and senators in kickback reaucrat capitalists. Political remove certain customs officials scams or in facilitating the power is wielded by the ruling whose loyalty to the Aquino transfer of public funds to pri- Aquino clique to serve the inter- clique has been found wanting. vate accounts. Despite having ests of the Aquino family, its Large amounts of smuggled been named in the pork barrel cronies, the pro-Aquino oli- goods, especially rice, onions, scam many times, Aquino's garchs and foreign big business. garlic, pork, poultry and other budget and agricultural secre- The broad masses of workers agricultural produce continue to taries "continue to enjoy the and peasants and the middle be illegally dumped into the Phil- president's trust" and exercise class sectors are sick and tired ippine market, pulling down the same power, authority and of Aquino's "righteous path" farmgate prices to the detri- privilege they have been using rhetoric. They know that there ment of small peasants and ru- for corruption. has been no fundamental ral producers. The "anti-corruption" rheto- change in the way that the reac- Aquino has raised the peo- ric has simply served as a weap- tionary government is being run. ple's tax burden, but provides on wielded by the ruling Aquino To them, it remains the exclu- tax exemptions and holidays to clique against its political oppo- sive domain of the ruling class- es, who pocket public funds that should accrue to public health, education, housing and other ANG Contents essential social services. Editoryal: Oust the regime which reeks of corruption 1 The Filipino people are ut- Vol XLV No. 11 June 7, 2014 Scrambling to cover-up Aquino’s involvement 3 terly disgusted with the stench WEF, a grand show 4 of corruption under the Aquino Ang Bayan is published in Pilipino, 2 mining firms punished 5 regime. They demand an end to Bisaya, Iloko, Hiligaynon, Waray and NPA denies killing Navarro 5 Aquino's coverups of his offi- English editions. NPA stops mining survey in ComVal 5 It is available for downloading at cials involved in the pork barrel the Philippine Revolution Web Central US interference in Zamboanga Siege 5 anomalies. Aquino himself must located at: Civilians victimized in Sorsogon 6 be held responsible for the use Justice for 8 workers 7 www.philippinerevolution.org. of pork barrel funds and his pro- RPA: Butchers still 7 motion of corruption through Ang Bayan welcomes contributions 100 families evicted in Sierra Madre 7 the discretionary disbursement in the form of articles and news. Mabacas demand 77th IB pullout 8 Readers are likewise enjoined to send Farmers reject CARP extension bill 8 of billions of pesos of public in their comments and suggestions for monies. They demand an end to the betterment of our publication. You Land grabbing in Negros 9 can reach us by email at: NDFP pays tribute to Bishop Millemena 10 Aquino's PPP program where big Teachers launch protests 10 oligarchs connive with the Aqui- [email protected] Martial law in Thailand 11 no regime to make use of public funds to burden the people with Ang Bayan is published fortnightly by the Central Committee privatized transportation and of the Communist Party of the Philippines other services.

2 ANG BAYAN June 7, 2014 In the face of widespread Scrambling to cover up Aquino's corruption, the Filipino people intensify their demand for the involvement in the pork barrel scam ouster of the Aquino regime to put an end to its lies and preten- alacañang's minions are currently in a mad scramble to cov- sions to righteousness. They call Mer up the involvement of Benigno Aquino III no less in the for the establishment of a broad `10-billion pork barrel scandal. anti-corruption front to unite all First, Aquino sought to discredit and belittled Janet Lim Na- democratic forces and isolate poles' two sworn affidavits incriminating his regime's key officials the corrupt ruling Aquino re- in the pork barrel anomaly. Napoles claimed that it was Budget gime. Sec. Florencio "Butch" Abad who taught her how to navigate the The ever worsening socio- complexities of the pork barrel fund. economic conditions of the peo- This time around, Malacañang wants to put a lid on news that ple underscore the need for Aquino's name was among the list of them to struggle for the ouster politicians found in digital records of the Aquino regime. By putting maintained by Benhur Luy, one of forward the demands for higher the whistleblowers in the wages, lower prices, larger pork barrel scandal. budgetary allocations for public Computer forensics ex- education and health services, perts have discovered that employment, land reform and a number of files had been other democratic demands, they deleted from Luy's com- can belie the Aquino regime's puter. This piece of infor- claims that its "good govern- mation was among those di- ance" has resulted in a "Philip- vulged by the Senate after pine miracle." Luy's files had been sub- The Filipino people seek the mitted to the Blue Ribbon ouster of the Aquino regime be- Committee. fore its term expires in 2016. The forensics analysis There is urgency to their strug- revealed that more than 50 gle to oust the Aquino regime files had been deleted. as the Aquino clique is current- Among the deleted ly seeking to consolidate its po- documents were let- litical power precisely by con- ters addressed to "PI- trolling the purse strings in or- NOY" (Aquino) requesting financial assist- der to ensure the outcome of ance amounting to millions of pesos. Also deleted were the names the 2016 elections and perpet- of Executive Sec. Paquito N. Ochoa Jr., Sec. Butch Abad and the uate its power, its lies and cor- name "BIGBOY." Senate Pres. Franklin Drilon used the nickname ruption. "Big Boy" in his 2001 election campaign. The CPP and all revolution- Malacañang lackeys are hard-pressed deflecting news of their ary forces support the Filipino boss' involvement towards other issues, especially since a few days people's clamor to oust the cor- before the deletion of Aquino and his cronies' names was discov- rupt and mendacious Aquino re- ered, information about the so-called "Three Marias" emerged. gime. They call on all democrat- The "Three Marias" have been identified as Rochelle Ahoro, ic forces to unite under the ban- Odette Ong and Mary Antoinette Lucile Ortile, all Malacañang em- ner of anti-corruption and tear ployees within Aquino's inner circle. Ahoro is Aquino's appoint- down Aquino's false flags of ments secretary, while Ong is an undersecretary and currently "good government" and "right- manages Malacañang, the Mansion House in Baguio and Malaca- eous path." The CPP calls on the ñang sa Sugbo. Ortile, on the other hand, used to be connected to New People's Army (NPA) to fur- Ochoa's office and is now under Abad. The "Three Marias" report- ther intensify revolutionary edly handle the pork barrel funds being brought to Malacañang. armed struggle as their contri- The Congress minority bloc, including Makabayan is demanding bution to the Filipino people's Aquino's suspension of the "Three Marias" and has roundly criti- mass struggles to oust the Aqui- cized the president for defending his staff and allies by being judg- no regime. ~ mental regarding the pork barrel scam disclosures. ~

ANG BAYAN June 7, 2014 3 pressed production expenses and WEF in the Philippines the financial costs of buying new condominium and residential is Aquino's grand show units. The CPP likewise condemned he Communist Party of the Philippines condemned the grandiose the violent dispersal by the Phil- show staged by the US-Aquino regime when it hosted the World ippine National Police of a pro- TEconomic Forum (WEF) for East Asia on May 21-23. The WEF is test action launched by progres- a private conglomeration of imperialist companies and their big com- sive groups in front of the Shan- prador partners in the client states. gri-la Hotel in Makati City where the WEF was meeting and the il- The WEF's objective is to ag- international credit agencies, legal arrest of four demonstra- gressively push the various neo- multinational companies and the tors on May 22. The four were liberal policies favoring monopoly local comprador bourgeoisie who detained up to May 26. companies. The Aquino regime never seemed to run out of acco- The progressive groups ex- ` spent 71 billion to entertain the lades about the country's so- pressed their disgust at Aquino's biggest capitalists in the few days called positive economic situa- so-called "Philippine miracle" as they spent in the country. tion and Aquino's role in the lat- growing numbers of people suffer Holding the WEF in the Philip- ter. from poverty and hunger, soaring pines was part of the Aquino re- Nonetheless, Aquino is unable unemployment rates and low wa- gime's grand plan to promote the to conceal the fact that his much- ges and sky-rocketing prices of lie of the "Philippine miracle" and vaunted "miracle" is nothing goods and services. boast that the country has "taken more than an illusion conjured by On May 23, progressive the lead" in East Asia in terms of the large inflow of foreign portfo- groups launched an alternative development. Its much-vaunted lio capital into the local financial gathering called “World Epic Fail: claims that it is "Asia's rising market and speculation in the The Folly of Public-Private Part- star" and "the next Asian mira- construction of condominiums nership.” The gathering mainly cle" are empty promotional gim- and office space. In particular, tackled the WEF's endorsement micks to attract additional for- the construction boom was of privatization programs in pub- eign capital. Conniving with the spurred by low interest rates on lic service, health, education and Aquino regime in this scheme are loans, which artificially de- labor. ~

NPA punishes 2 mining giants AFP's stepped-up military cam- paign in the region. ed fighters under the New People's Army (NPA) Mt. Alip Com- Meanwhile, three Scout Ran- mand of Far South Mindanao Region burned 48 container vans gers were killed and several oth- Rbelonging to Glencore-Xstrata SMI Mining Company and ers wounded after Red fighters seized 13 shotguns from guards of the South Davao Development under the NPA Comval-North Company Inc. (SDDCI) in coordinated offensives in Davao del Sur and Davao-South Agusan Subregion- Sultan Kudarat on May 19. The Swiss-owned Glencore-Xstrata SMI al Command used command- and the Consunji-owned SDDCI are both engaged in gold mining. detonated explosives on a mili- tary platoon in Sitio Quarry, Ba- The Red fighters burned 48 jacent to each other. Aside from rangay Dagohoy, Talaingod, container vans being used as of- the firearms, the NPA also Davao del Norte on May 22. fices and sleeping quarters by seized four VHF radios, a GPS The attack came three days SMI at its camp in Sitio Gumatu- radio and a laptop computer. after the NPA released its pris- ka, Kimlawis, Kiblawan, Davao These tactical offensives oner of war Cpl. Rogelio Rosales del Sur at 5:30 p.m. After an were not merely punitive actions of the 60th IB in Sitio Paiton of hour, another NPA unit raided against the plunderous and en- the same barangay. The enemy the SDDCI camp in Sitio Salna- vironmentally destructive immediately launched pursuit ong, Barangay Datal Blau, Co- mines. They also formed part of operations after the release, lumbio, Sultan Kudarat. Colum- the NPA's program of intensify- which eventually led to the am- bio and Kiblawan towns are ad- ing armed struggle to defeat the bush. ~

4 ANG BAYAN June 7, 2014 NPA-SMR denies US intervention assassinating Navarro in "Zamboanga Siege" sywar experts of the Armed Forces of Pthe Philippines (AFP) spewed black he US intervened military in the AFP's bloody attacks propaganda once again when they accused on Moro National Liberation Front forces in Zamboan- the New People's Army (NPA) of assassi- Tga City's communities. The assault, known as the nating Mayor Reynaldo Navarro of Laak, "Zamboanga Siege" took place in September-October last Compostela Valley. Navarro was ambushed year and resulted in the destruction of civilian communities and killed by five motorcycle-riding gun- and the dislocation of more than 120,000 residents, many of men in Asuncion, Davao del Norte on May whom are still languishing in evacuation centers. 28. The US admitted that its troops had a hand in the fight- The 10th ID's objective in accusing the ing, as boasted by self-styled "silent hero" Col. Robert NPA of the crime is to enrage and recruit McDowell, chief of the US Joint Special Operations Task Navarro's Lumad supporters as the mili- Force-Philippines based in Zamboanga City. tary's newest instruments and bandits in The US said it supported Filipino troops by providing im- its Oplan Bayanihan counterrevolutionary portant information and communications services during campaign. combat. Both US and Philippine military officials had earlier In a statement, Ka Rigoberto Sanchez, vehemently denied any US involvement despite frequent re- spokesperson of the Merardo Arce Com- ports on the presence of unmanned aerial vehicles at the mand (NPA-Southern Mindanao Region) height of AFP bomb attacks on civilian communities. condemned Navarro's killing and condoled In related news, the US' massive surveillance of the Phil- with his family and friends. He said that ippine telecommunications system was disclosed in mid-May the People's Democratic Government had through an article published in an American newspaper. The no basis to impose the maximum penalty of “US....,” continued on page 6 death on Navarro. Sanchez explained that although Nav- arro was among the biggest loggers oper- NPA stops mining survey in ComVal ating in the forests of Agusan del Sur, Compostela Vallet and Davao del Norte, he he Comval-Davao Gulf Subregional Command of the New was not a legitimate military target. TPeople's Army (NPA) detained four personnel of Sky Eye As a veteran politician in an area en- UAV Services for promoting the interests of large-scale and compassed by the territory of the People's environmentally destructive mining. The Sky Eye personnel Democratic Government, Mayor Navarro arrived in Barangay New Leyte, Maco, Compostela Valley on linked up with the revolutionary move- May 28, and its surveyors were arrested on May 31. Their ment. On many occasions, his actions driver had earlier been arrested on May 30. The Red fighters showed his recognition of the revolution's confiscated a sky surfer drone, two multi-rotor drones, two aspirations. laptops and a GPS radio from Sky Eye. But in the past years, Navarro's logging The company was hired by the Department of Environ- and agribusiness operations kept on ex- ment and Natural Resources (DENR) ostensibly to pinpoint il- panding, prompting the revolutionary legal logging activities in the area through the use of un- movement to send him warnings several manned aerial vehicles (more commonly known as drones). times. Because he ignored them, the Com- The NPA found this incredible since illegal logging is no val-North Davao-South Agusan Subregion- longer rampant in Maco due to its heavily denuded forests. al Command was compelled to go public Maco is not rich in forest resources but in minerals like with its warnings against his rampant log- gold, said Ka Daniel Ibarra, spokesperson of the Comval- ging activities and the attendant militariza- Davao Gulf Subregional Command. Thus, it is the interests of tion which has led to violations of the peo- Apex Mining and St. Augustine Mining Corp. which have vast ple’s human rights. concessions in Maco and the mountainous borders of Pantu- Sanchez advised the masses in Laak, in kan and Mabini towns that the DENR is likely protecting particular, and in Mindanao, in general, to when it hired Sky Eye. be vigilant and see through the military's The NPA released the four Sky Eye personnel on June 2 dirty tactics. Recently, the AFP also spread on the condition that they stop defending large-scale mining the lie that the NPA uses human shields. ~ and environmentally destructive activities. ~

ANG BAYAN June 7, 2014 5 from page 5 AFP operations in Sorsogon US National Security Agency (NSA) reportedly victimize 4 civilians collects all text messa- ges, telephone and cell- phone calls, particularly our civilians, including a baby, have been added to the list of victims of in the Philippines and a military operation conducted by the 903rd Brigade which has been four other countries. Fravaging Sorsogon since April. Under the 903rd Brigade are the 31st IB, Through a program the 5th Scout Ranger Company and other military forces. dubbed MYSTIC, the NSA In Matnog. The 31st IB had a in the area by a unit under the Celso gathers not just all text family in its crosshairs when it at- Minguez Command (NPA-Sorsogon). messages but accompa- tacked a New People's Army squad in Killed in the ambush was Cpl. Edison nying data such as dates Sitio Hukdong, Barangay Balocaue Capital. A cal .45 pistol was likewise and times the messages on May 23. seized. The NPA is currently contact- were sent and the loca- At 5:45 a.m., the military encir- ing Benson's family for appropriate tion of the sender. The cled a group of Red fighters resting action. four other countries sub- temporarily near the house of the In Bulan. Troopers of the 31st IB jected to surveillance Garduque family. Minutes after shots conductiong operations in the interi- were Kenya, Mexico, a rang out, Elias Garduque lay dead, or villages of Bulan and Matnog country in the Caribbean and his wife Cynthia and their year- shamelessly stole a motorized boat at and a still unidentified old baby seriously wounded. 10:30 p.m. on May 5. The victim was country. The soldiers ignored the mother the Masujer family of Barangay Sa- Obviously, the MYS- and child for more than nine hours grada. The soldiers had gone to the TIC program's opera- and brought them to hospital only at Masujers on the morning of May 5 to tions in the Philippines 3 p.m. They stopped other villagers seize the family's boat, claiming it are supported not only by who rushed to the site after hearing was owned by the NPA. Mrs. Marife the Aquino regime but by the shots and offered to help the vic- Masujer was able to stop the soldier- the country's telecommu- tims. thieves from taking the boat. But the nications companies, Brig. Gen. Joselito Kakilala, troopers returned that night to take making it very easy for 903rd Bde chief, automatically it and use it to ferry 30 soldiers of the the NSA and its local in- branded the Garduque couple as NPA 31st IB towards Bulan town. telligence agencies to guerrillas. Worse, he declared that Out of fear, the Masujer family conduct real-time sur- the military operation was conducted has temporarily transferred to a rel- veillance on individuals or without any collateral damage, even ative's house in another village. They groups that they want to if the Garduques’ baby was seriously have since been unable to earn a liv- spy on. wounded in the gunbattle. ing because their livelihood depends At the same time, an- In Casiguran. The 31st IB Alpha solely on fishing. other newspaper report- Coy shot and killed Joseph Benson, a In Sorsogon City. Village chair ed that the US had read resident of Barangay Inlagadian, in Eddie Albor of Barangay Cococabitan and listened to all text the early hours of May 9. Benson was was accused of being an NPA mem- messages and calls made ambushed in Barangay Escuala while ber on April 27 after an encounter by Jejomar Binay and Mar walking home from a funeral wake between an NPA team and a compos- Roxas last year. This that was being held near the 31st IB ite force of 31st IB and 5th SR Coy piece of information was Alpha Coy headquarters in Barangay troopers that resulted in the death of part of the revelations Casay of the same town. The soldiers a Red fighter. Albor was illegally de- made by Edward Snow- who killed Benson admitted to some tained at the Sorsogon City District den, a former employee local residents that they suspected Jail on trumped-up charges to coerce of a company contracted the victim to be among the NPA oper- him into signing a sworn statement by the NSA. atives who ambushed their troops in falsely identifying the NPA casualty As expected of US im- Barangay San Juan last April. as a high-ranking NPA cadre to ena- perialism's local puppets, The military had threatened resi- ble the military to collect a `2.5 mil- both Binay and Roxas saw dents of Barangay San Juan on April lion bounty on the cadre's head. Al- nothing wrong with being 29 that they would "wipe out" all bor was promised his freedom in ex- subjected to surveillance suspected NPA supporters in Casigu- change for his signature, but he re- by their master. ~ ran town after a successful ambush mains in detention. ~

6 ANG BAYAN June 7, 2014 Justice for 8 women workers 100 families driven out of Sierra Madre he Kilusang Mayo Uno (KMU) and GABRIELA de- Tmanded justice for eight women workers who died A HUNDRED peasant families were forced in a fire that gutted a warehouse storing electronic pro- to flee the UP Sierra Madre Land Grant ducts in Pasay City on May 29. due to harassment by armed guards of the They picketed the main office of the Department of University of the Philippines-Los Baños Labor and Employment (DOLE) in Intramuros on June 4 (UPLB). The UPLB is taking over the peas- to assail the Aquino regime for its failure to protect the ants' land to pave the way for its "eco- health and welfare of workers in the workplace. The tourism and bio-fuel production" project KMU said the government should order all companies to which covers 5,279 hectares along an area provide two exits on every floor and basement that straddling the borders of Real town in workers could access in five minutes. Quezon and Siniloan town in Laguna. The KMU and GABRIELA workers also lit candles at The farmers, who are members of the the DOLE office to demonstrate their protest and to Integrated Social Forest Development Or- sympathize with the families of the eight victims of the ganization (ISFDO) have been tilling up to terrible tragedy. They unfurled a streamer stating "Jus- 1,400 hectares of the UP Sierra Madre tice for the 8 workers killed in the Asia Metro Tech Land Grant since the 1980s. The UPLB fire!" armed guards confiscated their farm tools The workers failed to exit the premises because and seedlings, uprooted their crops and their employer had locked them inside their sleeping demolished their houses to drive them out quarters. ~ of the area. ~

RPA: Butchers still

n May 28, Stephen Paduano (alias Carapali pellets discharged by his assailants penetrated OLualhati) was sworn in as the representa- his chest and the back and front sides of the pick- tive of Abang Lingkod, the partylist group of the up truck he was driving. Revolutionary Proletarian Army (RPA). A four-day investigation conducted by a fact- The counterrevolutionary group's image- finding team from KARAPATAN-Panay, PAMANG- change in Congress, however, fails muster among GAS, GABRIELA and PFTC concluded that the those who know its true character. On the same RPA perpetrated the crime. Before he was killed, day Paduano was sworn in, the RPA carried on Garete had been threatened by an RPA element with being fascist butchers. going by the alias "Jorek" that he would be RPA elements brutally killed Dionesio Garete, taught a lesson if he persisted in 57, a farmer and resident of Barangay Aquino, actively supporting what he Nobleza West, Janiuay, Iloilo at called "the other group." Three around 9:15 a.m. of May 28. Garete other civilians have also report- was a member of the Janiuay-Badi- edly been issued death threats angan Farmers Association (JA- by the RPA. BAFA) which supplies musco- KARAPATAN-Panay vado to the Panay Fair Trade submitted the Center (PFTC). fact-finding The victim was then driving results to the a Toyota Hilux pickup truck Janiuay Po- trailing a JABAFA cargo truck lice Office, loaded with newly harvested sugar but some po- cane that was being transported to licemen told a sugar mill in Barangay Damirez in them that the same town. they were helpless on the matter since Garete was ambushed in Sitio Gan- the RPA is now "under Malacañang's di- tong, Barangay Danao, Janiuay. Almost all of rect control." The RPA is involved in the 24 cal .45 bullets and 12-gauge shotgun close to 80 murders in Iloilo alone.

ANG BAYAN June 7, 2014 7 Mabaca tribe Peasants reject proposed demands 77th CARP extension

IB pullout rogressive peasant groups condemned proposals to extend the Comprehensive Agrarian Reform Program (CARP) by two more he Mabaca tribe, Pyears. House Bill (HB) 4296 which calls for a two-year extension Tthrough the Cordillera of the CARP has been approved by Congress at the committee level. People's Alliance, ex- CARP is scheduled to end on June 30. pressed its opposition to the 77th IB's construction The bill, which has been certi- interest" or "development." of a military camp in their fied "urgent" by Malacañang, is The DAR is lying through its community in Tanap, Ma- being pushed by Rep. Noel Villa- teeth in claiming that it has met baca in Balbalan, Kalinga. nueva, a landlord and arrienda- 84% of its target of distributing A platoon under the mili- dor (or mortgagee) involved in 5,360,000 hectares to beneficia- tary unit arrived in the the revocation of Certificates of ries. Many of the CLOA have al- area on the second week Land Ownership Award (CLOA) ready been revoked through of May to build a detach- covering 1,000 hectares in Haci- landlords' shenanigans. In other ment. enda Luisita. cases, landlords have brazenly The tribespeople said The bill calls for granting the connived with the DAR to retain they were against the Department of Agrarian Reform ownership of the land. Just a few camp's construction due (DAR) the power to issue "noti- of the more notorious cases are to the long list of abuses ces of coverage" for another two those of the Cojuangco-Aquino- and other human rights vi- years. The Kilusang Magbubukid owned Hacienda Luisita; Hacien- olations they have suf- ng Pilipinas (KMP) has de- da Looc, Coral ni Lopez, Hacien- fered in the hands of mili- nounced the bill as a "worthless da Zobel and Hacienda Roxas (all tary troops since 1993, piece of paper." The peasant or- in Batangas); Hacienda Yulo (in which includes coercion, ganization cited the NOC for Ha- Laguna); and Hacienda Araneta beatings and surveillance. cienda Luisita, whose land has (in Bulacan). The tribespeople were yet to be distributed to its farm Alongside the rampant CARP- also aware of the soldiers' workers. The peasants demanded sanctioned land seizures is the antisocial practices, such the junking of CARP. mounting violence accompanying as drunkenness, gambling, Twenty-six years of CARP agrarian cases. Harassment, fil- illegal drug use and theft, have worsened landlessness ing of trumped-up charges and and said that their nega- among peasants and farm work- extrajudicial killings of peasants tive influence would only ers. Landlords, real estate com- defending their right to till and bring discord to their panies as well as local and for- reside in the land they tribe. They also demanded eign agribusiness firms have used have developed has justice for the extrajudi- its provisions to become common- cial killing of Jeff "Openg" circumvent the place. ~ Daoayan, a member of actual land dis- their tribe who was killed tribution of hun- by soldiers in 2006. dreds of hec- The local residents im- tares of agricul- mediately opposed the de- tural land and tachment's construction. seize land that had To appease them, the 77th already been distributed IB called for a consulta- to beneficiaries. Proof of tion but refused to stop this are the myriad cases building the camp. In- of exemptions, land reclas- stead, the military just sification and land-use con- scheduled another round version. CARP has also allowed of consultations when it local governments to repossess failed to convince the lo- distributed land to build infra- cals. ~ structure in the name of "public

8 ANG BAYAN 7, 2014 Massive landgrabbing plantation in Murcia. Led by the National Federation of Sugar in Negros Workers (NFSW), they camped out in March outside of the cap- andgrabbing in Negros island is massive and aggressive, with itol grounds to assail the provin- big landlords, multinational corporations, reactionary govern- cial government's seizure of the Lment agencies and the military colluding to seize vast tracts of land they had been tilling. land to build plantations. Earlier, farm workers from 16 haciendas in Murcia had also camped out in front of the DAR's According to Fr. Frank Fer- niving with Dole is Negros Oc- provincial office to demand that nandez, spokesperson of the cidental Gov. Alfredo Marañon the land in the two haciendas be National Democratic Front of who used `150 million in public distributed to the beneficiaries. the Philippines-Negros Island, funds to build the Negros First Farm workers from the cities of Negros is now one of the main Ranch in a small portion of the Bago and Talisay also joined the targets in the expansion of oil land. The bigger portion will be camp-out. palm, rubber tree, pineapple rented out to Dole. The peasants' protest ac- and banana plantations, aside The disputed land was issued tions began after tractors from other export crops. a Notice of Coverage in 2003. By owned by the provincial govern- He cited as an example the 2010, the Arguelleses had ment arrived in February escort- Yanson family's seizure of land stopped planting sugar cane, ed by soldiers and policemen to tilled by peasants and members and since then, the estate's mow down their farms. The of the Tumandok tribe in Basay, farm workers have been tilling a armed men destroyed their Negros Oriental and Hinobaan, portion of the idle land, planting farms in a matter of days and Negros Occidental. The Yan- it to corn and root crops to feed fenced the land off with barbed sons are now occupying 200 their families. They further de- wire. hectares in Malinao, Basay veloped their farms in the suc- Militarization has also inten- which they have planted to ex- ceeding years. Also in 2010, sified in the area, simultaneous port crops. however, the peasants learned to offers to each family of On top of this, they want to that the provincial government `15,000 and a carabao in ex- expand towards the adjacent had transacted with the Argue- change for abandoning their area in Barangay Damutan, Hi- lleses to buy the land in the two right to the land. The bribes are nobaan by seizing or controlling haciendas. being offered by Col. Jon Aying 8,064 hectares of land from The peasants are strongly of the 303rd Brigade through which the Tumandok and peas- against plans to build a banana the Kasanag Foundation. ~ ants source their liveli- hood. This is aside from another area extending from Barangay Pinggot, Ilog, Negros Occidental to the upland areas of Magballo, Kabankalan City. Another notorious landgrabbing case is that in Murcia, Negros Occidental where Dole Philippines plans to open a banana planta- tion. The land covers 55 hectares of Hacien- da Arloc and 155 hec- tares of Hacienda Ilim- nan, both owned by the Arguelles family. Con-

ANG BAYAN June 7, 2014 9 NDFP pays tribute er human rights violations under the Gloria Arroyo regime. to Bishop Millamena The NDFP also expressed its gratefulness to Millamena for he National Democratic Front of the Philippines (NDFP) ren- firmly standing up in support of dered highest honors to Supreme Bishop Tomas A. Millamena of Prof. Jose Maria Sison in Septem- Tthe Iglesia Filipina Independiente (IFI) for his staunch advoca- ber 2002 when the US imperial- cy for a just and lasting peace in the Philippines. ists included him in its list of ter- rorists. He spoke out on Dutch He also heroically took a pro- positing the photos for the Joint TV and other international media people stand against the anti- Agreement on Safety and Immu- against this. people and antinational policies nity Guarantees (JASIG). He was One of Millamena's latest ac- of the US-Aquino regime and ear- also an NDFP Nominated Inde- tivities was to participate in lier reactionary regimes. pendent Observer in the Joint mass protest actions to condemn The NDFP and the entire rev- Monitoring Committee (JMC) un- the pork barrel scandal and in olutionary movement in the Phil- der the Comprehensive Agree- support of the victims of the su- ippines expressed their deep ment on Respect for Human pertyphoon Yolanda. The NDFP sadness over Bishop Millamena ‘s Rights and International Human- said he was clearly happy to be death on June 1 after a lingering itarian Law (CARHRIHL). with the struggling people fight- illness. Together with the other NDFP ing for justice. According to Ka Luis Jalando- Nominated Independent Observ- Later, despite his failing ni who chairs the NDFP Negotiat- ers to the JMC, such as Marie Hi- health and inability to attend the ing Panel, Millamena played a lao-Enriquez of KARAPATAN, he peace talks abroad, he would still significant role in the NDFP-GPH steadfastly advocated the inde- send text messages to the NDFP peace negotiations. pendent investigation of the nu- Negotiating Panel expressing his He was the mutually accept- merous extrajudical killings and wish and desire for the advance ed Third Party Depositary for de- enforced disappearances and oth- of the peace talks. ~

Teachers protest as school opens

undreds of teachers rallied in Mendiola as manded the immediate approval of House Bill (HB) Hschool opened on June 2 to air 245 filed by ACT Teachers Partylist which calls for their disappointment at the US-Aquino a hike in the salaries of public school teachers from regime's declaration that the govern- `18,549 to `25,000 per month, and of non-teach- ment did not have the funds to raise ing personnel from `9,000 to `15,000 per month. their salaries this year. Thousands of ACT also called for a raise in the Personnel Eco- members and supporters of ACT Teachers nomic Relief Allowance (PERA) from likewise rallied in the cities of Baguio, Ba- `2,000 to `4,000. colod and Davao and in Bataan and Pan- Malacañang disregarded the gasinan provinces. public school teachers' demand for Teachers who taught class wore arm higher salaries. Reeking with con- bands signifying their demand for higher wa- tempt, Aquino's officials merely ges. The teachers had also rallied on May 19 to told them to "wait next year." condemn Aquino and Department of Budget and The government claims that it Management Sec. Florencio Abad for their role in lacks funds, but the teachers the pork barrel corruption scandal, where funds found this unacceptable. for badly needed services like education had been They said that the proposed diverted. salary increases would only The teachers said that their wages are inad- cost the government `3.2 equate, citing statistics that a family needs billion a year, a far cry from an estimated `1,054 per day or `31,620 per the amount of pork barrel month to live decently in Metro Manila. They de- funds held by Aquino. ~

10 ANG BAYAN 7, 2014 Political crisis in Thailand land. The toiling masses of Thai- culminates in martial law land have long been protesting against corruption, low wages, he political crisis in Thailand took a turn for the worse when suppression of workers' rights, the military seized political power on May 22 through a coup the rising cost of living, land- Td'etat. Thai Army chief Gen. Prayuth Chan-ocha imposed mar- lessness and rural poverty, tial law, resulting in the suspension of civil and political rights. among others. The ruling class- es have been raising one or a The military junta used sol- tions. Violent attacks by either number of these issues to ad- diers to suppress demonstra- side resulted in the deaths of vance their own political agen- tions, arrest protest leaders and scores of demonstrators. da, but not the overall demo- ordinary citizens and imprison In a statement, the Commu- cratic aspirations of the Thai political leaders and govern- nist Party of the Philippines people. ment officials. Television, radio (CPP) condemned the coup in The leaders of the military and print media have either Thailand, saying that the in- junta describe their rule as a been shut down or controlled. tense factional rivalries among means of resolving the political The military is also targeting so- the ruling classes merely re- crisis in Thailand. In fact, the cial media users criticizing the flected the continuing crisis of imposition of martial law merely ruling junta. the ruling semicolonial and sem- forms part of the worsening cri- The coup came on the heels ifeudal system. sis of the country's ruling politi- of intense protest actions that From a cursory view, it cal system. Eventually, military have been shaking Thailand would seem that the rivalries rule will only succeed in pushing since November. are confined between anti-Shi- the people to launch mass strug- The protests erupted when nawatra ("Yellow Shirts") and gles to advance their democrat- Prime Minister Yingluck Shina- pro-Shinawatra ("Red Shirts") ic aspirations. watra's government attempted forces. In reality, however, the The CPP urged the people of to pass an amnesty law that huge protests reflect the disap- Thailand to launch mass strug- would have enabled Yingluck's pointment of the broad masses gles to resist military rule and brother Thaksin to come home of the people on the prevailing advance their democratic, pro- and be rehabilitated politically. political and grssive and anti-imperialist as- Thaksin is a former prime minis- socio-eco- pirations. The CPP added that ter of Thailand who was deposed nomic they should form their own po- on corruption charges in 2006. condi- litical forces that would serve as He currently lives in Dubai. tions foundation for the establish- Protests against the ruling in ment of a revolutionary party Shinawatra clique's corruption Thai- and mass organizations that and nepotism grew substantially would advance the gen- over the next few months. Lead- uine interests of ers of anti-Shinawatra the Thai people. factions exploited Thailand is a the crisis by calling country in South- for the establish- east Asia that lies ment of a national more than 2,000 kil- council where they ometers northwest could play a bigger of the Philippines. It role in government. has a land area of The Thai govern- 530,000 square kil- ment in turn or- ometers and a pop- ganized counter-demonstra- ulation of 66 million. ~

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