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Pahayagan ng Partido Komunista ng PilipinasPinapatnubayan ng Marxismo-Leninismo-Maoismo ANG

English EditionVol. XLIII No. 7

April 7, 2012www.philippinerevolution.net

Editorial

W ith only close to two years in power, the Aquino regime hassurpassed all previous chief puppets in ceding the country'ssovereignty to US imperialism. Benigno Aquino III haspaved the way for the intervention of American soldiers and allowedthe use of the Philippines as one big launching pad for US imperialistdomination of the Asia-Pacific.

Resist the Aquino regime'sout and out puppetry

This issue...

Malalaking tagum-pay sa Mindanao 4

Digmang bayan,sumusulong sa ST 5

Menor de edad, gi-nahasa ng militarsa Benguet 8

The Aquino regime does nothave even an iota of interest todefend Philippine national sov-ereignty. The puppet presidentrecently declared that he wouldallow the US military access toPhilippine air space to fly andoperate surveillance drones, asif this were one of his imperialistmaster's intrinsic rights.

Aquino has also declared hisacquiescence to frequent vis-its by American troops and fre-quent dockings of US warshipsand flights of US fighter jets.Aquino's officials have even saidthat if possible, they would likethe American soldiers' Balikatanmilitary exercisesto be held daily inall areas of thecountry.

The defenseof Philippine sov-ereignty is Aqui-no's hugely ironic justification forthe growing pres-ence, frequent in-gress and egressand domination of American troopsin the country. The irony,

however, is completely lost tosomeone who is a US puppet tothe hilt. Aquino wants to ab-solutely deprive the Filipinopeople of their national dignityand cede the country's sover-eignty to his powerful imperial-ist overlord.

L i k et h e

previous reactionary puppets,Aqui-no wants Filipinos toswallow hook, line and sinkerevery lie spewed out by US im-perialism and believe that theAmerican military and capital-ists have no other interest butto defend freedom and democ-racy. Just as US imperialismdescribed its occupation of thePhilippines and the massacre of more than 400,000 Filipinos inthe early 1900s as benevolentassimilation, Aquino claimsthat the thousands of Americantroops who have been comingto the country have nothing butthe country's interests atheart. Aquino fetes them likegods, sacrificing before themevery single freedom possessedby the Philippines.

Aquino is thoroughly sub-servient to his imperialist mas-ters. In exchange for ceding all

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2 ANG BAYAN April 7, 2012

Philippine freedoms, he is onlytoo glad to be gifted with hismasters' surplus military hard-ware. In fact, US imperialismgives away its moth-balled warships andother military equip-ment to the Philip-pines so these couldbe used for purposesdefined by the US. TheUS-assisted AFP mo-dernization programhas no other objectivebut to strengthen theAFP's capability tosuppress the people'sdemocratic and patri-otic struggles.

The Aquino regimehas been boosting USmilitary domination inthe Philippines bypaving the way forAmerican troops tomaintain permanentpresence, set up theirintelligence infrastructure,launch intelligence operationsand clandestinely join counter-guerrilla operations in the guiseof military exercises and by

opening seaports and airports toUS warships and warplanes con-ducting operations in order todominate the Asia-Pacific.

By making US militarystrength predominant in thePhilippines, the US is able to en-hance its ability to influence andcontrol Philippine economic, po-

litical and military affairs.Aquino's overdependence on USmilitary assistance makes himvery susceptible to his master'severy whim and desire.

Aquino is a stooge to US eco-nomic dictates. Like the previ-ous puppets, he pursues thepolicies of trade and investmentliberalization, privatization, de-regulation and denationaliza-tion which have caused a crisisunprecedented in severity in thelast three decades.

Aquino and his allies havebeen pushing for amendments tothe reactionary 1987 constitu-tion in their desire to becomepart of the Trans-Pacific Part-nership and further open up theeconomy to plunder by foreignbig capitalists.

Aquino is servile to US for-eign policy. He allows himself tobe used as a pawn in instigatingwar or diplomatic attacks oncountries perceived as enemiesof US imperialism. Whatever theUS says about Iran, North Ko-rea, China and other countries isautomatically echoed by Aquino.He does not have a shred of dig-nity in him to assert the right tochoose the country's friends orenemies beyond the dictates of his US masters.

Hewing ever so closely to

the fascist US Counterinsur-gency Guide, Aquino has inten-sified the Oplan Bayanihan warof suppression. Bombings andother acts of violence againstcivilian communities havemounted in order to impose areign of terror and suppressthe people's struggles, espe-cially against foreign mining

and logging. In accordancewith US dictates, Aquino hasset aside the peace talks whichhe has used merely as an in-strument to deceive the revolu-tionary forces and cause theircapitulation. Aquino has no in-terest in resolving the basic is-

Ang Bayan is published fortnightly by the Central Committeeof the Communist Party of the Philippines

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Vol. XLIII No. 7 April 7, 2012

Contents

Editorial: Resist the Aquino regimes

puppetry 1Massacres possible in the Philippines 3

Major victories in Mindanao 4

Ambush in Bukidnon-North Cotabato 5

Peoples war advances in ST 6

NPA metes blows on 8th ID 7

Resistance to OPB in Bicol 8

CL perseveres in peoples war 9

Panay youth called to join NPA 10

Fake power crisis in Mindanao 11

Military officer rapes minor 12

Bombings in Mindanao 13

News 14

ANG

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3ANG BAYAN April 7, 2012

sues behind the civil war, especially those thathave to do with advancing Philippine nationalsovereignty.

In the face of the US and worldwide capitalistcrisis, the US will be further squeezing the coun-try dry as a source of cheap raw materials andcheap labor for the operations of American mo-nopoly capitalists. If Aquino had his way, thePhilippines would be further condemned to semi-colonial oppression and exploitation in the handsof the US.

The Filipino people and their revolutionaryforces must use the remaining days of the puppetAquino regime to fan the flames of patriotism andkindle the fires of struggles to defend nationalfreedom.

The Filipino people must generate widespreadand intense struggles against US military interven-

tion. The cry to expel American troops from thePhilippines must reverberate throughout the archi-pelago. We must thwart with all our might all at-tempts by American soldiers to use Philippine mili-tary and civilian facilities. There should be mount-ing resistance to the use by US military troops of Philippine air space and territorial waters for theirpower projection and assertion.

We nust rouse the spirit of nationalism andlove for freedom by raising the people's, especiallythe youth's current level of cosnciousness on theFilipino people's history of struggle against colo-nialism and neocolonialism.

We must advance nationalism and democracyas the solutions to the social and economic crisis.

We must demand an end to the semicolonialand semifeudal system in the Philippines being ad-vanced by the US and its puppet state.

Use of US smart bombs may lead to massacres

M assacres of civilians like those that havetranspired in Afghanistan and Pakistanare looming in the face of the AFP's use of so-called smart bombs supplied by the US military.Smart bombs are dropped from the sky on par-ticular targets and are guided by informationsupplied by global positioning systems (GPS).

AFP officials recently admitted to droppingsmart bombs on an alleged Abu Sayyaf lair inParang, Sulu at dawn of February 2. These of-ficials disclosed that the US military was in-volved in the operation by supplying the GPSinformation that guided the bombs. The timeand method of attack were determined throughthe use of a Scan Eagle Unmanned Aerial Vehi-cle (UAV), a small and lightweight US militarydrone used for surveillance.

The AFP boasted of killing in the operationalleged Malaysian terrorist Zulkifli bin Hir aliasMarwan. Weeks after, however, in-formation surfaced that Marwanhad been sighted in another coun-try. To date, there has been no independentinvestigation of the bombing operation.

The AFP has also boasted that as far backas November 2010, the US had already givensmart bombs to the Philippines. AFP forceshad been undergoing training since Decem-ber 2010 on their operation and mainte-

nance. The first trials were undertaken in May2011. By June, the US had given the AFP 22

more smart bombs. The bombing raid last Feb-ruary 2 was the first time the US unleashed itssmart bombs against so-called threats to secu-rity.

In Afghanistan and Pakistan, the use of smart bombs and drones by the US has result-ed in widespread casualties among civiliansmistaken for terrorists. Independent studieshave revealed that there have been 550 civil-ians, including 60 children confirmed to havebeen massacred by smart bombs dropped by USplanes.

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perialist mass struggles againstthe US-Aquino regime are gain-ing strength. Fuelling the peo-ple's rage are the brutality andhuman rights violations commit-ted by the state's fascist ma-chinery. Protest actions are be-ing launched against extrajudi-cial killings, oil price hikes, de-structive mining and logging,the seizure of farmers' lands,the US Balikatan exercises anddestruction wrought by thepresence of American troops.

Militarization by the fascistregime is intensifying in peasantand Lumad communities throughindiscriminate bombings, firingand strafing which have causeddislocation and evacuations andworsened the poverty of peoplein the CARAGA region, theDavao provinces, in Bukidnonand other areas of Mindanao.

Party membership grew in allfive regional

committees

People's war reaps majorvictories in Mindanao

People's war in Mindanao continues to advanceand reap victories despite Oplan Bayanihan's vi-

olent war of suppression.The New People's Army (NPA) operates in 42 guer-

rilla fronts all over Mindanao. The number of company-size guerrilla fronts increased in 2011.

Through self-reliance and assis-

tance from relatively more ad-vanced regions, the relativelyweaker regions were able to ex-

pand and consolidate their sub-regions and guerrilla fronts. Inthe next year or two, they canbe expected to march in stepwith the other regions nation-wide.

More platoons were formed,with the NPA's armed strengthgrowing by 20%. The NPA fur-ther expanded and gainedstrength, raising its capabilityto launch more extensive and in-tensive tactical offensives.

From January 2011 to March2012, the NPA was able tolaunch about 600 tactical offen-sives all over Mindanao, 140%more than the 250 tactical of-fensives launched in 2010. Theoffensives, which were launchedat an average of one to two perday dealt more than a battalionof casualties on troops of theArmed Forces of the Philippines(AFP). Two hundred of the casu-alties were killed in action whilea hundred were wounded in ac-tion.

The NPA was able to punishnotoriously exploitative, op-pressive and environmentallydestructive big mining and log-ging companies as well as plan-tations run by imperialists, bigcomprador bourgeoisie andlandlords such as the SumitomoMetals-owned Tag-anito NickelMines, SMI-Xstrata, Toronto

Ventures, Russell Mining, Dole-Stanfilco, Sumifru and DelMonte, among others.

More barrios were alsoreached by the Party and peo-

ple's army's organizing efforts,thus raising the size of the revo-lutionary mass base in Min-danao to about a million strong.The Party and people's armywere also able to establish or-gans of political power, expandtheir united front work and con-solidate guerrilla zones andbase areas. These condi-tions have provided theNPA with opportunities tolaunch more extensive andintensive guerrilla warfarebased on an ever expandingand deepening mass base.

Agrarian revolution is ex-panding in scope throughout theisland. From the village level,agrarian struggles arenow being con-ducted on thetown, inter-mu-nicipal, provincialand regional levels.Hundreds of thou-sands of peasantsare enjoying thefruits of agrarianr e v o l u t i o n ,strengthening thepolitical power of the Party and theNPA in the country-side.

Open antifas-cist, antifeudaland anti-im-

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and attacks on civilian com-munities, the AFP claimedthat the operations werebeing launched against KaParago, commander of the1st Pulang Bagani Companywho is allegedly encampedin the North Cotabato-Bukidnon mountains. Infact, the military operationswere conducted by the mili-tary in retaliation for theNPA's punishment of Patrick

Wineger, a valuable AFP as-set who masterminded themurder of Fr. Fausto Tento-rio.

No matter how much theAFP maligns the NPA, itcould never cover up itsheinous crimes against thepeople of Mindanao. Amongthem is the widespread mili-

tarization that has resultedin the killing of people likeFr. Tentorio and many other

human rights violations.

Troops of the 57th, 8th IB ambushedin Bukidnon and North Cotabato

G uerrillas of the Herminio Alfonso Commandof the New People's Army in Southern Min-danao Region ambushed forces of the 57th and 8th

IBs in Sitio Bantaan, Bagumbayan, Magpet, NorthCotabato on March 29, killing a soldier and wound-ing another. This military unit is responsible forseveral brutal special operations, and for terroriz-

ing the people and indiscriminately bombing com-munities in Magpet and in Kibawe, Bukidnon. Thishas resulted in the widespread evacuation of civilians

and various human rights violations in the area. Ka Nonoy, a Redfighter, was martyred in the fighting.

In retaliation for the am-bush, the AFP sent two war-planes and an OV-10 and in-discriminately bombed civiliancommunities in Bagumbayanfor two days. The AFP also po-sitioned its two 105 mm how-itzers behind the Bagumbayanpublic school and along theKabacan river bank inBarangay Binay, Magpet. Upto 122 families were forced toflee the area due to the in-tense bombings.

On April 1, at the height of the AFP's military operation,NPA Red fighters used a com-mand-detonated explosive(CDX) against a six-by-sixtruck bearing reinforcementswhile it was navigating thehighway at Purok 4, Mateo,

Kidapawan City. The tacticaloffensive derailed the AFP'splanned operation in thearea.

On the same day, Redfighters ambushed a teamfrom the 8th IB inBarangay Sampagui-ta, Kibawe, killingtwo soldiers.After the am-bush, the AFPdropped eightbombs in thearea, killing JenisMaguate, a civil-ian. The bomb-ings also killed anumber of farmanimals.

To justifythe bombings

of Mindanao by more than 30%. The Party contin-ues to strengthen its ideological, political and or-ganizational leadership among NPA units, in thebarrios, communities, factories, mass organiza-tions and alliances.

More than 90% of Party members in NPA units

have finished the Basic Party Course. The cam-paign to conduct the Intermediate Party Courseamong cadres in the regional, subregional, provin-cial, front and some section levels continues.

The Advanced Party Course is being given atthe regional level and will be taken by cadres at

the subregional, provincial and front levels in thenext two years.

On the whole, the revolutionary forces in Min-danao have maintained initiative and flexibilityagainst the concentrated and sustained encir-clement campaigns of the enemy in two regions.

On the other hand, the revolutionary forces in thethree other regions have contained the enemy'sattacks.

The CPP and NPA's brilliant victories in Min-danao are proof of Oplan Bayanihan's failure tostop the advance of people's war in the island.

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(740th Combat Group), a PNPbattalion and a CAFGU battalionspread out in 20 camps and de-tachments.

Meanwhile, the 202nd Bri-gade which has jurisdiction overthe provinces of Rizal, Laguna,Batangas and the 1st and 2ndDistricts of Quezon has sixstrike battalionsthe 76th IB inNorth Quezon, the 1st SFB inCentral Quezon, the 1st IB inLaguna, the 730th and 733rd CGof the PAF in Batangas and the16th IB in Rizal. In addition, the58th IB under the 5th ID has al-so been launching military oper-ations along the Rizal-Bulacanborder.

Despite the AFP's over-whelming superiority in terms of number and weaponry, the NewPeople's Army in SouthernTagalog valiantly faced everyattack by the mercenary militaryand police forces of the puppetUS-Aquino regime. According toincomplete reports from theprovinces and military areas, atotal of 89 tactical offensiveswere launched in the past two years that killed 63 enemyforces and wounded 39 others.A total of 85 firearms wereseized, comprising 48 high-pow-ered rifles, 37 pistols and low-powered rifles and several

pieces of military equipmentsuch as nigh vision goggles,communications radios, gre-nades and ammunition.

AFP military offensives arebeing launched relentlessly in allguerrilla fronts with the revolu-tionary forces enjoying very

short respites. Despitethis and amid hardships,

the more than tenguerrilla fronts inthe region's seven

provinces havesucceeded in

preservingt h e m -selves. The

People's war in ST advancesdespite intense militarization

T he Armed Forces of the Philippines (AFP) hasbeen unleashing vicious military operations inthe Southern Tagalog (ST) region, targeting the

provinces of Quezon, Rizal, Laguna and Batangas as wellas the island provinces of Mindoro and Palawan.

Killings have been rampant, such as the massacre inFebruary of civilian minors who were hunting in Mag-

dalena, Laguna.

Operations to control thepopulation have led to forcedevacuations and economic dislo-

cation among minority people inMindoro and Palawan. The tor-ture of suspected members of the revolutionary movement iswidespread in Quezon and Min-doro. Extrajudicial killings andforced disappearances are com-mon in Batangas, Mindoro andPalawan. There are several cas-es of illegal arrest and detentionand molestation and rape of women. Minors are forced to join the CAFGU and progressiveleaders and people's organiza-tions are maliciously linked tothe armed revolutionary move-ment. These are only a few ex-amples from the long list of crimes perpetrated by the AFPagainst the people.

In the region's urban areas,several urban poor communitiesand factories have been milita-rized. Military detachmentshave become a common sight inworkers' communities and im-poverished areas around Lagunade Bay under the so-calledpeace and development andcommunity development opera-tions.

There are a total of 16 AFPbattalions concentrated in theguerrilla fronts of ST under the2nd ID and the Western Com-mand. The number excludes thePNP Special Action Force andpublic safety maneuver battal-ions as well as CAFGU units un-

der the 59th Cadre Battalion of the Philippine Army.

Quezon is the region's most

militarized province, with fourPhilippine Army battalions un-der the 201st and 202ndBrigade: the 74th IB in the 4thDistrict; the 85th IB in the 3rdDistrict; the 76th IB in the 2ndDistrict; and the 1st SFB in the1st District. The enemy is mostconcentrated in South Quezonand the Bondoc Peninsula (3rdand 4th Districts) where thereare about six battalions of com-bined AFP, PNP and CAFGUforces deployed in 57 camps anddetachments.

Next is Mindoro island withthree Philippine Army battalionsunder the 203rd Brigadethe80th IB, 4th IB, a battalion-sizeforce of the 23rd Division Re-connaissance Coy and a compa-ny of Scout Ran-gers, a PNP as-sault battalion andthree CAFGU bat-talions withmore than2,400 men intotal spread outin 54 camps and de-tachments.

Third is Palawanwith two battalionsof Philippine Ma-rinesthe 4th and12th Marine BattalionLanding Teamunderthe Western Command, aPhilippine Air Force battalion

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relatively snaller and weaker units of the people'sarmy maintained initiative and flexibility to avoidbattles that they had not fully prepared for andwere not sure of winning even as they looked foropportunities to strike at and deal casualties onthe enemy's relatively weaker and more vulnerable

parts.The people's army took full advantage of theshort rest periods between military operations to

arouse, organize and mobilize the masses, launchantifeudal struggles and agrarian revolution, par-ticipate in production, set up local organs of polit-ical power and people's revolutionary organiza-tions, and step up politico-military training. Thus,the base of support for the people's army and the

armed struggle continues to arise and expand fromthe countryside while the people's army developsits iron discipline and steels its will to fight.

NPA metes blows on the 8th ID in EV

Contrary to the boastful claims of the 8th Infantry Di-vision of the Philippine Army that it does notconsider the New People's Army a problem in

Eastern Visayas, the intensification of armed struggle inthe region is giving the military a big headache.

In a statement, National DemocraticFront-EV spokesperson Fr. SantiagoSalas said that the NPA is on

the right path in the effort tofurther intensify tactical offensives andwin over the people to the side of thearmed revolution against the antipeople,pro-imperialist and militarist Aquino regime.

Last year, the Efren Martires Command(EMC-NPA-EV) registered at least 46 mili-tary actions against the 8th ID and otherstate security forces. These comprised 26 of-fensives and 28 defensive actions resultingin 70 enemy forces killed. Four Red fighterswere martyred on the NPA side.

Among the most striking tactical offen-sives was the ambush by the Sergio LobinaCommand on a unit of the Philippine Nation-al Police Provincial Mobile Group (PMG) inArteche town, Eastern Samar on February27, 2011. Killed in the ambush was P/Insp.Al Tantiado. Three other policemen werewounded. The NPA was able to seize threeM16s and an M14 rifle.

Another significant battle was the am-bush launched on the night of July 20, 2011

by combined forces of the Efren MartiresCommand and the Arnulfo Ortiz Commandagainst a convoy of the 34th IB in Paranas,Samar. The military suffered many casual-ties in this firefight, with seventeen 34th IBtroops wiped out. The NPA likewise seized a

K3 (Daewoo) light machine gun, two M16 ri-fles and more than 2,000 rounds of ammuni-tion.

Meanwhile, in Leyte, the 78th IB wasmeted a series of defeats by Red fighters of the Mt. Amandewin Command on May 8-13,2011, with the enemy suffering 21 dead. De-spite these losses, the Armed Forces of thePhilippines leadership persists in claimingthat the military has done away with theNPA's revolutionary influence in Leyte.

The NPA's regular forces are being as-sisted in their tactical offensives by the morenumerous units of the people's militia andthe Barrio Self-Defense Corps., who arefarmers by day and Red fighters bynight.

The New People's Army and the armed

people of Eastern Visayas possess thestrength and the capability to further inten-sify guerrilla warfare and make a decisivecontribution to the advance towards thestrategic stalemate of the people's war with-in this decade.

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Minguez Command harassed aplatoon from the 31st IB imple-menting Oplan Bayanihan inLapinig and Biton villages inMagallanes town. At around 4p.m., Red fighters opened fireon nine soldiers playing basket-ball in Barangay Lapinig. Thefrightened soldiers sped away,including those positioned atopa hill. The following morning,they returned to camp. The22nd IB detachment in SanFrancisco, Legazpi City was al-so harassed.

On February 28, five soldiersof the 9th IB were killed andseveral others were woundedwhen a team from the JoseRapsing Command used a com-mand-detonated explosive in anambush in Barangay Ca-bangrayan, Pio V. Corpuz, Mas-bate. The soldiers were thenaboard a truck. Earlier, ataround 8 p.m. of February 25,an NPA team harassed the 22ndIB detachment in Banuang Gu-rang.

A team of Red fighters ha-rassed 31st IB troops inBarangay San Juan Daan, Bulan,Sorsogon on February 23. Thesoldiers were then resting andcooking rice at around 10 a.m.when they were fired upon bythe NPA. Many of them were

wounded, but officers of the31st IB denied before the mediathat a gunbattle had occurred inthe area.

On February 10, a platoon of the 31st IB treacherously at-tacked a platoon of the CelsoMinguez Command in BarangayUpper Calomayon, Juban, Sor-sogon. But the NPA was able to

position itself on higher groundand fight well. The attackingsoldiers were forced to retreat,leaving behind five dead and aseriously wounded trooper. Itwas late in the night when theysurreptitiously loaded four of their dead on a truck in

Oplan Bayanihan does nothave a leg to stand onin Bicol

T he New People's Army (NPA) has not given thefascist troops much chance to go marauding inBicol under Oplan Bayanihan. From January toMarch this year, NPA units launched harassment, snip-ing, ambush and sapper operations to thwart the US-Aquino regime's counterrevolutionary scheme.

The NPA opera-tions led to a misen-

counter among soldiers of the

9th IB and the 93rd Division Re-connaissance Coy on March 19in Sitio Balunis, Barangay Rizal,Dimasalang, Masbate. The NDF-Bicol Information Office report-ed that two soldiers were killedand an undetermined numberwounded in the misencounter.

Earlier, an NPA team underthe Jose Rapsing Command(NPA-Masbate) had been wait-ing for the soldiers but werespotted by a military informer.The NPA team immediatelyshifted to another position. Butthree columns of soldiers almostsimultaneously opened fire atthe elevated area where theNPA was, thinking that the Redfighters were still there. The fir-ing had already been going onfor 30 minutes before the fascistsoldiers realized that they hadbeen shooting at each other. Toprevent the villagers from find-ing out about thesnafu, thetroopers wait-ed for darkbefore re-triev-i n g

their dead and wounded.The NPA thwarted the mili-

tary operation of three platoons

from the 93rd DRC implement-ing Oplan Bayanihan in Mobotown, Masbate. The guerrillasopened fire at a platoon of the93rd DRC in Barangay Sta.Maria at around 11 p.m. onMarch 19 and again, at around 4a.m. on March 12. The NPA didthe same in Barangay Holhogon,also in Mobo. As a result, thesoldiers cancelled an anticom-munist village meeting and wereforced to return to their campon March 14.

In Albay, a team from theSantos Binamera Command(SBC) harassed on March 9 a de-tachment of the Special CAFGUActive Auxiliary (SCAA) in Puro,Legazpi City, at around 8:30p.m. The startled paramilitariesran away and abandoned theirdetachment. Simultaneously,another team from the SBC ha-rassed the Community Police

Assistance Center (CPAC-4) in Taysan of the

same city.In Sorsogon,

on March 4, ateam from the

C e l s o

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Barangay Calpi, Bulan while thefifth dead soldier and thewounded trooper were broughtout via Barangay Catanusan,Juban. The 23 soldiers sent toretrieve their casualties posed

as NPA members and were incivilian clothes but the localsknew better.

The military fed the medianothing but lies, saying that theNPA suffered six dead and theAFP had no casualties. In fact,the NPA's lone casualty was aRed fighter who was only slight-ly wounded.

On February 8 in BarangayDaguit, Labo, three soldiers of the 49th IB were wounded whena team from the Armando Ca-tapia Command (NPA-Cama-rines Norte) harassed them. Ataround 1 a.m., Red fightersclosed in on the soldiers who hadturned the barangay hall intotheir barracks. As soon as theyascertained that there were nocivilians in the vicinity, the NPAopened fire at the soldiers.

Meanwhile, Red fighters of the Jose Rapsing Commandlaunched two sapper opera-tions on January 28. They qui-etly closed in on the headquar-ters of the 9th IB Charlie Coy inBarangay Pawican, Cataingan,Masbate and detonated an ex-plosive. Three soldiers guard-ing the camp were killed. Atdawn of January 26, anotherexplosive was detonated at thedetachment of the PNP Region-al Public Safety Battalion (for-merly RMG) and CAFGU inBarangay Poblacion, Batuan.Sapper operations are done toharass the enemy, inflict casu-alties and disrupt its opera-tions right in its own turf.

The NPA also conducted aseries of sniping operations onJanuary 16 and 19 in BarangayBalite, Guinobatan, Albayagainst the fascist troops of the2nd IB.

Central Luzon perseveresalong the pathof people's war

C entral Luzon continues to reap victories inthe armed struggle despite the brutal on-slaught of the military;s campaign of sup-pression. The NPA was able to launch victorioustactical offensives, seize weapons from the militaryand mete punishment on those who owed blooddebts to the masses.

The key factor in the region's victories is its de-termination to advance the people's democratic rev-

olution from the present stage of strategic defensive to the next

stage of strategic stalemate.The masses and the revo-

lutionary movement in Cen-tral Luzon have proven thatno matter how much the stateuses its most brutal oplan, itcould never defeat a peoplewaging resistance.

Even after Oplan BantayLaya (OBL) ravaged the re-gion, the Communist Party of the Philippines, the New Peo-ple's Army and the NationalDemocratic Front in CentralLuzon remained standing.With the lessons learned fromthe people's resistance to OBLI and II, the region is in a farbetter position to expandand consolidate itself.

The people's mass cam-paigns and struggles in themain cities are once againgaining momentum. Thepeople are breaking theirsilence through de-mands to ad-dress theirright to land,wages, jobs

and socials e r v i c e s .B a r r i -cades arebeing setup in areasunder threatof demolition.

Protest actions are beinglaunched by minorities andpeasants being robbed of their land. Workers continueto assail low wages and con-tractualization. Drivers wereable to launch a massivetransport strike last yearagainst the oil price hike.Thousands of youth through-out the region joined a na-tionwide student strikeagainst the low educationbudget and tuition fee hikes.The various forms of exploita-tion are being addressed by

the people throughgreater resist-

ance.

In the coun-tryside, agrarianrevolution, massbase building

and the

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armed struggle are resurgent. TheAFP has shamefully declared theprovinces of Central Luzon NPA-free.

This lie concocted to deceive thepeople has been belied by vigorousefforts by the New People's Army(NPA) to form mass organizationsin the countryside and launch tacti-cal offensives. Last year, the NPAdetonated explosives at a militarydetachment and ambushed ap-proaching reinforcements. Thesetactical offensives were in responseto calls by the people to punish themilitary for wreaking havoc on theirbarrio and protecting projects of the ruling classes in the provincesuch as the economic zone beingbuilt in Aurora.

In February, another NPA unitdetonated explosives to destroyheavy equipment used in construct-ing the TPLEX (Tarlac-Pangasinan-La Union Expressway) which hasled to widespread demolitions andlandgrabbing in the affectedprovinces.

In March, the normal routine of CAFGU elements and soldiers of the81st IB was disrupted through suc-cessive grenade explosions andbursts of gunfire from high-pow-ered rifles during an attack by anNPA commando unit in BarangayBurgos, Carranglan, Nueva Ecija.Aside from making the 81st IB pay

for killing four comrades in theevening of March 8 in BarangayDigmala, Bongabon, the tactical of-fensive was also in support of thepeople's struggle against their im-pending eviction from their landand massive landgrabbing withinthe former Hacienda Bueno andIgorot communities along the Nue-va Ecija-Nueva Vizcaya border to

give way to a private expresswaygoing to Cagayan Valley.The NPA's message is clear. Only

by wielding arms within the frame-work of the people's democratic rev-olution can the people win theirstruggle.

CPP calls on Panay youthto join the NPA

Join the armed struggle, join the peo-

ple's army! This was the call issuedby the Communist Party of thePhilippines (CPP) Regional Committee inPanay to the youth in the countryside andurban areas on the occasion of the 43rd an-niversary of the New People's Army (NPA).

There must be massive recruitmentamong the youth in order to establish more

company-size guerrilla fronts and expand the number of NPA Red fighters in the island.

In fact, one of the biggest victories of the NPA inPanay the previous year is its expansion brought aboutwhen many youth joined the platoons of the people's army.The number of regular NPA Red fighters grew by 20%, ac-cording to Ka Concha Araneta, spokesperson of the CPPRegional Committee in Panay.

Trainings were also conducted, raising the NPA's levelof effectveness in combat. The Red fighters' capabilities inconducting their expansion and consolidation tasks intheir areas of responsibility were enhanced. The guerrillasassist in the activities of peasant associations by raisingthe level of production, eradicating carabao rustling syn-dicates and providing other services to the people. TheNPA has played a decisive role in strengthening revolu-tionary political power in the countryside.

Peasant support for the NPA has further intensified.As a result, the people's militia enjoyed an 18% expansion.Some of its members now directly participate in NPA tac-tical offensives.

Another major victory of the NPA in Panay lay inthwarting the attacks of the 3rd ID of the Philippine Army

and the Philippine National Police as they implemented theAquino regime's Oplan Bayanihan. Amid more intensified

attacks by the 82nd IB, 61st IB and 12th IB as wellas the PNP Mobile Groups, NPA units fought valiant-ly during defensive actions and launched 21 tactical

offensives, dealing 13 casual-ties on the enemy, including

five killed. Among the woundedwere two lieutenants of the 61st IBBravo Coy Command Group.

Meanwhile, according toinitial reports, the latest NPAtactical offensive in Panaywas an ambush against 82ndIB troops in Tabungan, Iloiloon March 26, three days be-fore the 43rd anniversary of the NPA.

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Worse, the US-Aquinoregime will be using this crisis tobuild more coal-fired powerplants in the island in additionto those already operating inSarangani and Misamis Oriental.

The technology used in coal-fired plants has long been de-clared obsolete and is in fact nolonger used in the US and Eu-rope. Coal-fired plants alsocause major damage to the envi-ronment and the health of thepeople living around the plants.This is contrary to the people'sdemand for affordable and envi-ronmentally friendly energysources.

In the face of all this, theNational Democratic Front inMindanao has called on the peo-ple to expose and assail the fakepower crisis that is causingthem grave hardships. Theymust fight this scheme and re-sist widespread foreign mining,logging and commercial planta-tions that have wrought havocon the island's economy and en-vironment.

Fake power crisisin Mindanao

It is not true that there is a power crisis in Mindanao, said JorgeKa Oris Madlos, spokesperson of the National DemocraticFront-Mindanao. He said that the blackouts or daily four- to

eight-hour power outages are nothing but a grandiose show to de-ceive the people and force them to accept the privatization of powerplants and the construction of coal-fired power plants that would al-legedly solve the crisis. The US-Aquino regime is in cahoots with lo-cal compradors led by Henry Sy in making the fake power crisis seemreal.

The current power plants onthe island are capable of pro-

ducing enough electricity for allof Mindanao's regions. The pow-er plants are purposely not be-ing operated at full capacity tocreate an artificial power short-age. For instance, the Agus 2plant in Lanao del Sur has a gen-erating capacity of 180megawatts (MW) but is beingmade to produce up to 90 MWonly. The same is true of theAgus 5 to 7 plants in Iligan Citywhich are being made to pro-duce only 200 MW instead of their generating capacity of upto 309 MW. These plants al-ready produce 70% of the is-land's overall needs. Add to thisthe huge geothermal plant inMt. Apo which is also one of thesources of electricity for the is-land's north.

The people are also purpose-ly being deprived of electricitybecause the ruling classes in theisland prioritize the big foreigncompanies. Companies such asTag-anito, SMI-Xstrata, Toron-to Ventures Inc., Nestle Phils.,Phil. Sinter Corp.-KawasakiPlant, plantations and factoriesof Dole and Del Monte, HolcimCement and many others siphonoff and monopolize electricalpower.

In the 1990s, the US-Ramosregime used the energy crisis asa pretext to give private com-

panies free rein to put up pow-er plants that would address

the electric power shortage. InMindanao, the Alcantara,Dominguez and Aboitiz familiesexploited the situation to ex-pand their power generationenterprises in the last twodecades. Now, Henry Sy is us-ing the same scheme to slowlybuy out private and govern-ment-owned power plants andmonopolize control over the is-land's energy sector. Since theenergy sector is deregulated,Sy can raise power rates when-ever he wants after he gainspossession of the island's pow-er plants.

The monopolization of theisland's energy sector will fur-ther raise power rates andcause more suffering to thepeople of Min-danao. At pres-ent, powerrates area l r e a d yhigh dueto profit-h u n g r yi n d e -pendentp o w e rproduc-ers andthe im-posi t ionof the Val-ue-Added Tax.

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the 74th IB of the PhilippineArmy in Sitio Tagbakan, Baran-gay Pansoy, San Andres, Que-zon. The military arrested mi-nors Elmer Desoyo and Rey Ro-drigo, both 17 years old, andReynaldo delos Reyes. Theywere accused of being NPAmembers and collecting taxesfrom the residents. The threevictims were only looking forwork in a coconut plantationwhen they were arrested.

March 27. Seven farmersfrom Hacienda Luisita were ar-rested after elements from theTarlac City police and the mili-tary demolished a protest campset up by the peasants inBarangay Balite, Tarlac City. Ar-rested were Winky Esteban andJay Martinez-Dionisio, officialsof Barangay Balite; ManuelMandigma and Robert Mendoza;and minors Alfred Martinez, 17and Meric Trinidad, 16. Theywere charged with malicious mis-chief and detained at the Philip-pine National Police headquar-ters in Tarlac City. Martinez andTrinidad were released that af-ternoon. Meanwhile, two police-men dragged woman leader FlorSibayan. Another protester,Becky Canlas, had a gun pointedat her while the protest campwas being demolished.

March 8. Soldiers harassedresidents, including a teacher inPantukan, Compostela Valley.Eighteen soldiers from the 71stIB led by Sergeants Macalandaand Mabalot entered Purok 9,Sitio Sapang Tin-aw, BarangayTibagon in Pantukan aboard atruck owned by a mining compa-ny. The troopers occupied three

houses and interrogated civil-ians Nellyn Calva and HerculanoSumilhig for six hours. The sol-diers were forcing them to admitto being members of the NewPeople's Army.

The harassment was repeat-ed on March 11 when the sol-diers called a meeting ostensibly

Military officer rapes minorin Benguet

Armed elements of the state have not relented in targeting pro-gressive leaders and civilians. The most infamous cases involve

the rape by a military officer of a minor in Benguet; the harass-ment of a people's lawyer in Ilocos Sur and a woman leader in La Union;and the arrest of minors in Quezon and mass leaders in Negros. Follow-ing are the reports collated by Ang Bayan in the past two months.

April 3. Elements of the Ba-colod City Police Office arrestedtwo mass leaders in Negros us-ing a warrant for a trumped-upcase of robbery. Arrested wereChristian Tuayon, BAYAN-Ne-gros secretary-general and IanEvidenre, Kilusang Mayo Uno-Negros spokesperson. Theywere seized in the middle of aprotest action being held infront of the Bacolod San Sebast-ian Cathedral.

April3. Operatives of the PNPCriminal Investigation and De-tection Group arrested ReynanteGamara in Las Pias City. Gama-ra is a Bayan Muna campaignerfor the National Capital Region.The operatives inserted Gama-ra's name in an arrest warrantfor the 2007 killing in Mauban,Quezon of a PFC Eri-bertoEclavea and a Richard Cortizano,allegedly a surrenderee. A rela-tive of Gamara said that it was

impossible for him to have beeninvolved in the crime since hewas in Manila at the time. He isnow detained at the PNP Custo-dial Center in Camp Crame.

Several hours before the ar-rest, suspected operatives of the regime harassed Gamara'sdaughter Nikki, a member of Anakbayan at the University of

the Philippines-Manila and herfriend Cleve Arguelles, also anAnakbayan member and a stu-dent councilor at UP Manila.

The two students were ha-rassed twice by the operatives.First, they were tailed by the op-eratives who pretended to askdirections so they could get

close to Nikki's residence. Onthe next day, a vehicle tailed Ar-guelles while he was on the wayhome from Nikki's house. WhenArguelles decided to stop at arestaurant, he was followed inby one of the operatives andasked to come with them. Hewas repeatedly asked where helived and what his relationshipwas to a Nikki.

March 31. Human rightslawyer and Ilocos Sur seconddistrict board member Atty.Robert Tudayan reported re-ceiving death threats. This wasafter 3rd IB commanding officerLt. Col. Rogelio Mesias claimedthat Tudela was sighted bathingin a creek with a barangay offi-cial and guerrillas of the NewPeople's Army in BarangayLopez, Lidlida, Ilocos Sur. Atty.Tudayan vehemently denied themilitary's accusations and saidit was all part of the harassment

he has been getting for helpingthe poor and succeeding in se-curing the dismissal of a case in-volving two alleged NPA mem-bers arrested by the military.

Meanwhile, a Bayan Munaorganizer was threatened androbbed in her own home in Ba-rangay Casantaan, Sto. Tomas,La Union. In a statement, Clari-

ta Nanay Caling Bilog said shewas sleeping at around midnightwhen she felt someone tying upher hands and feet. When shestruggled, she was hit andgagged. Her assailants took hercellphones, money and goats.

March 28. Three youth wereillegally arrested by elements of

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to discuss the govenment's 4Psprogram in Sitio Cadapa; SitioSapang Tin-aw; and SitioSapang Lubog. Macalanda triedto force Marilou Lambo, ateacher at the Sayong EdukasyinPambata to admit that theirschool was established by theNPA. Macalanda shouted atLambo and accused the resi-dents of their community of be-ing NPA members.

A number of residents fromPurok 10 fled their homes out of fear due to the military's on-slaught. The soldiers also set upa checkpoint and blocked theQuick Reaction Team sent byKarapatan-Southern Mindanaoto investigate the harassment.

February 17. A 16-year oldgirl was raped by a military offi-cer in Mankayan, Benguet. Isa-bel (not her real name) wentmissing for three days beforeshe came home weak and unableto speak. According to Inna-buyog-GABRIELA, Isabel, whoexpereienced deep trauma,failed to take her final examsand was not able to graduatewith her high school class.

The perpetrator was identi-fied as Capt. Danilo Lalin, an of-ficer of Highland 86 of the Philip-pine Army 50th IB. Lalin first in-vited Isabel to be his text mate

before asking to meet her. Hemade her take contraceptive pillsbefore raping her several times.Isabel's parents and supportersare seeking justice for her anddemanding punishment for Lalin.

Isabel's case is the second inthe Cordillera. In 1999, a 14- year old girl was raped by threesoldiers in Abra, according to

records of the Cordillera HumanRights Alliance (CHRA).The CHRA said that there may

be more unreported cases of abuse against women and otherCordillerans because of continu-ing militarization under theAquino regime's Oplan Bayanihan.

Bombings and widespreadmilitarization in Mindanao

Abrutal and allout war is cureently being waged by the US-

Aquino regime against the people of Mindanao. The waris in accordance with the regime's antipeople and antina-tional program that gives free rein to foreign mining and loggingcompanies and commercial plantations to plunder the island'snatural resources.

Since the start of 2012, the state's armed minions have beenconducting relentless bombings, strafings and other humanrights violations in civilian communities.

These sustained attacks have been concentrated in the ar-eas of operation of multinational mining and agribusiness com-panies such as the South Cotabato-Sultan Kudarat-Davao delSur-Sarangani quadri-boundary where SMI-Xstrata operates;the Surigao del Sur-Surigao del Norte-Agusan del Norte tri-boundary where the huge nickel mines like Tag-anito and NickelAsia are found; the vast plains of North and South Cotabatowhere the Dole-Stanfilco plantation is; Davao Oriental and Com-postela Valley where the giant Russell Mining operates; at theZamboanga Peninsula where Toronto Ventures Inc. is; and inBukidnon where the sprawling Del Monte, Dole and Sumifruplantations are and where the First Gen hydroelectric powerplant is located.

The indigenous people, progressive groups and human rightsadvocates have condemned the brutal and widespread bombingsof civilian communities populated by national minorities in Min-danao. On March 30, tribal people who were forced to flee theirhomes marched in Butuan City to assail the indiscrininate bomb-ings and demand the pullout of AFP troops from their communi-ties.

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14 A G A A A il 2012

The AFP's military operations have been ex-tended over a wider scope through the use of Spe-cial CAFGU Active Auxiliary Units (SCAA) thatwere formed and expanded by the Aquino regime inOctober 2011. The formation of the SCAA was inaccordance with the regime's policy of encourag-ing the entry and expansion of big foreign miningcompanies and protecting their interests.

On the whole, up to 3,000 people have beenforced to evacuate during the crucial planting andharvesting seasons.

Three separate incidents of forced evacuationand other human rights violations have been docu-mented in Bukidnon, Surigao del Norte, Agusan delNorte and Compostela Valley by human rights ad-vocates from February to March. Up to 250 fami-lies were forced to flee their communities inKitcharao, Cabadbaran and hilly portions of Butu-an, Agusan del Norte; Claver, Surigao del Norte;and Borobo, Surigao del Sur.

More than 120 families evacuated from Mag-pet, North Cotabato, more than 50 individualsfrom Kibawe and 19 families from San Fernando,both in Bukidnon, with other evacuees comingfrom Barangay Tibagon, Pantukan, CompostelaValley and Barangay Balabag, Bayog, Zamboan-ga del Sur.

Among the evacuees was the entire family of slain Lumad leader Jimmy Liguyon, who fled alongwith other members of his clan and community dueto relentless threats from Aldy Salusad, leader of the New Indigenous People's Army for Reform (NI-PAR), a paramilitary group run by the 8th IB. NI-PAR killed Liguyon in February in his house in Dao,San Fernando. Salusad is also a member of the SanFernando Matigsalug Tribal Datus (Sanmatrida), agroup being paid by big foreign mining companiesto eradicate local opposition to their operations inthe area. The evacuees from Dao are currentlystaying in Malaybalay, the capital of Bukidnon.

15 policemen killed by Maoist guerrillas in India

FIFTEEN elements of the Cen-tral Reserve Police Force

(CRPF) were killed in an am-bush by Maoist guerrillas inMaharashtra state on March27. Twenty-eight others werewounded. It was the biggestguerrilla attack since June2010, according to the CRPF spokesperson.

The ambush occurred ataround 11:30 a.m. when theMaoist guerrillas detonated anexplosive, hitting the bus thepolicemen were riding.

The latest clash took place in

Gadchiroli district, near theborder with Chhattisgarh, cur-rently the center of the armedstruggle being waged by the In-dian Maoists.

The attack transpired de-spite claims by the reactionarygovernment that the Maoistguerrillas are on a tactical re-treat.

The Maoist-led struggle be-gan in 1967. In 2009, the reac-

tionary state launched a mas-sive offensive known as Opera-tion Greenhunt that resulted in

widespread human rights viola-tions. Nonetheless, it failed todefeat the Maoists.

In January this year, 12 po-licemen were killed and threeothers were wounded when anexplosive was detonated on theenemy's vehicle in a forestedarea of Jharkhand state. InJune 2010, twenty-six policeofficers were killed in an am-bush in Chhattisgarh, two

months after guerrillas at-tacked a police detachment inthe same state.

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