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“The Communist Party of the Philippines (CPP), along with the Filipino working class and people, stands in solidarity with all democratic forces worldwide in their support of the revolutionary resistance of the Palestinian people as they mark one year in their fight against the aggression and occupation of their land by the US-supported Zionist forces in Israel.

The Party condemns the Zionist state of Israel for its indiscriminate and incessant bombing of homes and civilian infrastructure in Gaza. It has dropped thousands of tons of bombs, killing no fewer than 41,000 people, more than 27,000 of whom are women and children. At least 10,000 individuals remain missing and are believed to be buried in the rubble caused by the bombing. Almost the entire population of Gaza has been displaced, with over 60% of homes destroyed. Public utilities and medical facilities have almost completely collapsed. The people of Gaza, especially children, are suffering from disease due to hunger, as well as lack of clean water and sanitation. Even the news media, sympathizers, humanitarian agencies and aid are not spared from attacks by Israel.

The year-long bombing and occupation of Gaza represent a disproportionate response to the October 7, 2023 armed uprising carried out by the freedom fighters of Palestine. On that day, they mounted armed offensives against military bases and facilities of the so-called Israeli Defense Forces and took prisoners. This was launched by a broad array of resistance groups in Palestine, including Islamic forces (Hamas), the People’s Front for the Liberation of Palestine, as well as other democratic, armed and unarmed revolutionary forces.

Maoche Legislador | Spokesperson | Negros Island Regional Operational Command (Apolinario Gatmaitan Command) | New People's Army | January 09, 2024

With boastful victory declarations in 2023, the Armed Forces of the Philippines Visayas Command (AFP-VISCOM) inadvertently admits that the Communist Party of the Philippines (CPP), New People’s Army (NPA), and the entire revolutionary movement on Negros Island and the rest of the Visayas remain undefeated.

According to VISCOM’s fake news factory chief, Lt. Gen. Benedict Arevalo, in 2023 they initiated 82 encounters in Central and Western Visayas, but in reality these are mostly fake encounters aimed at justifying their crimes, including the brutal murder of National Democratic Front of the Philippines (NDFP) peace consultant Rogelio Posadas and cold-blooded killings of peasant families. Along with this, Arevalo boasted of clearing communities and dismantling organizations which meant de facto martial law in the countrysides.

However, Arevalo could not hide the truth of the failure of his leadership and tried hard to sugarcoat their frustration by claiming that “there is still much to be done” and that “focused military operations will continue…as long as there are still unresolved issues, the threat of resurgence will remain.” 

In fact, the other side of maintaining costly military operations purportedly to quash the NPA is that this is a source of military corruption. The AFP will lose a huge milking cow, not to mention endure utter humiliation, if they declare “total victory” over the NPA.

Marco Valbuena | Chief Information Officer | Communist Party of the Philippines | February 08, 2024

Today we mark the 85th birth anniversary of Ka Jose Ma. Sison, founding chairman of the Central Committee of the Communist Party of the Philippines. We remember his invaluable contributions to the revolutionary resistance of the Filipino proletariat and people, both as an ideological leader and a practical organizer of their struggle for national and social liberation and socialism.

The volumes of Marxist-Leninist-Maoist writings which Ka Joma tirelessly produced through more than fifty years of revolutionary work, now bequeathed to the Filipino proletariat, remain profoundly relevant today. He promoted, defended and developed Marxism-Leninism-Maoism, not only during the height of world socialist revolution and construction, but especially during the most crucial period of reversals and defeats of the international proletariat, both in the Philippines and around the world.

He made contributions to the ideological trove of Marxist-Leninist-Maoist classics. These are being assiduously studied today by Filipino communists, revolutionaries and activists and continue to serve as their guide, as they shoulder the heavy task of waging the people’s democratic revolution and traverse the current difficult path of resistance, rectification, rebuilding and resurgence.

By applying Marxism-Leninism-Maoism on the concrete conditions of the Philippines, Ka Joma presented an incisive analysis of classes in Philippine society and exposed how US imperialism shaped the semicolonial and semifeudal system in the Philippines in collusion with the local ruling classes of big bourgeois compradors and big landlords. He identified the Filipino working class in alliance with the peasantry, in further progressive alliance with the petty bourgeoisie, and in positive alliance with the middle or national bourgeoisie, as the motive forces of the national democratic revolution.

By characterizing the different class forces, Ka Joma showed how the national democratic revolution in the Philippines can be led only by the working class through its political party—the communist party. The national democratic revolution in the Philippines, led by the proletariat, is a bourgeois democratic revolution of a new type. While seeking to cast away the decrepit comprador, feudal and bureaucrat capitalist fetters that have long prevented the development of the productive forces for industrial growth and vibrant agriculture, the proletarian-led democratic revolution aims to develop a progressive economy and democratic political system and thus create the conditions for modern socialist revolution and transformation of society.

Through further analysis of Philippine society, Ka Joma pointed to the necessity of waging protracted people’s war as means of carrying out the national democratic revolution, in order to build up the armed and political strength necessary to overthrow the reactionary classes, smash the neocolonial state, and establish the people’s democratic government.

Ka Joma elaborated on the strategic line of encircling the cities from the countryside, identified the specific characteristics of the people’s war, and outlined the phases of strategic defensive, strategic stalemate and strategic offensive, as the probable course and dialectical process of development of the people’s war. He showed that in order for the Party to build the revolutionary armed forces in the countryside, it must rely on and mobilize the peasant masses by addressing their demand for genuine land reform and waging antifeudal struggles for such purpose.

Through painstaking revolutionary work initiated by Ka Joma, which continue to be carried forward by tens of thousands of communist revolutionaries and mass activists, the ideas first elaborated in Amado Guerrero’s Philippine Society and Revolution were transformed into a material revolutionary force. Today, it continues to gather strength and steadily advance towards the goal of complete victory.

Despite the adverse situation borne out of the setbacks and defeats of the international proletariat since the late 1970s leading to the restoration of capitalism in the Soviet Union and China, the national democratic revolution in the Philippines persevered and scored great achievements throughout the past five decades and more. It has availed itself of the conditions generated by the crisis of imperialism and local ruling system, in order to rouse the people to fight the worsening forms of oppression and exploitation and wage revolutionary resistance as means to attain their aspiration for national and social liberation.

Ka Joma’s basic class analysis of the semicolonial and semifeudal conditions of Philippine society remains valid today, as when he first put forward this analysis more than five decades ago. This is in the same vein that the analysis of the nature of capitalist exploitation and dialectics of the capitalist system remains valid today as when Marx first exposed the basic contradiction of the capitalist system more than 175 years ago. This is also similar to how Lenin’s analysis of monopoly capitalism or imperialism at the turn of the 20th century remain valid and relevant today when we are well into the 21st century.

From the late 1970s to the present, detractors of Ka Joma and the national democratic movement have sprouted at one time or another to criticize the analysis of the semicolonial and semifeudal system. For around four decades now, they have disparaged Ka Joma and rehashed the claim he and the national democratic movement are “outmoded” in a desperate attempt to dress themselves as alternatives. Although they remain irrelevant and detached from the broad masses of the people, they should be exposed and repudiated for their incorrect ideas and attempt to draw people away from the revolutionary path.

The continuing relevance of Ka Joma’s ideas and analysis and validity of the struggle for national democracy stem from the historical fact that the country remains dominated and oppressed by US imperialism—the singular force that has condemned the Philippines to its present backward, agrarian, non-industrial state, and mere supplier of cheap raw materials and cheap labor.

The US imperialists, in collusion with the local ruling classes of big bourgeois compradors (who act basically as financial and commercial agents of foreign monopoly capitalists) and big landlords (who control vast tracks of lands and make it serve the export market), continue to prevent the country from carrying out land reform and national industrialization as this would enable the country to develop its independent capacity, make it less reliant on foreign loans and investments, less prone to unequal trade, and make it truly sovereign and capable of exercising a truly independent foreign policy.

Under the semicolonial and semifeudal system, the Philippines has had no capacity to produce steel, chemicals and other means of production in order to develop the capacity to manufacture capital goods, basic tools, machinery for agricultural modernization and food processing, and other essential commodities. The lack of capacity to produce and increasing reliance on imports results in the steady rise in prices of domestic commodities. Foreign monopoly capital and local bourgeois compradors and big landlords are not interested in raising production, but merely want to amass superprofits through the exploitation of cheap labor (including semiprocessing and menial technology or service jobs) and extraction of raw minerals and other land and marine resources, and make fast money by exporting surplus capital to infrastructure projects, dump surplus commodities by financing trade, all to the detriment of local production.

The past several decades have seen the widespread destruction of the country’s forces of production resulting in the steady decline of local manufacturing and agriculture. The reactionaries obscure this fact by dignifying the “expansion” of the “service sector,” as somewhat of a “post-industrial” phenomenon. In reality, the absurd share of the “service sector” in the local economy merely masks chronic mass unemployment in both cities and rural areas, where people engage in a multitude forms of eking out a living, in which combined with the number of call center workers, are large numbers of people serving as domestic helpers, unpaid farm work, delivery personnel, vendors, and an endless stream of odd jobbers.

The broad masses of workers and peasants are subjected to worsening forms of exploitation and oppression. They suffer from extremely low wages (as a means of enticing foreign investors), landlessness and land grabbing resulting in large-scale rural economic dislocation, chronic and high rates of unemployment, underemployment and informal work.

The relevance of Jose Ma. Sison’s writings and the validity of the struggle for national democracy with a socialist perspective becomes even more stark amid the deteriorating conditions of the semicolonial and semifeudal system under the US-Marcos regime, the aggravating socioeconomic conditions of the broad masses of the Filipino people, intensifying fascist repression, and worsening national oppression amid the protracted crisis of the global capitalist system and rising inter-imperialist contradictions leading to wars.

“The Communist Party of the Philippines (CPP) condemns in the strongest terms the genocidal war against the Palestinian people being waged by Israel goaded by the US imperialists.

Israel’s relentless missile attacks and aerial bombardment of Gaza have targeted homes, hospitals, media offices and commercial establishments, killing more than 2,300 Palestinians, more than 720 of whom are children. More than 20,000 homes have been destroyed by Israeli bombs, even as it has cut off electricity and water to the city. More than 300,000 people have been forced to flee their homes, as Israel seeks to reoccupy the Palestinian land. The brutality of Israel’s attacks are matched only by the racist and xenophobic rhetoric employed by its officials against the Palestinians.

Israel’s attacks are grossly disproportionate to the armed offensives staged last October 7 by the armed wing of the Hamas, and are a brazen violation of international humanitarian law and civilized laws of war.

The CPP joins the international community in condemning the US imperialists for extending military support to Israel and abetting its genocidal war and crimes against the Palestinian people. The deployment of two US aircraft carriers in international waters off the occupied territories of Palestine raises to risk of prolonging the war and causing it to spill over other countries.

Rectify errors and strengthen the Party! Unite and lead the broad masses of the Filipino people in fighting the US-Marcos regime! Advance the people’s democratic revolution! 

CPP Central Committee | Communist Party of the Philippines

Filled with boundless revolutionary vigor, optimism and joy, the Central Committee of the Communist Party of the Philippines extends its warmest militant greetings to the entire membership of the Party on the occasion of its 55th anniversary. Today, let us celebrate the achievements of the Party and all revolutionary forces during the past year in arousing, organizing and mobilizing the people in anti-imperialist, anti-feudal and antifascist struggles and advancing the people’s democratic revolution. At the same time, let us self-critically point out our weaknesses, shortcomings and errors in order to rectify and overcome them, and make even greater strides in the coming year.

Let us pay tribute to Ka Jose Maria Sison, founding chairman of the CPP Central Committee, whose first death anniversary we commemorated last December 16. Let us pay homage to Benito Tiamzon, Wilma Austria, Julius Giron, Mariano Adlao, Jorge Madlos, Menandro Villanueva, Antonio Cabanatan, Dionisio Micabalo, Eugenia Magpantay, Alfredo Merilos, Dennis Rodina, Agaton Topacio, Randall Echanis, Rosalino Canubas, Sandra Reyes, Ezequiel Daguman, Emmanuel Fernandez, Rolando Leyson Jr, Helenita Pardalis, Rogelio Posadas, Jude Fernandez, Josephine Mendoza and all the many heroes and martyrs of the Filipino people and the Philippine revolution. During their lifetime, they made great sacrifices and made invaluable contributions to the Filipino people’s cause of national and social liberation.

The Party will forever treasure the legacy of Ka Joma. For more than five decades, Ka Joma was an indefatigable worker of the Philippine revolution and served as its inexhaustible beacon. He further enriched the theory of Marxism-Leninism-Maoism through its application on the concrete conditions of Philippine society and by setting out the strategy, tactics and tasks of the Philippine revolution. Ka Joma’s body of work will remain a crucial guide for the revolutionary and democratic forces in carrying forward the national democratic revolution to complete victory.

The Central Committee of the Communist Party of the Philippines recognizes the sacrifice of all proletarian cadres and members of the Party who continue to selflessly serve the Filipino people’s cause for national democracy and its socialist perspective. Imbued with the communist spirit of giving everything they can to the cause of the working class and all toiling people, they shoulder all the mountainous tasks for advancing the revolution in their fields of responsibilities.

We extend our revolutionary greetings to the thousands of young cadres who joined the ranks of the Party during the past few years, and who are injecting immense energy to our protracted struggle. Many of you are now performing important tasks of leadership as members of the Party’s central organs, as commanders and political officers of the New People’s Army, and leaders of the revolutionary mass movement in both the cities and countryside. Deeply rooted among the broad masses of workers and peasants, the young generation of Filipino communists are displaying infinite determination to bring the Philippine revolution forward into the future.

On this occasion of commemorating our founding anniversary, the Central Committee extends its solidarity with all anti-imperialist, progressive and democratic forces around the globe who are waging militant resistance against national oppression and wars of aggression. We extend fraternal greetings to all our proletarian class sisters and brothers across the world who are promoting and applying Marxism-Leninism-Maoism on the concrete conditions of their countries and leading the workers and toiling people in their struggle for liberation and socialism.

The recent visit by Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida form part of its drive to expand its geopolitical influence through expansion of its military power and reach. Japan has been carrying out this push over the past decade or so under the auspices of the US imperialism. The visit paved the way for plans to allow Japanese military forces to use the country as its Southeast Asian outpost.

Kishida’s visit pushed for plans to forge a visiting forces agreement or reciprocal access agreement to allow Japanese military forces to freely go in and out of the country and use Philippine ports for purposes of refuelling and resupplying its warships and providing recreation for its crew.

Japan’s plans to expand its military operations here in the country further erode Philippine sovereignty and pull the country closer into the growing vortex of inter-imperialist wars in the region. It made a publicity stunt of providing a grant for a “coastal radar” system involving a ¥600 million or ₱235 million Japanese loan to buy old generation surplus equipment from Mitsubishi Electric Corp., a Japanese company. It dangled promises to fund infrastructure projects.

Japan has long employed its surplus capital to take advantage of the backward economic situation in the Philippines to serve its own economic interests. It extends loans through its Export-Import Bank, the Asian Development Bank and so-called official development assistance to fund infrastructure projects and other programs which invariably require the Philippines to buy Japanese equipment and consumables as a way of unloading Japan of its surplus commodities.

Marcos bureaucrat capitalists fawned over Kishida during his recent visit in the rush to get their share of the promised funds. They displayed utter subservience to Japan and promised to sign and ratify the agreement even before it has existed. The Marcos regime and the ruling classes in the Philippines always act slavishly and bow to every imperialist power they meet.

Japan is a junior imperialist partner of the US that has its own ambitions of regaining its “old glory” as an imperial power. It is part of the Quad alliance with the US, Australia and India. Goaded by the US, Japan has been strengthening its military power, including plans to produce fighter jets. It is set on expanding its armed presence in the Philippines and various parts of Asia. Japanese militarism has been on the rise in recent years. In line with its National Security Strategy formulated in December 2022, it plans to spend $321 billion for its military in 2023-2027, a 56% jump from the previous period of 2019-2023.

The US wants Japan to increase its military presence in the South China Sea in line with the so-called “Indo-Pacific Strategy” of the US to encircle China from the “first island chain” of countries nearest China. US machinations are further militarizing the area leading to increased dangers of armed conflict. The imperialist US is dragging its military allies in the area and using the Philippines as an outpost for their naval forces.

Japan is doing the bidding of the imperialist US. At the same time, as a capitalist giant and imperialist power, it also serves its advantage to strengthen its military might and use it to expand its economic interests and geopolitical influence. It is being driven to increase military spending in the hope of energizing its economy that has been dragged down by three decades of stagnation. As an imperialist power, Japan needs to expand its sources of raw materials, spheres of influence, and fields of investments for its surplus capital.

The Filipino people must unite and resist the plans allowing Japan to gain a military foothold in the Philippines, in line with US imperialist strategy. At the same time, they must demand that all imperialist powers, including the US and China, withdraw all its military forces in the South China Sea in order to prevent any possibility of armed hostilities breaking out which invariably will drag the country into a war that goes against the people’s interest.

Resisting US and Japanese intervention forms part of the overall struggle of the Filipino people for national and social liberation, which must be advanced vigorously and with even more urgency.

Marco Valbuena | Chief Information Officer | Communist Party of the Philippines