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By Dante A. Ang
(Third of three parts)
HE was a closed Catholic when he entered the
organization. But even while still a student in Batangas, Ka Roger
was already looking for answers. He wanted to know the difference
between the teachings of Jesus Christ and Mao Zedong and the
communists. Both teachings, he said, are no different from one
another in espousing love of neighbor and in serving the interests
of the country.
That is why, he said, “when you asked me what
my religion is, I just opened up what was previously a closed
Catholic belief.”
Ka Roger admitted that the communists’ god is
the people. Nothing can stop the people once they decide to move; he
cited the examples in China, Vietnam and the Philippines (EDSA 1 and
2).
Call them terrorists, kidnappers, extortionists
or whatever. But they are certainly no philanderers, no womanizers.
The fact is, they are a very disciplined lot. The organization is no
place for the Lotharios of the world.
Under NPA laws, a man is allowed only one wife.
Bachelors may not have more than one girlfriend.
In courting, NPA men observe certain rules.
First, the organization investigates the woman’s background:
family, education, political affiliation, religious beliefs,
reputation and other information that is of interest to the NPA.
The Party makes sure that the prospective
girlfriend or wife shares its political beliefs. At the very least,
the Party sees to it that she will not be a problem when she marries
a comrade.
Once everything is cleared, the Party helps its
comrade in pursuing the woman. On their own, comrades talk to her,
cajole her and do everything to win her heart for one of their own.
That is probably why most of the women
eventually become members of the organization after marriage. Some,
if not all, of the women join their husbands in the mountains or in
“war zones” after their marriage. Separated couples are allowed
to visit their loved ones at least once a year—à la annual
vacation. Depending on the alert level, the husband visits his wife,
and occasionally, the wife and children are allowed to stay briefly
in the camp where the husband is stationed.
That is why, Ka Roger explained, it is important
that the woman share the political beliefs of her prospective
husband. Otherwise, he said, there’s a high probability the
relations may turn sour and the risk of the woman squealing on the
husband. The Party is concerned about the safety of its members and
it would not want to imperil the lives of its own members even for
love’s sake.
What’s more, even their children at some
point, perhaps because of exposure or upbringing, also join the CPP.
‘Rules are rules’
Ka Roger’s eldest daughter, for instance, at
23, is already a member of the NPA. She, too, is an active organizer
like her parents. But the father in him makes him worry everytime
his daughter goes on a campaign.
What happens if the Party leaders rule that the
woman isn’t fit to be a girlfriend or wife of a comrade? Ka Roger
took the question in stride. “Rules are rules. Everybody follows.
Only women who are considered fit to be girlfriends or wives of
their Party members must be pursued.”
James, for instance, is still single. His former
girlfriend left him for another man. Even then he has no regrets. He
waits for the moment when he would meet another woman who earns the
favor of the Party. He believes in the infinite wisdom of the Party
leaders. His devotion and loyalty to the cause seem absolute. James
practices what the Party preaches: Party interest before personal
concerns. No ifs, no buts. No middle ground.
Ka Roger said the Party takes care of its own.
Members do not draw monthly salaries. The Party takes care of their
personal needs from food, clothing and medicines to school tuition
for their children. What they need, the Party provides. They may not
enjoy material luxury, but he said they have more than enough. They
do not complain. Besides, they have simple tastes.
And given their tight economic condition, Ka
Roger said that educational support for the children of the members
is limited temporarily to one child per family.
Being a father himself, he, too, feels bad
everytime his troops kill or hurt a soldier or a policeman. But it
is a case of “them or us.” Ka Roger reminded me that the country
is effectively in a “state of war.” These soldiers and
policemen, although acting on orders of their superiors, are
actually part of the government’s killing machine, he said.
The Party remains optimistic that the peace
talks will succeed. It joined the talks in the firm belief that a
political solution to the armed struggle could be found.
The Party’s agenda
The Party has presented a concrete program of
government, according to Ka Roger, to carry out economic and
political changes. First, he said, is socioeconomic reform, followed
by political and constitutional reforms.
The NDF was very transparent and has presented
its position to the government panel. It remains open to a
compromise as long as the root of the problems is addressed.
The substantive point on the agenda concerns the
issue of the armed components of the NDF and the NPA vis-à-vis the
AFP and the PNP. Ka Roger did not elaborate. But I suppose he was
concerned about the future of the NPA if peace between the NDF and
the government is finally achieved. Laying down their arms is one
issue that is certainly nonnegotiable to the local communists.
Integration into the AFP and the PNP, however, is a distinct
possibility.
The last substantive item on the agenda is the
secession of hostilities and disposition of forces, which, if
resolved, would bring lasting peace.
Agreement on the Comprehensive Respect for Human
Rights according to the International Humanitarian Law has been
reached on President Estrada’s watch. Ka Roger deplored the
government’s refusal to carry out the agreement although it had
been jointly approved by the government and the NDF.
Joint monitoring office
The government has yet to create the Joint
Monitoring Committee that will monitor all human-rights violations.
Despite numerous violations, the government is unmoved. (The
government and the NDF set up the joint monitoring office last week
with an NDF ranking member, Fidel Agcaoili, in attendance.). The NDF
is still waiting for the review of all Marcos-influenced laws that
need to be repealed or amended.
Ka Roger also deplored the government’s
refusal to release political prisoners, who he said number around
200. He recalled that the government promised to release them in
2001.
For its part, the NPA currently holds two
political prisoners who could easily be released. All it takes is
for the government to simply inform the NDF panel that it wants to
settle the issue.
Ka Roger said the NPA is not asking the
government anything in return for the release of the two soldiers.
He reiterated that the prisoners would be freed once the government
notifies the NDF that it wants them released.
Even if the two soldiers have cases pending
against them, the NPA will suspend hearing them and release the
prisoners once the NDF panel orders their freedom.
Ka Roger reiterated that the NPA is not asking
for anything—not even a swap of prisoners. He noted that the
government is anathema to prisoner exchange. He deplores the
government’s inaction given that the NDF will pose no objection so
long as the government asks for the release of the two prisoners.
Revolutionary ‘taxes’
The Permit to Campaign Fees had become a hot
topic during the May election. Several candidates for local
positions were reportedly prevented from campaigning in areas
influenced or controlled by the NPA.
Some candidates were ambushed ostensibly for
refusing to pay the fees.
Ka Roger tries to justify the imposition of the
fees. Realistically, he said, two governments exist now. One is the
reactionary, puppet government; the other is a revolutionary
government born of 30 years of armed struggle, headed by the
Communist Party.
He said running a government requires money. And
the “taxes” that the NPA collects from businessmen and
politicians maintain their bureaucracy, not to mention the cost of
waging a guerrilla campaign against the government.
Ka Roger reiterated that the Communist Party is
a separate government and therefore has the right to tax people and
businesses operating in its controlled or influenced areas.
He laughed off charges that the NPA guerrillas
are nothing but bandits. But if they are bandits, he said, they are
the kind that set up institutions for the people. They provide free
education and medical services to their “constituents.”
NPA schooling
They too, have schools. But unlike regular
schools where students attend six years of elementary, four years of
high school and four years of college, theirs is quite different.
For one thing, schooling is abbreviated and not sequential. Their
students go to school for weeks. The subjects taught are more
practical and deal mostly with people’s rights and understanding
the political issues. Students also graduate and are issued
diplomas.
Ka Roger was very proud of the NPA’s
“medical school.” He said medical students are taught the basics
like surgical operation, treatment of communicable diseases and
other ailments. They also have their “OB gynecologists” who help
deliver babies.
They also conduct medical and dental missions in
various barangays as part of their social commitment to the people.
Teaching their members the basics in medicine is
expected. The NPA is at war with the government and it needs medical
staff to treat its sick and wounded. Besides, I wouldn’t be
surprised if the guerrillas use their knowledge of medicine to
proselytize. It enables them to empathize with the people. It is
actually an important component of the NPA’s propaganda tool.
Ka Roger said those who refuse to pay
revolutionary tax are subjected to disciplinary actions. But he said
the NPA does not threaten the lives of those who refuse to pay.
There are other recourses. He did not elaborate.
Alternative government
The Party has established its own alternative
government with 128 guerrilla fronts in the countryside. Although
these may be small, their influence in the countryside as a
revolutionary government becomes impressive if taken as a whole, Ka
Roger boasted.
He talks of a parallel government in areas
influenced or controlled by the NPA. The NPA runs its government
unmindful of the barangay councils and provincial government. The
youth, according to Ka Roger, recognize the revolutionary committee
more than the barangay or even the provincial government.
Of the 128 revolutionary fronts, some have set
up democratic government or, at the very least, where seeds of a
democratic government have already been planted.
I pointed out to Ka Roger that without
infrastructure, there could be no government. In the NPA’s case, I
told him, I do not see any infrastructure. He disagreed with me. He
said it is the people who make up the structure. They set up units
in the barangays, army units and government units. The lowest is the
barrio revolutionary committee similar to the barangay council where
everybody is represented—farmers, youth, women and representatives
from the middle forces. A chairman heads the committee and is
elected, depending on the level of sophistication.
For as long as there are people, Ka Roger said,
there will be structures. But he admitted that the NPA lies low
whenever the military or the police launch offensives in controlled
or influenced barangays. It resumes its “democratic” activities
once the soldiers or the police leave the place.
Ka Roger was not impressed with these government
“offensives.” Most of the time, these offensives or
“follow-up” operations were launched so that the commanders
could get a sizable budget for themselves. “Pag may follow-up
operations, may budget. Kinakana nila,” he said.
The military laughed off this accusation, which
it said was not surprising, coming as it does from Ka Roger. “He
is known for that kind of brave, often baseless statement,” said
Lt. Col. Daniel Lucero, public information chief of the Armed
Forces. The military’s constituted duty, he added, is to protect
the country from various threat organizations, and the NPA is the
“real threat to our freedom, which our Constitution guarantees.”
Ka Roger also claims that the NPA gets arms from
some friendly soldiers whose salaries are barely enough to keep body
and soul together. “Pag wala na kaming bala, hanap kami kaibigang
sundalo.”
Committee members are elected. But in the
beginning, he said, and until old traditions are detoxified,
officials of the committee are appointed.
Democratic government
But there are ways of removing appointed
officials. The NPA has its own set of rules in setting up a
democratic government. Committee officials are elected through
secret balloting only in areas considered progressive. In less
progressive areas, officials are elected by the raising of hands.
Ka Roger said the NPA starts its proselytizing
in far-flung barangays where the government’s presence is hardly
felt. Its organizing efforts, however, are no longer limited to the
poor barangays. The NPA is now able to organize in cities,
factories, schools and even in churches. He credits its success to
government neglect.
Residents in barangays inside the guerrilla
fronts are organized and taught their rights.
Propaganda or not, Ka Roger believes
Communism’s time has come and that “victory” is at hand. He
dreams of the day when the Filipino would be free; free from the
dictates of the foreign powers and of special-interest groups; free
to chart his own destiny; free from the injustice heaped on him by
the rich, the powerful and the corrupt; and free from hunger and
want.
You may disagree with him, hate him even, for
his revolutionary (some say terrorist) tactics in expressing his
political views and in imposing his ideology on us, but his dreams
and aspirations resonate in the hearts of the jobless, the
illiterate, the sick who could not get medical help and the victims
of injustice.
Call him a terrorist, a kidnapper, an
extortionist, an enemy of the State, but like most of us, Ka Roger,
too, longs for peace—peace with honor.
Part 1 |Part
2 |
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