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This issues

highlights...

Residents demand

pullout of abusive

soldiers in Comval

PAGE 5

Pulang Diwata

Command counter-

attacks PAGE 7

Capitalisms

destructiveness

PAGE 10

Pahayagan ng Partido Komunista ng PilipinasPinapatnubayan ng Marxismo-Leninismo-MaoismoANG

English EditionVol. XLII No. 18

September 21, 2011www.philippinerevolution.net

Editorial

Following the dictates of its imperialist mas-ter, the Aquino regime is further opening upthe economy to big foreign monopoly capi-

talists, especially giant mining companies. It is

doing everything to facilitate foreign investmentswhile preparing to amend the reactionary consti-tution in order to dismantle all legal barriers tothe entry of foreign capital.

The Aquino regime boasts of doubling foreigninvestments in mining to $2.8 billion this year.To make the influx of foreign mining companiespalatable to the people, the regime is peddling aflurry of lies about the so-called benefits of min-ing.

Aquino government officials claim that wide-

spread foreign mining can contribute a lot toeconomic growth and relieve severe unemploy-ment.

According to studies, however, mining hascontributed an average ofonly 1.6% to the GrossDomestic Product. Min-ing companies pay intaxes only the equiva-lent of 5% of

their totalmineral haulfrom thecountry. Theycontributeless than 1%to overall employment, andwhatever jobs theycreate are haz-ardous and tempo-rary in nature.

Compared to these minuscule contribu-tions, what the country loses is incalculable.In the past three and a half decades, foreign min-

Oppose the influxof foreign mining companies

ing companies siphoned out `1.5 trillion worthof Philippine mineral resources, including gold,nickel, copper, chromite and magnetite.

In addition, they are allowed to remit all of

their profits to their home countries under theMining Act of 1995.

Foreign mining operations in the Philippineshave not contributed to the long-term develop-ment of the domestic economy. They have notgone beyond mere extraction. While these compa-nies earn billions, the mineral resources they ex-tract are exported as inputs to the industrializa-tion of foreign economies, and are permanentlylost to the country. They deprive the Philippinesof many minerals needed for national industrial-

ization and the building of basic local industries.The entry of mining operations is invariably

accompanied by militarization and the suppres-sion of democratic rights. The lands of farmersand national minorities are forcibly occupied, andtheir communities and livelihoods destroyed.

When the victims stand upagainst plunder and ex-ploitation, they are violent-ly suppressed.

The Aquino regime's in-tensified efforts to inviteand allow foreign min-ing companies toplunder the country'sresources is a big blowto the Filipino people.

It is perfectly clear thatAquino has no plans at all

of heeding the people'sclamor to put a stop to for-

eign mining operations.The Filipino

people must in-

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Ang Bayan is published fortnightly by the Central Committee

of the Communist Party of the Philippines

Ang Bayan is published in Pilipino,

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Vol. XLII No. 18 September 21, 2011

Contents

Editial: Oppose entry of foreign

mining companies 1

US sinister plan for mining 2

Signature campaign vs Xstrata 3

Nationwide transport strike 3

Pullout of abusive soldiers demanded 4

Political detainees hunger strike 5

Brutality in Antipolo 6

Soldiers shoot Lumad woman 6

Pulang Diwata counter-attacks 7

Military actions in different regions 9

New puppet regime in Libya 8

Capitalisms destructiveness 10

News 11

ANG

2 ANG BAYAN September 21, 2011

tensify their efforts to resist theentry and plunderous operationsof foreign mining companies.They must strengthen their uni-ty and rise up in militant massstruggles. They must thoroughlyoppose the Aquino regime's

moves to dismantle all obstaclesto the entry of foreign miningcompanies. They must resist the

plunder of the Philippines' na-tional patrimony and the extrac-tion of superprofits from thecountry's wealth.

This once more brings to thefore the correctness of the poli-cy of the people's democratic

government to ban all enterpris-es, including big foreign miningand logging firms, that engage

in the large-scale plunder ofnatural resources, landgrabbingand the destruction of the envi-ronment. The New People's Armywill continue to enforce thispolicy and carry out the neces-sary measures to support the

people's clamor to expel foreignmining companies from theirland. ~

The US' sinister planfor Philippine mining

The steps being taken by the puppet Philippine government toattract foreign mining investments all fall within the framework

of US imperialist designs. This is evident in secret reports from theUS embassy in Manila disclosed by wikileaks.org.

The reports show how muchthe US covets the Philippines'mineral resources. The US wasfurther encouraged to openmining enterprises in thePhilippines after the SupremeCourt upheld in 2004 the Philip-pine Mining Act of 1995 that al-lows foreigners 100% ownershipof companies engaged in thewidespread exploration and pro-duction of minerals, oil and gas.

The reports reveal that in ameeting on August 2-6, 2005 ofthe United States GeographicalSurvey (USGS) with Philippinegovernment officials, the USGScalled for an inventory of

Philippine mineral reserves us-ing modern technology. ThenDepartment of Environment andNatural Resources secretaryMike Defensor endorsed the ideaand promisedthe US gov-e r n m e n tthat theP h i l i p -p i n e swouldcomeu pwitht h ec o u n -ter-

part funds needed for the $4million project.

The US wants a detailed sur-vey of Philippine mineral re-sources in order to identify ar-eas where mining should be

conducted. The USGS estimatesthat the Philippines has morethan US$840 billion worth ofuntapped mineral resources andthat up to a third of Philippineterritory is rich in mineral de-posits such as copper, gold,nickel and chromium. By identi-fying the areas where miningshould be concentrated, thePhilippine government will beable to come up with a MineralAction Plan, including a pro-

gram for attracting for-eign invest-ments.

The US embassyreports also indi-cate the need toprepare plans on

how to ad-

dress possi-ble obstacles. It mentioned op-position by environmental ac-tivists and the Catholic churchand mining's negative imagedue to disasters such as thatwhich transpired in MarinduqueIsland in 1996. It also cited theissue of ancestral lands in min-ing areas, some of which haveconnections to the revolution-

ary movement and the Bang-samoro struggle.

The US specifically cited theresolution of security issuesas the key to paving the way forthe alleged growth and devel-opment of investments in min-ing. ~

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3ANG BAYAN September 21, 2011

Activists assail miningconference

National minorities allied with Kalipunan ngmga Katutubong Mamamayan ng Pilipinas

(KAMP) as well as environmental activists assailedthe Philippine Mining Congress, a conference oflocal and foreign mining companies held on Sep-tember 11-13.

The protesters picketed the Sofitel Plaza Hotelin Pasay City to oppose continuing destructivemining operations in areas of national minorities.

Up to a million hectares of Philippine territory

have been sold by the government for the benefitof mining operations, and 60% of these are ances-real lands. The Philippine Mining Congress aims toattract more foreign investments in the industryin accordance with the Aquino regime's programto promote foreign mining operations. The pro-testers demanded the abrogation of the MiningAct of 1995, calling it a destructive and plunder-ous law. ~

100,000 sign petitionvs Xstrata-SMI

Up to a hundred thousand people signeda petition against plans by the foreign-

owned Xstrata and its subsidiary SagittariusMines Inc. (SMI) to conduct widespreadmining in South Cotabato, Kidapawan,North Cotabato and Digos, Davao del Sur.

SMI's operations which will cover 20,000hectares is expected to destroy four riversystems in the affected areas. Aside fromthe huge water supply needed in miningoperations, farmers and fisherfolk fear theresulting contamination of water resources.

SMI's operations will also affect irriga-

tion systems in the area and eventually,agricultural production.

Meanwhile, a bill has been filed in Con-gress demanding an end to the frameworkof operations of mining in the countrywhich only serves the interest of foreigncompanies. The bill envisions a mining in-dustry that serves the goals of national in-dustrialization, agricultural modernization,enviromental sustainability and respect forhuman rights.

Bayan Muna Rep. Teodoro Casio, whoauthored the bill said that export orienta-tion and foreign domination in the miningindustry should be put to an end. Thus, thebillions of pesos earned through mining canbe used to propel the development of thelocal economy and improve social services.

Casio also assailed the lack of trans-parency of foreign companies with respect

to their real incomes. Hecited a 2007 report bythe Mines and Geo-sciences Bureau statingthat the gross produc-tion value of metallic

mining was at `81.4 bil-lion but total metallicexports that same yearwas at `112.015 billion.This means that the

mining companies failedto report up to `30 bil-lion in production.Casio called on thegovernment to impose amoratorium on the ap-

proval of new mining ap-plications for as long asthe country's mininglaws have not beenchanged. ~

Nationwide transportstrike, slamsoil price hikes

The nationwide transport strike on September 19 tooppose incessant oil price hikes was a success. Theprotest action was led by Pagkakaisa ng mga Sama-

han ng Tsuper at Operators Nationwide (PISTON).According to PISTON secretary-general George San

Mateo, several sectors supported their protest actionand transportation was largely paralyzed nationwide.This proves that drivers supported the call for the junk-

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ANG BAYAN September 21, 2011

Residents of Pantukan town in Compostela Valley are demand-

ing the pullout of abusive soldiers of the Armed Forces of thePhilippines (AFP) from their areas because of the dangers

posed by their presence to their lives andlivelihoods. The residents grew more deter-mined to get the soldiers of the 71st IB outof their town after a drunken soldier killedseven-year old Sunshine Jabinez at midnightof September 3. Sunshine was a pupil at theBiasong Elementary School.

Sunshine was killed by PFC

Baltazar M. Ramos after he wentberserk at a videoke bar inBarangay Biasong, Pantukan.Ramos was a member of thePeace and Development Team(PDT) of the 10th ID. He indis-criminately fired his weapon atthe nearby houses, including

t h e

J a b i n e zf a m i l y ' shut whereSunsh inewas sleep-ing.

Ramoshad earlier

Townfolk demand pulloutof abusive soldiersfrom Compostela Valley

ing of the Oil Deregulation Law,the removal of the 12% ValueAdded Tax on oil and the imple-mentation of a major rollback inthe prices of petroleum products.

The drivers were also not de-terred from launching the trans-

port strike despite threats fromMalacaang that their franchiseswill be suspended if they joinedthe protest. Neither did the5,000 security forces deployedby the Metropolitan Manila De-velopment Authority, the Philip-pine National Police and theArmed Force of the Philippinessucceed in intimidating them. Adiaologue between Benigno

Aquino III and representatives oftransport groups on September15 was a failure because Aquinowas not able to lay down con-crete measures to stop continuedoil price hikes and impose sanc-tions on the oil giants for thesuffering they have caused thepeople.

In Metro Manila, an estimat-

ed 70% of jeepney and FX routes

in strategic cities in the regionwas paralyzed. The strikers putup protest centers in Cubao,Philcoa, Commonwealth Avenueand Kamias and Kalayaan Roadsin Quezon City; Espaa Avenueand Sta. Mesa in Manila; Monu-

mento in Caloo-can; AlabangViaduct in Mun-tinlupa; Sucat inParaaque; San Joaquin andPasig Market in Pasig City; andAngono in Rizal. The drivers be-gan to mass up early that day toencourage fellow drivers not toply their routes. Workers, stu-dents, urban poor, women andother sectors joined the protest.

In other regions, transporta-

tion was paralyzed by an averageof 60-100% in various towns andcities. In Masbate, transporta-tion was 100% paralyzed; in Ca-gayan de Oro, 98%; Butuan City,95%; and Davao City, 92%.Transportation in Calamba, Sta.Rosa and San Pedro (Laguna);Imus, Rosario, Bacoor, Gen. Mar-iano Alvarez and Dasmarias City

(Cavite); and in Digos City, Va-

lencia City and General SantosCity was 90% paralyzed. InTiaong, Quezon and Iligan City,it was 80% paralyzed; and inMalaybalay, Bukidnon and MarbelCity, it was 60% paralyzed. Asidefrom jeepney drivers, drivers of

buses, tricycles, minicabs andhabal-habal (passenger motorcy-cles) also joined the protest.Classes were suspended and of-fices were closed in a number ofplaces because of the transportstrike.

Various other protest actionswere also launched in places likeCebu where drivers barricadedthe Petron oil depot in Mandaue

City. Activists in Baguio Citylaunched a noise barrage whilethose in Kalibo, Aklan and in thecities of Santiago, Iloilo, Ba-colod and Koronanadal held ral-lies.

PISTON is ready to launch an-other transport strike if theregime does not take any actionon their demands and oil compa-

nies continue with their greed. ~

been picking fights at thevideoke bar, according to a re-port from KARAPATAN-SouthernMindanao Region. He had en-tered the kitchen, accosted acivilian, picked up a bottle andhit the civilian with it.

Sunshine was rushed to the

Pantukan District Hospitalwhere she was declared dead on

4

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FASCIST STATE ON A RAMPAGE

Political detainees launchnationwide protest

Political detainees nationwide went on a hunger strike on Sep-tember 13-21 to demand their unconditional release. Demo-

cratic and progressive organizations joined their protest actionwhich was timed to coincide with the 39th anniversary of thedeclaration of martial law.

arrival, said Edessa Sandra A.Campos, advocacy officer of theChildren's Rehabilitation Cen-ter-Southern Mindanao Region.

Campos condemned the de-ployment of the military incivilian communities. She saidthat the soldiers were notreally for peace and develop-ment, especially since theyposed a big danger to the res-idents, particularly the chil-dren. Campos also condemnedthe AFP's use of children asguides in pursuing the New

People's Army.KARAPATAN-SMR called for

an investigation of the officersresponsible for the massive de-ployment of the military incivilian areas. It also demandedcompliance with agreementsthat protect human rights suchas the Comprehensive Agree-ment on Respect for HumanRights and International Hu-

manitarian Law, the United Na-tions Convention on the Rightsof the Child and Republic Act7610 or the Special Protectionof Children Against Abuse, Ex-ploitation and DiscriminationAct. ~

Military abducts Agta youth

The military abducted an Agta youth from his house in Bur-deos town in Polillo Island, northern Quezon. According toan account from the Agta tribe, on August 23, armed men whoclaimed to be members of the New People's Army (NPA) seizedRogemer Demer Morada, 25. Morada was a former NPA fighter.

The armed men did not have name tags or name cloths butthe Agta believe that they were government soldiers.

Fr. Pete Montallana of the Prelature of Infanta reportedMorada's disappearance to the media. After a few weeks, 202nd

Infantry Brigade chief Col. Aurelio Baladad was compelled toadmit on September 9 that the military had custody of the Ag-ta youth, but he claimed that Morada voluntarily went with thesoldiers. The military has not surfaced Morada to date.

Baladad was the same officer involved in the illegal ar-rest and detention of health workers who were later knownas the Morong 43. ~

The hunger strike washeld from 6 a.m. to 6 p.m.On the first day, membersof the Samahan ng mgaEx-Detainees Laban saDetensyon at Aresto

(SELDA), KARAPATAN,GABRIELA and BagongAlyansang Maka-b a y a n(BAYAN)p i c k e t edin front ofC a m pCrame inQ u e z o n

City. SEL-DA secre-tary-gen-eral Ange-line Ipongsaid thatup to 77

political prisoners were illegallyarrested and detained

under the Aquinoregime.

The eight politi-cal detainees at the

Iloilo Rehabilita-tion Center are also

holding ahungers t r i k eas partof thecoordi-n a t e dprotest

to de-m a n dthe re-l e a s eof allpoliti-

cal prisoners in the country.This is the second hunger

strike to be held by the politi-cal detainees. In July, theyfasted for four days before

Aquino's second State of theNation Address (SONA). Sincethen, only five out of 353 polit-ical detainees then have beenreleased despite the Aquinoregime's pledge that they wouldall be freed before the formalpeace negotiations then sched-uled for July.

Said KARAPATAN chair MarieHilao-Enriquez, the politicalprisoners should have longbeen released, especially theailing, elderly, women and de-tainees covered by the JointAgreement on Safety and Im-munity Guarantees. ~

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FASCIST STATE ON A RAMPAGE

SAF-PNP brutalityin Antipolo City

Six village watchmen (barangay tanod) of Antipolo City be-came victims of abuse by elements of the Special ActionForce of the Philippine National Police (SAF-PNP).

On September 14, elementsof the SAF-PNP detained sixvillage watchmen of BarangaySan Jose, Antipolo City. Thisoccurred at around 3 a.m.when the village watchmenwent to the barangay's Sitio

San Josef to respond to ahold-up that had taken place.They also wanted to investi-gate the shooting they heardbetween 11:30 p.m. and 2a.m.

When the village watch-men reached the detachmentmanned by about 20 elementsof the PNP Special ActionForce, they were not let in.Instead, they were detainedon suspicion of being mem-bers of the New People's Army(NPA). The watchmen deniedthe accusation and provedthat they were legitimate vil-

lage watchmen. But theywere ordered to lie flat on theground. The policemen thenindiscriminately fired theirweapons. None of the villagewatchmen were injured andthey were eventually re-

leased, but the incident hastraumatized them. On theother hand, the SAF elementswere so jittery because theNPA had just ha-rassed their de-tachment thenight be-fore.

T h echeckpoints putup by the SAFostensibly forthe community'ssecurity have instilledfear among the residents,especially among women and

Lumad woman shot by military

ALumad woman was wounded in the chest when she was arbitar-ily shot by soldiers. Bebit Kalinaw Enriquez was about to draw

water from the river in a mountainous part of Sitio Panaytayon,Barangay Mahaba, Cabadbaran, Agusan del Norte when she wasseen by soldiers from the 30th IB who were conducting a militaryoperation. Frightened, Enriquez rushed to a nearby hut owned byher uncle Datu Rabnat Kalinawan, where she was was pursued andshot by the soldiers.

Her relatives had planned on bringing her to a hospital butthey were stopped from doing so by another group of soldiers. In-

stead, she was brought to Barangay Puting Bato and from there,to a Philippine Army hospital. The military falsely claimed that shewas a member of the New People's Army wounded in an encounter.After a few days, the 4th Infantry Division came up with still an-other lie. It claimed that Mrs. Enriquez was not wounded by gun-shots from soldiers but by an explosive detonated by the NPA.

Meanwhile, clan members and fellow villagers looked for En-riquez's relatives Datu Rabnat, his wife Elsa, his sons Toto, Warli-

to and Benny and Benny's wifeVictoria for five days before

finding them in the place wherethey were stopped by the mili-tary.

This crime was committedamid a massive 15-day militaryoperation by the 4th ID in theCaraga region. From August 30to September 14, the militarywent on a rampage in ButuanCity and in the towns of Cabad-baran, RTR, Santiago, Tubay

and Kitcharao in Agusan delNorte; and in the uplandbarangays of Alegria, Gigaquitand Claver in Surigao del Norte.The 29th and 36th IB also con-ducted separate operations inSurigao del Sur in the same pe-riod. ~

children.The residents have also

complained about the SAF'scontinuing combat operationssince many of them, especial-

ly farmers, have been threat-ened and harassed on suspi-cion that they were NPA sup-porters. As a result, they havestopped going to their farmsand charcoal pits. They alsosaid there were incidentswhere the SAF would indis-criminately shoot at anyonethey fancied and later declarethe victims as

NPA. ~

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VICTORIOUS NPA OFFENSIVES

Pulang Diwata Commandlaunches counter-attacks

on military

Units under the Pulang Diwata Command (New People'sArmy-Northeastern Mindanao Region) launched a counter-attack on August 31-September 7 against advancing

troops from the Philippine Army's 4th Division. The enemy suf-fered an undetermined number of casualties during the 15-dayonslaught while two Red fighters valiantly offered their lives.

September 7. Four fascisttroopers were wounded when

Red fighters closed in on agroup of soldiers having adrinking session at thebarangay center in Camam-onan, Gagaquit, Surigao delNorte and shot at them.

September 5. A soldier waswounded when Red guerrillasfrom Front 16 sniped a militaryunit in the center of Sitio Za-panta, Barangay Bangayan,Kitcharao, Agusan del Norte.The guerrillas conducted theharassment operation after vil-lagers left the soldiers who oc-cupied their houses.

September 4. A soldier un-der the 29th IB was killedwhen an NPA member fromFront 19 sniped a group oftroopers led by a Lieutenant

Orcullo at KM 23, SitioMagkahunaw, Janipaan, San

Agustin, Surigao del Norte.Two platoons under the 29thIB who were then conductingoperations in the area with-drew as a result.

At around 10 a.m. thatday, Red fighters fromFront 16 harassed aPhilippine Armycolumn in a moun-tainous area in Ma-haba, Sitio Zapanta.An hour later, twoMG-520 helicoptersbombed the area for30 minutes, but theRed fighters hadlong been gone bythen.

September 3.

Two men from a col-

umn of the Scout Ranger Com-pany were wounded when theywere sniped by guerrillas fromFront 16 at 6:16 a.m. in SitioUmaw, Barangay Camam-onan.

September 2. Several sol-diers from the 42nd DivisionReconnaissance Company werewounded when an NPA teamfrom Front 16 mounted an am-bush at around 8 a.m. in theMahaba mountains in Zapanta,Bangayan. In retaliation, twoMG-520 helicopter gunshipsbombed the area for almost anhour. That afternoon, another

NPA team attacked a PhilippineArmy column in Sitio Kamalig,Puting Bato, Cabadbaran, Agu-san del Norte.

August 31. An undeter-mined number of militarytroops were wounded intwo sniping operationsconducted by the NPA in

the upland areas ofBangayan. ~

Albay detachment chiefambushed

Ateam from the Santos Binamera Com-mand (New People's Army-Albay) exe-

cuted the orders of the People's Court tomete capital punishment on Cpl. RichardGuiriba Narito in Barangay Maninila, Cama-lig, Albay on September 7. Corporal Naritowas the commander of the notorious Taplo-con Detachment of the 2nd IB in Camaligtown. NPA Red fighters ambushed CorporalNarito and two other elements of the 2nd IBwho were aboard two motorcycles. Seized

from them was an M16 rifle.According to Santos Binamera Command

spokesperson Florante Orobia, Corporal Naritowas the mastermind in a series of crimes andabuses against the people. His most seriouscrimes involved the brutal killing in January2010 of Vicente Moradillo and Ananias Cardi-ente Jr. whose bodies were also burnt; the mur-ders of Danilo Balala (February 2011) and Sal-vador Mancera (January 2011); and the rob-beries committed against a Mister Armenta(2011), Anselma Murillo and Lourdes Lotino(2010).

The victims of Corporal Narito's group whohad long been seeking justice rejoiced uponhearing of the NPA's successful operation. ~

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8

VICTORIOUS NPA OFFENSIVES


New puppet regimein Libya

The International League of Peoples' Struggle (ILPS)strongly condemned the brutal military campaign of theUS, North Atlantic Treaty Organization and their puppet

armed forces against the Libyan people.

Foreign troops in conspir-

acy with local armed ele-ments seized Tripoli City aftera seven-month bloody cam-paign of bombings by air andnaval forces of the US, UK,France, Italy and other NATOmembers. The US poured in atleast $1 billion to overthrow

the Gaddafi government. Up

to 20,000 bombs weredropped from the sky, target-ing the regime's main militaryfacilities. Also targeted werehouses, mosques, civilian in-frastructure such as powerand water facilities, hospi-tals, schools and daycare cen-

3 soldiers killedin NPA ambushon 75th IB

Three soldiers were killedwhen Red fighters of the

Conrado Heredia Command(CHC) ambushed 75th IB troop-ers conducting a military opera-tion in Sitio Pamian, BarangayBugac, Lingig, Surigao del Suron September 6. The AFP oper-ation was aimed at rescuingMayor Henry Dano and his two

military escorts, who are in NPAcustody.

The ambush was a punitivemeasure against the 75th IBtroops who serve as privatearmies of landlords and com-pradors. They pose as meeklambs implementing programsfor peace and developmentunder Oplan Bayanihan. These

programs are now being used asfronts for rescue operations forthe three detainees.

CHC spokesperson Ka RoelAgustin II said that the fascisttroops of the 75th and 67th IBand the 2nd Scout Ranger Bat-talion continue to scour Surigaodel Sur, Agusan del Sur, Com-postela Valley and Davao Orien-tal to look for Dano and his

group.The AFP obviously has not

heeded the call to stop militaryoperations in order to ensurethe safety of the detainees andexpedite the judicial proceed-ings they are undergoing in thepeople's court. ~

Trooper killed in ambush

Asoldier was killed when a commando team from the 1stPulang Bagani Company (PBC) of the NPA Merardo Arce

Command ambushed elements of the 69th IB conducting pa-trols in Purok 7, Paradise Embac, Paquibato District, DavaoCity on September 17.

Leoncio Ka Parago Pitao, spokesperson of the 1st PBCsaid the ambush gave justice to victims of terrorism, tortureand other human rights violations committed by the militaryagainst the peasants, especially women and children study-ing in Paquibato District.

Residents of Paquibato District have long been complain-ing about the 69th IB's encampments near schools and hous-es of civilians. ~

NPA harasses SAF-PNP detachment

Red fighters of the Narciso Antazo Aramil Command(NAAC)) conducted a harassment operation against the

Special Action Force of the Philippine National Police (SAF-PNP) on the night of September 13. The harassment opera-tion was conducted on the SAF-PNP detachment in Sitio San

Josef, Barangay San Jose, Antipolo City, Rizal, which was justa few kilometers away from the camp of the notorious 16thIB and detachments of the 59th IB.

While the Red fighters were firing, not a single element ofthe SAF-PNP inside the detachment was able to return fire.The guerrillas had long been gone before anyone from the po-lice shot back.

Two policemen from the SAF-PNP were wounded in the ha-rassment operation, said NAAC spokesperson Ka Macario Li-wanag. ~

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ters that resulted in deaths andinjuries to thousands ofLibyans.

Simultaneously, there wereattacks conducted by anti-

Gaddafi armned forces trainedby the Central IntelligenceAgency. These forces were re-cruited by the CIA from themost treasonous elements ofLibyan society, among themwarlords, pro-monarchy forcesand fundamentalist Muslimgroups with connections to theCIA and the terrorist al-Qaeda.

Meanwhile, Amnesty Inter-national raised serious concernsabout continuing violations ofhuman rights where even politi-cal prisoners were being shot byforces unleashed by the imperi-alists. There have also been re-ports that civilians sympatheticto Gaddafi were being maltreat-ed and robbed by mercenaries.

The brutal military campaign

was supported by a coordinatedpsywar campaign by the biggestinternational media corpora-tions in order to justify the mil-itary intervention and aggres-sion against the sovereignty ofLibya and the Libyan people.Under US direction, the puppetand mercenary anti-Gaddafiforces were described in the

mass media as democraticforces.

According to ILPS chair JoseMaria Sison, there are three rea-sons why the imperialists have

inflicted such cruel punishmenton the Gaddafi regime. First,Ghaddafi refused plans to estab-lish the US African Commandmilitary base in Libya. Second,he threatened to revoke theconcessions he had granted tothe imperialists in 2003, includ-ing allowing foreign companiesto enter the country after the

widespread privatization ofstate-owned enterprises. Third,Gaddafi had also planned on re-placing the US dollar with thegolden dinar in transactionsconcerning Libyan oil in theface of the severe crisis of thecapitalist system.

In 2003, at the height of theimperialist aggression againstIraq, the Gaddafi regime decid-

ed to engage the US and NATO.It implemented policies thatwere in accordance with neolib-eral globalization. Multinationalcorporations were granted manyprivileges. Corruption becamerampant among the regime's of-ficials and even among Gaddafi'srelatives. The prices of primecommodities rose and unem-ployment slowly grew amongthe youth despite the relativelyhigh standard of living enjoyedby Libya compared to other ncountries.

Gaddafi also cooperatedwith the US and oth-

er NATOforces

i nmili-

t a r ya n d

intelli-gence af-

fairs regard-ing the US'

c a m p a i g n

against terrorism. From thesecooperative relations, the impe-rialists were able to gain muchinformation from Gaddafi gov-ernment officials, and exercise

influence over them. Thesesame officials were recruited to join forces against Gaddafi andhis relatives. It comes as no sur-prise that these officials arenow sitting in the NationalTransition Council (NTC) formedby the US.

Libya is now being trans-formed into a semicolony of

the US, UK, France and Italythrough the NTC and its leaderMustafa Abdul Jalil. It will notbe long before imperialistforces and their puppets takeposition in Libya in the guiseof UN peacekeeping forces.Even before the seizure ofTripoli, their agents, advisersand special forces were al-ready all over Libya to guide

their puppets. The Libyan con-stitution will be replaced withone that serves the economic,political, military and culturalinterests of the imperialists.Libya will be compelled to ac-cept the establishment of theUS African Command's militarybase in the country. It will endup becoming a detachment ofUS imperialism just like Koso-vo, Afghanistan, Iraq and oth-ers.

The ILPS called on theLibyan people and their anti-imperialist and democraticforces to take advantage of thefavorable political conditions inorder to gain strength and riseabove the fighting between an-ti-Gaddafi and pro-Gaddafi

forces. The massive distributionof arms to the people is favor-able to the establishment of arevolutionary party of the work-ing class and the advance of amovement for national libera-tion in Libya. ~


DEVELOPMENTS OVERSEAS

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Capitalism's widespread destructivenessin the midst of crisis

Tens of thousands of foreclosed houses in the

US are being demolished by banks despitethe fact that millions of Americans do not

have homes.Taking the lead in ordering the bulldozing of

homes in the US is the Bank of America Corp., thebiggest home financing firm. It plans to teardown 40,000 houses, mainly in Ohio and in thecities of Detroit and Chicago. Other banks and fi-nancial institutions that plan to raze foreclosedhomes are Wells Fargo & Co., Citigroup Inc., JP

Morgan Chase & Co., and Fannie Mae.More and more homes are being forecloseddue to the severity of the economic crisis in theUS. As of June, 1,679,125 or one in 77 houseshave either been foreclosed or were in variousstages of foreclosure proceedings. Because of thesheer number of foreclosed houses, home financ-ing firms have been anxious that depressed priceswould further lead them to bankruptcy. Construc-tion companies and manufacturers of housingequipment have also been dogged by the same

concerns.The biggest American banks had turned bank-

rupt these past several years after home mortgag-ing papers in their possession became worthlessdue to so many unpaid debts.

Instead of selling the foreclosed houses at lowprices, the big capitalist owners of banks andhome financing companies chose to tear themdown in order to protect their profits. Based onthe banks' calculations, they would incur greaterlosses if they sell the houses at bargain basementprices or wait until prices go up. By razing theforeclosed houses, they would be saving on main-tenance costs and market prices will be raisedanew.

The US government had used trillions of dol-lars of taxpayers' money to bail out these compa-nies, which now plan to invest again in hous-ing. But first, they have to reduce thesupply of houses to raise prices andamass profits.

Destructive capitalist system. Thedestruction of homes as a way of resolving thecrisis of overproduction is not new to thecapitalist system. It is intrinsic to capitalismto destroy productive forces and social prod-ucts during times of crisis. During the GreatDepression in the 1930s, tons of productswere destroyed to reduce oversupply that re-

sulted in depressed market prices.

Despite the widespread hunger that claimedthe lives of seven million people, big capitalistsgot rid of rock-bottom priced food products byburning them or throwing them to the sea. Morethan ten million hectares of crops that wereready for harvest were also run down by trac-tors.

In 2009, the US government also implement-ed a $3 billion program called cash for clunkerswhere car owners where encouraged to trade in

their old vehicles for new ones. Old vehicles thatwere still in good condition were wrecked to pre-vent them from being resold. This was done to re-duce the supply of cars and push up their prices.The scheme nonetheless failed to resolve theoversupply of automobiles.

3.5 million Americans without homes.

There are up to 3.5 million Americans without de-cent homes due to the high cost of housing andworsening poverty. Comprising 49% of the totalnumber of people without homes, African-Ameri-

cans form the bulk of those unable to affordhousing.

Tent cities have sprung up in various urban ar-eas in the past several years, swarming withthousands of people.

The US government gives low priority to provid-ing American citizens decent housing. In 2011, itallotted a mere $2.1 billion in assistance to Amer-icans without homesa drop in the bucket com-pared to the $290 billion overall budget for Hous-ing and Urban Development (most of which endedup in the pockets of capitalists in the constructionbusiness). The amount is dwarfed even more bythe US budget for its interventionist wars in Iraq,Afghanistan and Libya and its counterinsurgencyoperations in countries like the Philippines. ~

FORECLOSED

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NEWS



Copper minersstrikein Indonesia, Peru

More than 10,000 workers ofAmerican-owned Freeport

McMoran Copper and Gold Inc.began to strike on September15 in mining areas in Indonesiaand Peru. It was the start of aplanned month-long work stop-page to press for higher paybased on international wagestandards.

Freeport workers receive on-ly up to $3 per hour. They nowwant a five-fold hike but man-agement's counter-offer was a22% raise spread over the nexttwo years.

In Indonesia, strikers havealready paralyzed the opera-tions of the Grasberg mine inPapua province, as well as thenearby seaport.

Freeport McMoran is thebiggest foreign mining compa-ny in Indonesia, controlling90% of mining operations inthe country. Its mining area inGrasberg also has the world'sbiggest gold deposits.

With Freeport Mcmoran alsobeing the third biggest copperproducer worldwide, the month-

long strike is sure to affect theglobal supply of this metal.An eight-day strike in the

Grasberg mine last July affectedthe mine's entire operation.

In Peru, the strike is beingwaged by the workers of CerroVerde, where Freeport McMoranholds the majority share. CerroVerde, which operates in thecity of Arequipa is one of the

countrys biggest copper pro-ducers.

Workers in Freeport Mc-Moran's other mining areas inBolivia and Chile have alsostruck this year for higherwages. ~

Workers assail Honda layoffs

WORKERS of Honda Cars Philippines strongly assailed manage-ment plans to lay off its workers. According to the Lakas ngManggagawang Nagkakaisa sa Honda-Kilusang Mayo Uno

(LMNH-KMU), the real reason behind management's plan to re-duce the workforce by 30% is to bust the union.

LMNH-KMU belied management's claims that Honda has toomany workers. It cited Honda's practice of taking in young work-ers as apprentices who are still in training but are immediatelyfielded in the assembly plant as part of the regular workforce.They do not receive wages and are paid only a very small al-lowance. This scheme by Honda Cars is a form of labor contrac-tualization, said the union.

Toll fee hike is on

DESPITE strong protests, the Aquino regime has given the go-signal for the imposition of the 12% Value Added Tax (VAT) onexpressway toll fees starting October 1.

The regime cited its need for more income to justify the de-cision to impose the expressway tax, contrary to an electioncampaign promise by Aquino. The Taxpayer's Unity Versus Toll-hike in South Luzon Expressway (TUTOL SLEX), however, isstrongly opposed to the additional taxation, saying this will be

an added burden to the people. Bayan Muna Rep. Teddy Casiohas filed a bill in Congress exempting tollways from the VAT.Eighty-one congressmen have also signed a resolution againstthe VAT on toll.

Meanwhile, the fare hikes in the Metro and Light Rail Transitsystems have been postponed for next year due to stiff opposi-tion from various sectors, including 11 senators.

Progressives condemn US-GPH joint exercises

PROGRESSIVE groups roundly condemned a recently heldjoint military exercise of US and Philippines troops. The ex-ercise dubbed Balance Piston 11-3 was held on September 2-13 at the 6th ID's Camp Siongco in Datu Sinsuat, Maguin-danao.

According to KAWAGIB Moro Human Rights, joint exercisesare actually being used as cover for the constant presence of UStroops in Mindanao, the construction of US bases and facilitiesin Zamboanga, Jolo and Tawi Tawi and the participation of US

soldiers in combat operations. KAWAGIB demanded the junkingof the Visiting Forces Agreement because it is being used to jus-tify permanent US military presence.

Meanwhile, KAWAGIB also assailed the violations of humanrights resulting from the presence of American troops. It citedcomplaints from residents of Awang town about the continuedfiring by American and Filipino soldiers in the area.

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Students take action against budget cuts in education

THOUSANDS of students at thePolytechnic University of the

Philippines (PUP) walked out oftheir classrooms on September20 accompanied by their teach-ers and school officials toprotest cuts in the PUP budgetfor 2012. The walkout is part ofa weeklong nationwide protestaction to oppose budget cutsfor state universities and col-leges next year.

The PUP students called

their protest action We StrikeBack. Joined by PUP presidentDr. Dante Guevarra and a num-

ber of professors and universityemployees, they assailed the

Aquino government for slashing`569.8 million from the budgetsof 50 state universities and col-leges nationwide. They said thatthis shows the regime's insensi-tivity to their needs. The PUP, inparticular, will be receiving only`737 million instead of the `2billion allocation it requested.

A series of protest actionshas also been launched at the

University of the Philippines(UP) campuses in Diliman andManila. Bigger protest actions

have been set for September21-23 in both campuses. On

September 23, students from UPwill be marching to Mendiolaalong with students from otherschools in Metro Manila.

Meanwhile, blackboards inpublic schools nationwide re-mained clean on September 16when teachers declared a chalkholiday to demand a higherchalk allowance. Up to 100,000out of 500,000 public school

teachers joined the protest byrefraining from using chalk for aday.

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