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This issueshighlights...

Formal peace talksresumption

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KMP andBMactivistsslain

US exploitsturmoilin LIbya

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

English EditionVolume XLII Number 5

March 7, 2011www.philippinerevolution.net

Editorial

The compensaton given to 7,526 victims of

the Marcos fascist dictatorship comes toolittle, too late.

On March 1, they began receiving $7.5 mil-lion, equivalent to a little more than `40,000for each person. Although they accepted thesmall amount as damages, there is little causefor celebration.

Their thirst for true justice has not beenquenched.

For one, they are not too

happy about having been rep-resented by lawyer RobertSwift. More than 2,000 vic-tims from the original list of 9,539 plaintiffs who filed suitwith a US court in 1988 wereremoved from the roster basedon requisities determined by Swift.Many of them traveled toManila, only to findout that theirnames were absentfrom the list.

Most of thevictims of the fas-cist dictatorshipare aging. Manyhave died. Twenty-five years have passed sincethe overthrow of the Marcos dicta-torship. The Hawaii Federal Dis-trict Court where the suit was filedfound the Marcos regime guilty asfar back as 1992 of grave human

rights violations. A great injustice has been

committed through the much delayed imple-mentation of the court-mandated compensa-tion to the victims.

In contrast, the Marcoses and their cronieshave been politically resurrected and are nowenjoying a new heyday in power.

The total amount of $7.5 million that wasdivided among thousands of Marcos victims is apittance compared to the atrocities they suf-

fered. More than this, it is

ridiculously light punish-ment for a fascist dicta-tor who amassed enor-mous wealth and thor-

The thirst for justiceof victims of the Marcosdictatorship remains unquenched

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

Ang Bayan is published in Pilipino,Bisaya, Iloko, Hiligaynon, Waray andEnglish editions.

It is available for downloading atthe Philippine Revolution Web Central located at:

www.philippinerevolution.org .Ang Bayan welcomes contributions

in the form of articles and news.Readers are likewise enjoined to sendin their comments and suggestions forthe betterment of our publication. Youcan reach us by email at:

[email protected]

Vol. XLII No. 5 March 7, 2011

Contents

Editorial : The struggle for justicecontinues 1Histror of injustice 3Peace talks 3Daet 4 released 4AFP ceaefire violations 5Activists slain 6NPA ambushes 7Tribute to Ka Pyro 8Medical training in Samar 9Oil price hikes 9Abandoning the OFWs 10Turmoil in Libya 11News 12

ANG

2 ANG BAYAN March 7, 2011

oughly abused his power. Itdoes not even represent 1% of the $1.97 billion settlementgranted by the US court. Forthe Marcoses and their min-ions, these are but crumbsfrom the banquet table thrown

at the victims to silence theirunceasing cries for justice.The victims of the Marcos

fascist dictatorship have notrelented in their quest for jus-tice. Most of them are workers,peasants, students, women,church people and other ordi-nary folk who stood up againstthe fascist regime and strug-gled for social justice and na-tional liberation. They are themain victims of extrajudicial killings, involuntary disap-pearance, torture, illegal arrestand detention and otherheinous human rights abuses.

The reactionary regimeshave shown no compassion forthe victims of the Marcos dic-tatorship in the past 25 years.

Instead of recognizing thevictims' right to be justly com-pensated, these regimesstaked their own claim on theMarcoses' ill-gotten riches inorder to use them for theirpersonal gain and to shore uptheir bankrupt rule. Theyblocked bills filed before Con-gress to implement the US

court decision.

Not only did onereactionary regimeafter another blockthe grant of dam-ages to the victims.None of them un-dertook any decisive

moves to punish thedictator, his wife,children and cronieswho colluded withthem in plunderingand suppressing thepeople.

For 25 years, jus-tice was systemati-cally underminedwhile the dictator'sfamily was allowed to return topower. Their loyal henchmenwho enforced martial rule nowoccupy seats of power in thereactionary state.

While expressing supportfor the grant of compensationto the victims of the Marcosdictatorship, the Aquino re-gime's lawyers have actuallyfiled motions to block themfrom receiving any more dam-ages. Like its predecessors, theAquino government continuesto object to efforts by the vic-tims and their lawyers to ac-quire their rightful share of the late dictator's wealth.

The Aquino regime has like-wise not done anything topunish the Marcoses and their

cronies for plunder and othergrave violations of humanrights. It is a huge irony thatunder the Aquino regime, thereis now talk of reconciling withthe Marcoses and allowing thelate dictator's remains to beburied at the Libingan ng mgaBayani.

The country's history these

past two and a half decadesshows that true justice cannever be attained by the peo-ple under a reactionary state.

Not one of the post-Marcosregimes was able to punish thebig plunderers and fascistswho oppressed and exploitedthe people. Marcos, Ramos,Estrada, Arroyo and many oth-ers have never been punished.

Despite Benigno AquinoIII's lofty words about fightingcorruption, he has not lifted afinger to punish the thieves of Gloria Arroyo's past regime.Neither has he taken any stepsto show that he is differentfrom the past regimes in termsof stealing, brutality andabuse of power.

The people cannot expectthe elements of the rulingclass to punish their fellowoppressors, plunderers and ex-ploiters.

The attainment of true jus-tice lies in the people's handsand in their militant and revo-lutionary struggle. ~

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3ANG BAYAN March 7, 2011

History of injustice

In 1986, a civil case was filed against Marcos and his estate

at the Hawaii Federal District Court by 9,539 victims of hu-man rights violations. In 1992, the court found Marcos guiltyof the crime of violating human rights and ordered his heirsto pay the victims $1.97 billion in compensation.

In 1998, Switzerland'sSupreme Court decided to re-turn to the Philippines $640million worth of the Marcoses'ill-gotten wealth deposited inSwiss banks.

The fund, which was heldin escrow in a local bank bythe Philippine government,was supposed to be one of the sources of the compensa-tion won by the victims.

Among the issues that hadto be resolved, however, wasan existing law calling for anyill-gotten wealth recovered

from the Marcoses to be usedto fund land reform.

In 2003, the PhilippineSupreme Court ordered thetransfer of this fund to thenational treasury.

Since then, the victims

have expressed concern thatthe fund may no longer beavailable for compensation.

After more than 15 years,no enabling law has beenpassed granting compensa-tion to the victims.

A bill to this effect hadbeen marked among the prior-ity bills of Congress, but wasblocked by the Arroyo regime.Bayan Muna Reps. Neri Col-menares and Teddy Casio re-filed the bill in Congress inDecember 2010.

Dubious settlement.Meanwhile, a breakawaygroup from the original plain-tiffs sought a settlement withthe Marcoses through Atty.Robert Swift.

Swift was one of thelawyers who represented the

victims in the class suitfiled in Hawaii. But most of the victims have long sincedispensed with his services.

The amount distributedthis March is part of a $10-million settlement enteredinto by Swift wih Jose Cam-pos, a known Marcos cronybased in the US.

Swift received $2.5 mil-lion in legal fees while $7.5million was awarded to thevictims.

Swift devised his ownsystem of identifying thevictims, which was differentfrom that used by the UScourt.

The settlement is highlydubious.

The property held byCampos is estimated to costup to $78 million. But Swiftagreed to a mere $10-mil-lion settlement for the Mar-cos victims.

This left Campos in con-trol of almost 90% of the ill-gotten wealth. ~

NDFP and GPH successfullyresume formal peacenegotiations

They reaffirmed past agree-ments, including The HagueJoint Declaration and all bilat-eral agreements entered intoby the Government of thePhilippines (GPH) and theNDFP until April 2004.

The two panels also agreedon the scope and timeframe of the talks. They agreed to fin-ish and sign the Comprehen-sive Agreement on Social and

Economic Reforms (CASER) inSeptember 2011; the Compre-hensive Agreement on Political and Constitutional Reforms(CAPCR) in February 2012; andthe Comprehensive Agreementon End of Hostilities and Dis-position of Forces (CAEHED) inJune 2012.

Regarding the CASER, therewill be three bilateral meet-ings held between June and

August this year where bothgroups will go over the workthey had already begun, andwhich was suspended in 2001.

Meanwhile, both panels will be forming their respective

working groups for Political and Constitutional Reforms.These groups will start meet-ing in October 2011.

The Joint Monitoring Com-mittee (JMC) will also be re-vived, seven years after it wassidelined by the GPH. It will bedrafting guidelines for JMC op-erations and will be meetingthis March.

Based on the Joint Notesdated January 18, 2011, theGPH will continue to work onthe expeditious release of all or most of the 14 NDFP-listed

T he formal peace talks were successfully resumed despitethe sabotage efforts of ultra-fascist elements within themilitary and police. After seven days of talks, the two pan-els issued a joint communique.

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The rebellion and inciting

to sedition charges were thefirst to go. When the court dis-missed the charge of illegal possession of explosives, thepolice declined to file a mo-tion for reconsideration. Saidthe Daet 4's lawyer, Theyknew the charges would notstick because they were all fabricated.

The police instead pleaded

with the Daet 4 not to filecounter-charges against them,saying that the military mere-ly pressured them into filingsuch cases against the victims.

The former detainees'lawyer is now preparing to filea case against the AFP. ~

Daet 4 released

Esmeraldo Baldon (KilusangMagbubukid ng Pilipinas-Ca-marines Norte chair), DenverBacolod (Karapatan-CamarinesNorte staff member), MerloBernas (Kabataan Party mem-ber) and Elpidio de Luna (thena newly released political de-

tainee) were arbitrarily arrest-ed on November 10 in an of-fice shared by Karapatan'sprovincial chapter with otherprogressive groups in Daet, Ca-marines Norte. They have sincebeen dubbed the Daet 4.

The soldiers and policemen

who arrested them failed topresent a warrant of arrest.The raiding team also cartedaway office equipment, per-sonal effects and moneyamounting to `5,500. Theseitems have not been returnedto date.

The Daet 4 were accused of being members of the NewPeople's Army. Explosives wereplanted in the office and usedas a pretext to file criminal charges against them. Theywere also charged with rebel-lion and inciting to sedition.

JASIG consultants and person-alities before the second roundof formal talks. The GPH hadmade the same pledge in 2004,but nothing came of it. Thisyear, the NDFP added thenames of Danilo Badayos,

Leopoldo Caloza, AlanJazmines and Ramos Patriarcato the list of those whose sta-tus will be verified in accor-dance with the JASIG Supple-mental Agreement.

The NDFP described thetalks as a roller coaster ride all the way, where no one couldbe quite sure whether the talkswould end up on a high or lowpoint, or whether it might stall once more. Nonetheless, theNDFP recognized that such isthe nature of negotiations. Itcited the two panels' points of agreement as eloquent proofof what they have achieved. Itacknowledged that each partyhas bent over backwards fromprevious hard positions in or-

der to find common ground.One of the major stumbling

blocks that has been removedis the GPH's branding of theCPP and NPA as well as NDFPChief Political Consultant Jose

Maria Sison as terrorists.However, the NDFP said thatmuch more has to be done inensuring that the GPH armedforces, especially the militaryand police, respect and abideby this position. The NDFP

noted that the PNP suspensionof operations order in relationto the reciprocal ceasefire dec-larations still referred to theCPP-NPA-NDF forces as com-munist terrorists.

Despite the declaration of areciprocal ceasefire, the NDFPalso noted reports from itsfield units in various areas all over the country that the AFPhas continued to conduct mil-itary operations under theguise of civil-military opera-tions (CMOs) under OplanBayanihan.

In a separate statement,NDFP peace panel spokesper-son Fidel Agcaoili challengedthe Aquino regime to take afirm stand to resolve the roots

of the armed conflict if it real-ly wants to achieve a genuinepolitical settlement with therevolutionary movement. SaidAgcaoili, if the GPH and itspanel want to expedite the

talks and realize a political settlement, they should seri-ously consider the proposed10-Point Concise Agreementfor an Immediate Just Peacethat the NDFP submitted tothe GPH in August 2005. If it

really wants the talks to beconcluded within the agreedtimeframe, said Agcaoili, theGPH should have been moredetermined in setting the nextseries of talks.

The CPP welcomed the suc-cessful resumption of formal talks and noted the timeframeagreed upon by the two pan-els.

But the Party reminded thepeople that the political andeconomic problems that lie atthe roots of the armed conflictare more than a century old.They include systematic ex-ploitation and oppressioncaused by landlessness, pover-ty and massive unemployment.

Such deeply rooted prob-

lems cannot be resolved in amatter of 18 months. Theregime's armed forces havelikewise been relentlessly sab-otaging and derailing thetalks. ~

F our activists and mass leaders illegally arrested in a militaryraid in November 2010 were released on February 4.

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NDFP assailsAFP ceasefire violations

The Communist Party of the Philippines, New People's Army(NPA) and all revolutionary forces strictly abided by the re-

ciprocal seven-day ceasfire declared by the NDFP and GPHin support of the peace talks. Nonetheless, Comrade Luis Jalan-doni, who chairs the NDFP Negotiating Panel assailed continuedviolations by GPH security forces of the ceasefire in variousparts of the country.

In Mindanao alone, the is-land's NDFP spokespersonJorge Ka Oris Madlos report-ed 23 cases of ceasefire viola-tions in the provinces of Bukidnon, Davao Oriental,Davao del Norte, CompostelaValley and Surigao del Norte.AFP-PNP-CAFGU forces bazenlyviolated their unilateral cease-fire in Southern Mindanao Re-gion when they launched com-bat operations in the moun-tainous areas of CompostelaValley, Davao Oriental andAgusan del Sur against the

NPA in a desperate attempt torescue three prisoners of war.On February 24, NDF-Bicol

spokesperson Ka Greg Baaresreported 19 ceasefire viola-tions by the AFP in the region.He said offensive operationsand armed provocations by theAFP have been going on non-stop in Bicol's guerrilla zones.

He cited 14 combat opera-tions and five cases of brutal operations by ReengineeredSpecial Operations Teams(RSOT).

Thirteen barangays in thetowns of Casiguran, Gubat andSorsogon City are under attackby SOT operations conductedby forces of the 49th IB and903rd Brigade while 23 vil-lages in the towns of Aroroy,Masbate have been under SOToperations by the 9th IB and903rd Brigade since February2.

This shows that the Aquinogovernment is unable to com-pel and discipline its troops in

the AFP to respect even theirown unilateral ceasefire. Thereis thus no assurance that theAquino government and theAFP will respect and imple-ment agreements reached inthe peace negotiations be-tween the GPH and the NDFP,said Baares.

On February 15, the start of the ceasefire, the 2nd ID and901st Brigade also began SOToperations in the villages of Talin-talin, Apod and Rawis inLibon, Albay. SOT operationsby the 2nd IB have also been

going on for almost a month inBarangays Balabagon and Ca-vit in the town of Manito, Al-bay.

Despite the ceasefire, the42nd IB conducted combat op-erations in four barangays nCaramoan, Camarines Sur. The2nd IB launched military oper-ations in the villages of Quinartelan and Manawan inCamalig town in Albay and inthe villages of Maogog, San

Roque and San Vicente inJovellar, Albay from February16 to 21.

In Sorsogon, 49th IBtroops clandestinely entered anumber of villages in Bulanand along the Barcelona-Gubat

boundary before the ceasefiretook effect on February 15.They hid for days behind thick-ets but failed to find any unitof the NPA and later decidedto return to camp.

A unit under the 49th IBtreacherously attacked an NPAunit in Barangay Magdago-song, Irosin, Sorsogon at dawn

of February 16. Villagers im-mediately sent word to the Redfighters, enabling the NPA unitto retreat without firing ashot.

On February 21, at around 9p.m., civilian-clad soldiers of the 49th IB attacked BarangaySan Juan Daan in Bulan, Sor-sogon. They were aboard a vanand two motorcycles and ille-gally entered and ransackedfive houses of civilians on thepretext of looking for an NPAmember in the area.

On February 14, a day be-fore the resumption of peacetalks, 7th ID forces arrestedComrade Alan Jazmines, one of the NDFP's consultants in thepeace talks protected by the

Joint Agreement on Safety andImmunity Guarantees (JASIG).In Samar, two Red fighters

figured in an encounter withsuspected elements of the34th IB who had long taken upambush positions in BarangayCataydungan, San Jose deBuan from February 16-17.There were no casualties onthe side of the NPA.

The following day, twocolumns of soldiers conductedoperations in Barangay SanIsidro and Cataydungan, whileanother column scoured theforests. Their operations per-sisted until the last week of February. ~

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FASCIST STATE ON A RAMPAGE

Peasant leader, Bayan Munaactivist slain

(PDEA). Estrallado was forcedinto a waiting van with platenumber MSL-902. PDEA offi-cials denied having conductedsuch an operation.

Maj. Harold Cabunoc,spokesperson of the 9th IDwas caught in his own lies ashe tried to cover up the mili-tary's involvement in thekilling. Cabunoc claimed thatEstrallado was an NPA fighterkilled in an encounter inBarangay Bulwag, Bato, Ca-marines Sur. But he could notexplain how Estrallado waskilled in an encounter that oc-curred in Camarines Sur morethan two hours before he wasabducted in Albay.

February 12. Elements of the 17th IB conducting opera-tions terrorized Tokong Tayan,a farmer from Sitio Camandari-nan, Barangay Sta. Teresita,Cagayan and threatened to kill

him and his child if he did notadmit that the NPA had stayedin his area.

The soldiers also met a cer-tain Balong along the way,placed bullets between his fin-gers and squeezed them.

The enemy destroyed farmerBong Tacla's corn field. Theycut the barbed wire fence sur-

rounding the corn field, tram-pled on the plants and kickeddown the stalks.

The soldiers also fed farmerEly Talbo's chicken to theirdog and refused to pay for it.

February 9. Soldiers fromthe 17th IB and RMG merci-lessly waylaid a family of Ag-gay minorities who were haul-

ing rattan poles, in SitioNagsicoan, Barangay VillaCielo, Buguey, Cagayan ataround 11 a.m. Thirty-twoyear old Julie Rosal waskilled, while his brother Elvis

March 1. Bacolod City po-lice arrested Rogina Quilop,42, at the Bacolod-Silay Air-port at around 6:30 p.m., ontrumped-up arson charges. Shewas accused of being an NPAmember and of involvement inthe burning of a transloadingstation in Toboso town in Ne-gros Occidental. In fact,Quilop manages a local coop-erative and is a staff memberof Karapatan.

February 27. Elements of the 39th IB killed Rody Dejosand his son Rody Rick in SitioMalusing, Barangay Zone 1,

Sta. Cruz, Davao del Sur. Theelder Dejos is the vice chair-man of the local Kilusang Mag-bubukid ng Pilipinas (KMP)chapter and was active in thecampaign against theBarangay Defense System andmilitary harassment in theirvillage. Thus, his name endedup first in the 39th IB's list of villagers ordered to report tothe detachment to undergo in-terrogation.

He was coerced into sign-ing a document stat-ing that he was amember of the un-derground movementwho surrendered. InNovember 2009, hewas told by the 39th

IB to dissolve thelocal KMP chapter.Last December, hewas fired upon by39th IB soldiers tointimidate him.

Despite all this,

the elder Dejos refused to stophis activities, and was mur-dered. His son Rody Rick waskilled because he witnessedhis father's execution.

February 27. Troops from

the 39th IB forced brothersJohnson and Danilo Tio, bothresidents of Sitio Tambulang,Barangay Danwata, Malita,Davao del Sur to pose as NPAmembers who have surrenderedbecause of the hunger andhardship they suffered in themountains. The Tio brothersare ordinary villagers who havenever been members of any

NPA unit. They are still undermilitary detention in New Ar-gao, Malita, Davao del Sur.

February 25. Elements of the 9th ID summarily executedBayan Muna activist Rodel Es-trallado. Estrallado was ab-ducted by military men infront of a basketball court inBarangay 3, Malilipot, Albay.

Witnesses said the armed mili-tary men introduced them-selves as agents of the Philip-pine Drug Enforcement Agency

T he military mercilessly killed a Bayan Muna (BM) activist inAlbay and a peasant leader in Davao del Sur. Soldiers alsoopened fire on a group of Aggay minorities in Cagayan andblamed it on the New People's Army (NPA).

Peasant..., continued on p. 7

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CORRESPONDENCE REPORTS

ANG BAYAN March 7, 2011

He was one of the pioneers inthe recovery of various areasin Abra and in nearby munici-palities, such as in the BuDa-BoSa (Bucloc, Daguioman, Bo-

liney, Sallapdan) area; the tri-boundary of LaDaLaga (Lapaz,Danglas, Lagayan) in Abra,Ilocos Norte and Ilocos Sur;and in the Abra-Mt. Province-Ilocos Sur tri-boundary andpersistently worked in theseplaces. In the face of inces-sant enemy attacks and harshguerrilla life, he remained un-fazed and led comrades to

strengthen their revolutionaryresolve and persistence.

Ka Pyro was a good educa-tor and propagandist amongthe basic masses. He had adeep grasp of the problems of the people, was good at de-tailing various issues, eventsand incidents. These served asconcrete examples of revolu-

tionary theory and an effectivetool in explaining to the peo-ple the policies and programsof the revolutionary move-ment.

Himself a victim of bour-geois-decadent life while in

college and during hisshort stint as a gov-ernment employee, Ka

Pyro lived the lifeof a lumpen-intel-lectual. He wasinto all sorts of

vices and bour-geois-feudal rela-tionships. Hisconcrete experi-ences with bu-reaucrat capital-ism while in the

reactionary gov-ernment forcedhim to persevere

in the fightagainst war-

lordism, graftand corruption.As a legal ac-

Tribute to Procopio Ka Pyro Tauro

Revolutionary leader,hero of the massesA

t 5:20 a.m. on October 30, 2010, Ka Pyro was one of theRed commanders who led the tactical offensive undertak-en by Red guerrillas of the Agustin Begnalen Command.

During the first ten minutes of battle, Ka Pyro was hit whileleading an assault as he stood up to fire a grenade launcher atelements of the Alpha Coy, 41st IB. At 9:10 a.m., the goodcomrade died, a revolutionary leader and hero of the masses.From the start, during the preparations and the actual imple-mentation, Ka Pyro was resolute in guiding and leading the vic-torious tactical offensive along the Abra-Kalinga Road in

Lenneng, Baay-Licuan, Abra.Ka Pyro (Procopio Tauro)

was born and raised in Ben-ben, Lapaz, Abra. He was bornto a tenant-farmer family, andendured the harsh life of thepeasants and the terrorism of the warlords. He was able togo to school through scholar-ships and raise other needs by

self-reliant efforts. Despite be-ing unorganized activiststhen, his family earned the ireof the warlords because of their support for the revolu-tionary movement and theiraffiliation with the traditional oppositionist political party.Warlords murdered his brother,and he and his fatherwere incarcerated forabout a year for re-bellion.

Ka Pyro was res-olute in revolution-ary struggle andgrasped basicrevolutionaryprinciples be-cause of hislife experi-

ences and hissharp under-standing of r e v o l u t i o n a r ytheory. Duringhis entire service inthe NPA, the basicmasses of the peas-

antry warmly received himmainly because of his persist-ence in waging agrarian revo-lution. He was a good organiz-er. He was also resolute in thefight against warlordism. Hehad weaknesses in the applica-tion of some revolutionarypolicies, dual tactics and in

building the united front, butall these were secondary to hisoverall accomplishment of histasks.

Ka Pyro was a trailblazerand led difficult tasks of theParty and the NPA that othercomrades refused to take on.

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CORRESPONDENCE REPORTS

tivist in the town center of Bangued, hehad a deep and wide grasp of theprovincial situation and the tasks re-quired. He became sick because of hisvices and resolved to do away withthese and led a healthy life in the NPAsince then. He had a child whom heloved so much the result of an affairhe had prior to joining the NPA. He pa-tiently waited for the opportunity to fi-nally meet his daughter and later catchup on parenting and limited family life.

Despite sanctions such as discipli-nary actions due to his past mistakes,Ka Pyro was a role model in rectification

and revolutionary perseverance. Evenduring times of crises and misdeeds, hewas a perennial revolutionary optimist,ceaselessly believed in rectification,and constantly looked forward to abright revolutionary future. Even incourtship and love, he was persistentand an incorrigible optimist.

Ka Pyro firmly grasped, prioritizedand believed in the justness of armedrevolutionary struggle. In order to fightmilitary conservatism, he joined mili-tary operations and actively participat-ed in the Provincial Operational Com-mand. The tactical offensive on October30, 2010 was Ka Pyro's last project. Hewas directly involved in the prepara-tions, troubleshooting snags in intelli-gence work, battle planning, rehearsalsand the actual implementation. He sac-rificed his own life to advance armed

revolutionary struggle, frustrate OplanBantay Laya 2 and advance the revolu-tion to the strategic stalemate until fi-nal victory.

The life of a revolutionary should bemeasured through actual contributionsin waging revolution.

Ka Pyros revolutionary role was un-doubtedly important and of strategicvalue not only in Abra, but in the entire

Ilocos-Cordillera region.The life of a revolutionary was cut

short, but his dreams and aspirationswill continue through the people andrevolutionaries that he helped arouse,organize and mobilize. Ka Pyro died notonly as a revolutionary, but as a prole-tarian leader. ~

Medical trainingheld in Eastern Visayas

T he medical unit of the Efren Martires Command(EMC) of the New People's Army in EasternVisayas successfully trained from January toFebruary to raise the capability of its medical ma-chinery to manage the health care and medical needs of the combat units of the people's army inthe region.

Aside from raising their capability to providemedical care, the squad of medics who came fromvarious guerrilla platoons and the paramedics fromthe mass organizations will also be serving asmedic-instructors with the ability to train the nextgroup of medics and paramedics.

This was the fourth medical training conductedby the EMC in Samar and Leyte. Since the trainingsstarted, hundreds of peasants have been providedmedical assistance by NPA medics.

The instructors explained that medical work is aregular task and is not conducted only when thereis a patient needing assistance.

The orientation of platoon medics (P5) was alsoenhanced, based on the Regulations for GuerrillaPlatoons, with the task described as a broad fieldof work.

Meanwhile, P5 elements from two platoons tookthe Intermediate Medical Course. They trained moreintensively on anatomy and physiology, on thetreatment of different kinds of common illnesses,on nursing skills, the use of anesthesia, minor sur-gery and dentistry.

They studied trauma management, how to takecase histories and diagnose ailments.

The course on trauma management focused ongunshot wounds in order to raise the platoonmedics' capabilities in the face of efforts to ad-vance people's war to a new and higher level.

The P5 elements also held their practicum. Afterthe course, the medic-students immediatelylaunched a clinic in two villages along with theirinstructors.

More than a hundred peasants were providedservices such as checkups, acupressure treatment,tooth extraction, circumcision and cyst removal.

The masses were instructed on sanitation, nutri-tion, symptoms of common diseases and reflexolo-gy.

Herbal medicines and products were also dis-tributed. ~

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thus earns them double prof-its.

Progressive organizationsand various sectors have as-sailed the lack of controls overoil prices in the local market.They have called for the junk-

ing of the Oil Deregulation Lawwhich has given the oil com-panies free rein to set theprices of their products andamass superprofits.

But instead of heeding thepeople's calls, Malacaang hasquickly set aside such de-mands, saying that the gov-ernment lacks funds to imple-ment regulation. In Malaca-ang's view, deregulation en-tails state guarantees for theforeign oil companies' profitsinstead of state controls overtheir profits in order to protectthe people's interests.

The Aquino regime's delib-erate inaction in the face of continued oil price hikes will cause more hardships to the

people. ~

Aquino regime inutilein the faceof spiralling oil prices

T he Aquino regime is deliberately doing nothing in the faceof a series of hikes in the prices of gasoline, diesel andother petroleum products in recent weeks. Despite thetremendous burdens posed by oil price hikes, Malacaang hasnot lifted a finger to protect the people's interests as foreignoil companies continued to rake in superprofits.

The oil price hikes arenecessary was all Malacaanghad to say after foreign oil companies incessantly raisedthe prices of their products inrecent weeks. In a span of fourdays, the prices of gasolineand other petroleum productswere raised by up to `2.

The greedy foreign compa-nies used as pretext the polit-ical turmoil in Libya to imple-ment oil price hikes. In fact,less than 1% of worldwide oil production has been affected

by the production slowdown in

Libya.The price per barrel of oil

has shot up to $110-120 perbarrel in the international market. This is now being in-voked by foreign oil companiesto justify the series of oil pricehikes in the local market.Since January, petroleum prod-ucts have risen by up to `5 perliter in the Philippines. Infact, big foreign oil companieswhich own the local compa-nies control the major part of the world's oil supply. Every oil

price hike in the local market

for the evacuation since thelives of Filipino workers are indanger in that country.

The `10,000 assistance be-ing given to every repatriatedOFW is likewise an insult, be-

cause the DFA has allotted upto $150,000 for the evacua-tion aside from the `200 mil-lion provided by the OverseasWorkers Welfare Administration(OWWA). Neither has the gov-ernment offered them any de-cent jobs. Malacaang is quickto send OFWs abroad to sell their labor power, but hasbeen extremely slow in ad-

dressing their grievances, saidMartinez. Meanwhile, a reportfrom Migrante-Middle East saidthat an OFW was killed inLibya after unidentified armedmen raided the company hewas working for. It was notclear whether he was shot

Migrante particularly citedthe situation of OFWs in Libya.

Migrante chairGary Mar-

tinez said only 6% of the morethan 26,000 OFWs in Libya

have been evacuated bythe govern-ment to thePhilippines.Martinez al-

so saidthat theg o v e r n -m e n ts h o u l dnot bes e t t i n gdeadlines

Abandoning the OFWs in theMiddle East and North Africa

Migrante International strongly assailed the Aquino regimefor its continuing neglect of Overseas Filipino Workers(OFWs). The government failed to fulfill its obligation to

protect OFWs especially in the middle of the severe tensionsnow engulfing the Middle East and North Africa.

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dead or fell from a rig. Other OFWs have report-edly been forced to evacuate to other countriesby crossing the desert. Some are short on foodwhile others have fallen ill because of the in-tense heat and exhaustion.

The Kilusang Mayo Uno (KMU) meanwhilesaid that the Aquino regime must have alongterm livelihood and employment plan inplace for OFWs. The OFWs will simply returnoverseas to seek their fortune if the govern-ment fails to provide them decent jobs, saidKMU. Migrante and other groups protested atPlaza Miranda in Quiapo, Manila on February 28to demand concrete action from the regime onthe evacuated OFWs. Even some OFWs who werestranded in other countries expressed their dis-may by bringing placards saying Mga salot saOFW: P-Noy, DFA, OWWA, DOLE, Philippine Em-bassy at POEA. (Bane of OFWs: P-Noy, DFA,OWWA, DOLE, Philippine Embassy at POEA)

OFWs have also been suffering in Libya's

neighboring countries. In Egypt, the Aquinoregime failed to evacuate all OFWs during theheight of protests to oust Hosni Mubarak. Only46% of 6,500 OFWs were able to return despitethe `25 million allotted by the DFA for therepatriation of Filipino workers in that country.

In Bahrain, Migrante-Middle East called on

Aquino to draft a contingency plan for the safe-ty of OFWs there. Up to 30,000 OFWs are nowin Bahrain.

In other countries, various issues besetOFWs. In China, three Filipinos have been sen-tenced to death. There are Filipino victims of floods and other calamities in the Middle Eastand Australia. A Filipino mysteriously died inSaudi Arabia. Filipinos continue to enterAfghanistan, Jordan and Iraq despite an exist-

ing ban on working in these countries.All this is proof of the regime's failure toensure the security and rights of Filipinosworking overseas. ~

US exploits turmoilin Libya

The US has been quick to exploit the current tensions inLibya to overthrow the country's leader Moammar Gadhaffi.Gadhaffi who has long ruled Libya is known for his anti-US

declarations.

The US' current interven-tion in Libya is due to its in-terest in controlling the coun-try's oil wealth. It has beenblatantly intervening inLibya's internal affairs sinceUS Pres. Barack Obama de-manded Gadhaffi's resignationon February 28. A number of US warships from the Red Seaare now on their way to Libyato threaten Gadhaffi.

The Libyan uprising againstGadhaffi's rule began on Feb-ruary 15. It is part of the waveof protests in theMiddle East and

North Africa.From the first

protests in Tunisia,uprisings have eruptedin Egypt, Bahrain, Algeria,Morocco, Iraq, Oman, Yemen,Saudi Arabia, Qatar, Iran, Syr-ia and Jordan. The protests

have culminated in the over-throw of long-reigning dicta-tors in Tunisia and Egypt.

Libya is a country in NorthAfrica with a population of 6.5million. It has rich oil reservesthat are of higher quality com-pared to those of Saudi Arabiaand other oil-producing coun-tries. It produces 1.6 millionbarrels per day.

The US and its imperialistallies have long covetedLibya's oil wealth. They are de-termined to tighten

their grip over all majorsources of oil and gas world-wide. Gaddafi's governmentand other regimes that havebeen asserting national inde-

pendence and depriving theimperialists of the opportunityto monopolize oil resourceshave earned the ire of the USand its ilk.

The US is now flagrantlyseeking to grab and tighten itscontrol over the oil resourcesof Libya as in Iraq. It is takingthe lead in applying sanctionsand threatening to unleashthe aggression and atrocitiesthat it used to take over theoil resources of Iraq.

Among the sanctions nowbeing imposed on Gadhaffi is aUN Security Council ban on of-

ficials of his regimeto travel and trans-fer assets. Britainhas likewise frozen

$32 billion worthof Libyan assets, most of

which are deposited in Lon-don banks.

Meanwhile, Libyanrebels have con-

tinued their ad-Libya...,continued on p. 12

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NEWS

Residents barricade landgrabber in Cagayan

MORE than 500 people barri-caded Mision River in Sta. Tere-sita, Cagayan in the first weekof February to block a survey of the river being conducted byTaiwanese businessmen led bya certain Mr. Lu. The barri-caders came from the villagesof Isaca, Rebeca, CabambananSur and Mision in the sametown.

The residents are opposing

Lu's claim that he owns 1,500hectares of land betweenBarangays Rebeca and Isaca, in-cluding land on both sides of the Mision River. He has evenimposed fees on people whohave been extracting sand andstone from the river.

Elements of the 17th IBguarded the Taiwanese survey-ing the Mision River, with their

operations spanning the Febru-ary 15-21 ceasefire period. Theoperations were launched inSitio Paribalat, BarangayDungeg and Sitio Camandarinan,Barangay Aridaoen in Sta. Tere-sita town, and in Barangay VillaCielo in the town of Buguey.

Anti-tuition fee hike protests launched

A NATIONAL day of action was launched by youth and stu-dents against hikes in tuition and other fees.

Thousands of students rallied in Mendiola, Manila on Feb-ruary 28 and called for a moratorium on tuition fee hikes.Progressive organizations led the mass action joined by stu-dents from various public and private colleges and universi-ties.

They were simultaneous student protests in Ilocos Sur,Baguio, Pampanga, Laguna, Palawan, Iloilo, Tacloban, Cebu,Butuan, North Cotabato, Cotabato City, Davao and General Santos.

National Union of Students in the Philippines (NUSP) sec-retary-general Vanessa Faye Bolibol said schools are set to

raise tuition fees by 10-15%. Bolibol cited Father SaturninoUrios University which raised its fees by 10%; Baguio Central University, 12%; and University of Negros Occidental-Recole-tos, 14%. Even State Universities and Colleges (SUC) plan toraise tuition fees, among them the Pangasinan State Univer-sity which will be imposing a 16% hike (equivalent to `150to `175 per unit) and the Don Honorio Ventura State Univer-sity which will be implementing a 30% hike (equivalent to`130 to `170 per unit). Fees will also be hiked at the Eulo-gio Amang Rodriguez Institute of Science and Technology(EARIST) and the University of the Philippines-Mindanao.

Meanwhile, students filed a complaint at the Commissionon Higher Education (CHEd) on March 4 against schools thathave been arbitrarily demanding higher tuition and otherfees.

Kabataan Party Rep. Raymond Palatino has filed a bill reg-ulating tuition and other fees. The bill also seeks to strength-en the power of students and parents in consultations and ingiving consent to any hike in school fees.

vance from the eastern part of the country towards Tripoli,where rallyists have attackedthe police and the state radiobroadcasting stations andburned government offices.

They have controlled townsand cities in the country'seastern part where 80% of Libya's oil supply and infra-structure are concentrated.

On March 1, rebels were

able to control the city of Zyawiya, one of Gadhaffi'sknown strongholds, aside fromother nearby towns. They havereportedly set up temporarycouncils in the areas undertheir control.

As in other countries in theMiddle East and North Africa,US imperialism and its otherallies are now making arrange-ments to seat a puppet whowill play the part of a democ-

rat and lead the drafting of anew constitution, conduct pe-riodic elections and imposeterm limits on elected offi-cials.

This uprising must beseized by the revolutionaryforces to set up or strengthenrevolutionary parties, mass or-ganizations and alliances forthe continued advance of thepeople's aspirations for na-tional and social liberation. ~

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