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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,

Bisaya, Iloko, Hiligaynon, Waray and

English editions.

It is available for downloading at

the Philippine Revolution Web Central

located at:

www.philippinerevolution.org.

Ang Bayan welcomes contributionsin the form of articles and news.

Readers are likewise enjoined to send

in their comments and suggestions for

the betterment of our publication. You

can reach us by email at:

[email protected]

Vol. XLII No. 20 October 21, 2011

Contents

Editorial: The GPH is to blame for

the stymied peace talks 1

Italian priest, victim of OpB 2National Minority victims

of the Aquino regime 3

Lakbayan in Northcentral Mindanao 4

Ka Roger, honored 4

COPD, as evil as RSOT 6

19 soldiers killed in Ilocos Sur 8

Mayor Dano and 6 POW, freed 9Mining in Cagayan Valley 10

Armed protection for mining firms 11

Cheaper Medicine Act, cooked

up in US 12

Protests against capitalism 12

News 13

ANG

2 ANG BAYAN October 21, 2011

to confront this deceptive tactic of the GPH. It isdetermined to address the Filipino people's basicdemands for social justice and national liberationin the arena of peace negotiations and in thefield of mass struggle and armed resistance.

The crisis of the ruling system of big landlordsand compradors continues to worsen and fire up

the Filipino people's anger and resistance. In the

face of extreme poverty and suffering, the Filipinopeople are persevering even more to tread the pathof revolutionary struggle to resist the onslaught ofthe ruling classes and their imperialist masters.

Whether the peace negotiations push throughor not, the revolutionary movement will continueadvancing towards the goal of achieving genuine,

just and enduring peace. ~

Italian priest is latest victimof Oplan Bayanihan

The Communist Party of the Philippines joined other groups instrongly condemning the brutal slaying of Fr. Fausto Tentorio,59, an Italian priest and antimining advocate. Among those

who condemned the killing were Rubi del Mundo, spokesperson of

the National Democratic Front in Southern Mindanao Region andMohagher Iqbal, spokesperson of the Moro Islamic Liberation Frontand head of its peace panel. Del Mundo said that the 6th ID mas-terminded the killing, while Iqbal added that the MILF had re-ceived information from the ground that the perpetrators belongedto a paramilitary group under the AFP.

Fr. Tentorio was killed on October 17 at around 7:30 a.m. insidehis parish in Arakan Valley, North Cotabato. A former parish work-er who witnessed the heinous crime said that the Italian priest hadjust gotten into his van when he was approached by a man wearinga helmet who shot him several times. He sustained ten gunshot

wounds from a pistol with a silencer. Two of the bullets hit his head.After the bloody incident, the assailant walked away casually androde a waiting motorcycle driven by another unidentified man.

Three months before the killing, military agents posing as fishvendors frequented Fr. Tentorio's convent. The agents were therealmost daily but were suddenly nowhere to be found on the day ofthe killing. Soldiers of the 57th IB were also asking around lastSeptember what Fr. Tentorio's cellphone number was. In 2006, themilitary raided a medical mission being conducted by Fr. Tentorioon suspicion that he was harboring wounded Red fighters.

Fr. Tentorio's killing spawned condemnation from various religious

groups, local residents, environ-mentalists and human rights ad-vocates. A picket-rally waslaunched by Hustisya in front ofthe office of the Department ofJustice (DOJ) in Manila on Octo-ber 18. Members of the Promo-tion of Church People's Response

held a candle-lighting ceremonyat the Quezon City Rotunda toextend their condolences.

Meanwhile, a fact-findingmission will be launched by theExodus for Justice and Peace.Its members believe that Fr.Tentorio's killing is part of OplanBayanihan which targets indi-viduals strongly opposed to thegovernments mining policy.

Fr. Tentorio was active inhelping residents of KulamanValley, Sultan Kudarat in theirstruggles against large-scalemining. He also actively criti-cized the role of the military asprotectors of mining companies.He supported the struggle of Hi-gaonon minorities for their an-cestral lands.

Fr. Tentorio had long beenreceiving death threats from theBagani Command, a paramilitarygroup under the 73rd IB. He sur-vived the first attempt on hislife in 2003 because of the peo-ple's help.

Fr. Tentorio is the third mis-sionary from the Pontifical Insti-tute for Foreign Missions (PIME)killed in Mindanao. The first was

Fr. Tullio Favali who was killed onApril 11, 1985 in Tulunan, NorthCotabato by a paramilitary groupled by Norberto Manero. The sec-ond was Fr. Salvatore Carzeddawho was killed by a man riding amotorcycle on March 20, 1992 inZamboanga City. ~

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Ka Rogerhonored and saluted


FASCIST STATE ON A RAMPAGE

Farmers launch Lakbayanin Northcentral Mindanao

T

hree out of four peasants in Northcentral

Mindanao do not own land. Tens of thou-sands of farm workers live in abject poverty.Landlessness has grown worse due to massivelandgrabbing by multinational food corpora-tions. Recently, the region has become thecenter of bloody confrontations between mil-itant farmers and foreign companies in con-nivance with landlords and the state's armedforces.

These were the issues raised by thousandsof peasants who marched from their farms in

Valencia, Bukidnon; Luagit, Misamis Oriental;and Gingoog City to Cagayan de Oro City fromOctober 19 to 21.

In Bukidnon, foreign corporations havebeen conspiring with landlords to seize landsfavorable for producing food for local con-sumption. They either lease or directly pur-chase the land in order to use it for the com-mercial production of agricultural products forexport.

Almost 80,000 hectares out of a total of315,164 hectares of agricultural land is plant-ed to pineapple. Some 32,000 hectares areplanted to banana. Among the foreign com-panies that own plantations in this area areDel Monte Philippines Inc. (DMPI), LapandayDiversified Products Corp., Davao Agriven-tures Corp. (DAVCO), Mt. Kitanglad Agri-De-velopment Corporation and Southern FreshFruits.

Massive landgrabbing has been accompa-

nied by widespread abuses of the farmers' hu-man rights.

On June 14, security guards and goons ofthe Central Mindanao University (CMU)opened fire at farmers who had camped out inDologon, Maramag. Members of Buffalo-Tama-raw-Limus Farmers Association set up aprotest camp to stop their eviction from theland they had been tilling for more than threedecades. The CMU administration is scheduledto sell the farmers' land to DAVCO which plansto expand its banana and pineapple planta-tion.

On July 30, security guards of Del MontePlantation opened fire at farmers in OcayaRanch in Kuya, Maramag. The farmers are setto be evicted from their land because theirlandlord had sold it to Del Monte which plansto expand its pineapple plantation. ~

Accolades and honors have poured in for thelate Communist Party of the Philippinesspokesperson Gregorio Ka Roger Rosal.

The CPP central leadership, units of the NewPeople's Army, the National Democratic Frontand the revolutionary mass or-ganizations affiliated withit issued tributes that rec-ognized and hailed KaRoger for serving as thevoice of the revolutionary

movement for more than adecade. Organizations of pro-gressive youth, peasants, work-ers, fisherfolk and other sectorsalso recognized Ka Roger's majorrole in defending the interests of theFilipino people.

The CPP Information Bureau issued a press re-lease on October 9 about Ka Roger's death lastJune 22. The CPP Central Committee simultane-

ously published a statement through a special is-sue ofAng Bayan, giving Ka Roger a Red salute fora lifetime of selfless service to the people. TheCentral Committee said that as the bearer of goodnews about the Philippine revolution, Ka Roger'svoice fired up the courage and inspired Red fight-ers and the struggling people alike. He was alsothe conduit through which the oppressed anddowntrodden thirsting for justice aired their griev-ances.

The Southern Tagalog Regional Party Commit-

tee in (STRPC) recognized Ka Roger's huge contri-butions to the region. In a statement, the STRPCcited Ka Roger's role in establishing and advanc-ing the revolutionary movement in Southern Taga-log. It recalled Ka Roger's role in the region aspart of the regional Party leadership and asspokesperson of the Melito Glor Command (MGC)from 1988 to 1992. The STRPC also hailed KaRoger's major role then in supervising the region'spropaganda work, including his pioneering role inRadyo Pakikibaka's broadcasts and in Kalatas, theregion's revolutionary mass newspaper.

From Southern Tagalog, where Ka Roger hailed,the MGC, the Lucio de Guzman Command (NPA-Min-doro) and the Eduardo Dagli Command (NPA-Batan-gas) also issued their own statements. So did theSouthern Tagalog chapters of the RevolutionaryCouncil of Trade Unions (RCTU-ST), PambansangKatipunan ng mga Magbubukid (PKM-ST), Artista at

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5ANG BAYAN October 21, 2011

Manunulat ng Sambayanan (AR-MAS-ST), Kabataang Makabayan(KM-ST) and the Liga ng Aghampara sa Bayan at UP Los Baos(LAB-UPLB).

A true revolutionary hero of

the Filipino people was how Na-tional Democratic of the Philip-pines-Mindanao spokespersonJorge Ka Oris Madlos called KaRoger. He described the periodduring which Ka Roger served asCPP spokesperson as the mostbrilliant in the history of revolu-tionary propaganda that has notbeen surpassed to date. Ka Orispraised Ka Roger's humility and

diligence. He said that the factthat Ka Roger hailed from thepeasantry shows that the mass-es are the true heroes.

Ka Roger ignited a neverending flame in the hearts andminds of urban revolutionaries,said the National Capital RegionParty Committee. The urban-based CPP committee said thisflame which illuminates thepath of revolutionary strugglewill put an end to big landlordand big comprador rule.

Simon Ka Filiw Naogsan,the spokesperson of the Cordil-lera Peoples Democratic Frontcited valuable lessons in propa-ganda work from Ka Roger. Thetwo leaders gave a joint pressconference in 2005 in Mountain

Province where they invited themedia to report on the advancesof the Philippine revolution. KaFiliw said he saw how well KaRoger integrated with the me-dia, the masses and the Redfighters.

Ka Roger's legacy of tri-umphs and advances are nowetched in the hearts and mindsof the basic masses, said Ka

Simeon Santiago, political di-rector of the New People's Armyin Southern Mindanao Region.He said Ka Roger's voice willcontinue to resonate through-out the country.

Meanwhile, Prof. Jose Ma. Si-son, CPP founding chair de-

scribed Ka Roger as an outstand-ing Filipino patriot, a valiant Redfighter, a lucid communicatorand an effective educator and or-ganizer among the toiling mass-es. NDFP negotiating panel chair

Ka Luis Jalandoni said Ka Rogerwas the undying voice of the rev-olution and the oppressed andexploited masses.

The Pambansang Katipunanng mga Magbubukid pictured KaRoger as a hero of the peasantry.It called on the peasants to ad-vance his revolutionary legacy.On the other hand, the Revolu-tionary Council of Trade Unions

called Ka Roger a clarion of therevolution who raised the peo-ple's determination to fight andwage revolution. The KabataangMakabayan offered a bouquet ofred roses to Ka Roger who it de-scribed as an idol and inspirationof the revolutionary youth.

The country's political prison-erts also hailed Ka Roger. In astatement, Prospero Agudo, AlanJazmines, Eduardo Sarmientoand Eduardo Serrano cited KaRoger's vibrant delivery of newsabout the revolution and his de-fense of the people's interests.

Progressive leaders and or-ganizations likewise issued theirown statements, with BAYAN,Pamalakaya, KMU, Anakbayan,the Antonio Zumel Center for

Press Freedom and many othersremembering, hailing and hon-oring Ka Roger. Leaders like Re-nato Reyes, Carol Araullo, JudyTaguiwalo and Roberto de Castrorecognized his contributions tothe Filipino people's struggle.

The Moro Islamic LiberationFront offered its condolencesand hailed Ka Roger as a truehero of those desiring freedom

from oppression and exploita-tion. Revolutionary and progres-sive organizations from Austria,Australia, India, Belgium andothers also condoled with hisfamily, friends and comrades.

News of Ka Roger's deathspurred messages of condolence

on the internet. Ka Roger's namebecame a trending topic on Twit-ter and various other websites.Reporters like Delfin Mallari andPaul Gutierrez who had close con-tact with Ka Roger wrote com-

memoratives. Quite a few poemswere written to honor him.In response to a call by the

CPP, all units of the New Peo-ple's Army nationwide fell in for-mation at noon of October 15 tosalute the former CPP spokes-person and induct him into theFilipino people's Hall of Heroesand Martyrs. In Batangas, KaRoger's native province, around

a hundred Red fighters andpeasants gathered to commem-orate his revolutionary life.

Simultaneous to the NPA for-mations, the Kabataang Maka-bayan and other revolutionaryorganizations held lightning ral-lies in various parts of SouthernTagalog; in Sta. Cruz, Manila; inCubao, Quezon City; in DavaoCity and other places. Activistswho rallied at the US Embassyand Mendiola that day also de-voted part of their program topay tribute to Ka Roger.

In the afternoon of October15, more than 500 people gath-ered at the covered court in KaRoger's home town of Ibaan,Batangas. They were welcomedby the barangay captain of Ta-

laibon, where Ka Roger wasborn. Two of Ka Roger's siblingsspoke before the crowd. Shortvideos of his life and ComradeJoema Sison's message of soli-darity were shown. Various sec-tors also expressed their solidar-ity and sang revolutionarysongs. Prior to this, a mass wascelebrated at the Ibaan church.The participants also visited the

Rosals' ancestral home.Led by the NDF Negotiating

Panel and its local officials, abig public gathering will be heldat the UP Film Center on Nation-al Peasants' Day, October 21, tohonor Ka Roger. ~

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Based on the experience ofNortheastern Mindanao Region(NEMR), OPB still resorts to tri-ad operations where combat, in-telligence and COPD operationsare conducted simultaneously.

With combat units posi-tioned nearby to drive away the

New People's Army (NPA), theCOPD teams base themselves atthe center of the targeted vil-lages. Just like the RSOT, COPDoperations are antipeople to thecore. They use the people as hu-man shields, terrorize and inflictphysical abuse on the masses,trample on their rights and de-stroy their unity.

COPD teams occupy civilians'

houses and facilities on purposein order to use the residents asprotective cover against pos-sible NPA attacks. They usuallyset up camp in schools,barangay halls, health centers,waiting sheds and other publicplaces.

As soon as the COPD teams

have taken position, they en-gage in a variety of psywar ac-tivities.

Deception. To demonize theNPA and destroy the unity be-tween the people and theirarmy, the COPD schedules view-ings of videos like Huwad na

Pangarap (False Hopes) andKilling Fields.

A number of COPD troopspose as guerrillas and go tohouses of suspected NPA sup-porters where they ask to spendthe night or request assistancein contacting Red fighters. Theyengage in antipeople activitiesso they could spread the wordthat the NPA was responsible.

While the COPD does this inthe targeted villages, militaryspokespersons and officers loseno time in spewing out lies be-fore the mass media against theNPA. The NPA is usually accusedof committing human rights vi-olations, recruiting minors andengaging in extortion, banditry

and other terroristic activities.Civilians arrested or killed bythe AFP are misrepresented asNPA members.

Meanwhile, the soldiers takepains to portray themselves asmeek and gentle lambs by usingthe resources of the civiliangovernment to deliver someservices to the people. The mil-itary controls and leads in thedistribution of resources fromgovernment agencies like theNational Commission on Indige-nous Peoples, the Departmentof Social Welfare and Develop-ment and the Department of

Health as well as local govern-ment units. Soldiers provide vo-cational training using curriculafrom TESDA. They conduct med-ical missions using personneland medicines from the DOH ru-ral health units. They distributeBiyaya ni Pnoy (Blessingsfrom Pnoy) using rice and otherresources from the DSWD. Thiskind of psywar aims to cover up

the ruling regime's massiveneglect of the people's welfareand interests. The militarywants the people to be gratefulfor the morsels they have re-ceived even as social servicesand facilities are crumbling allaround them.

The COPD teams try to win

COPD in NortheasternMindanao is as evil as RSOT

Aside from its deceptive name, there is not an iota of differ-ence between the Community Organizing for Peace and De-velopment (COPD) Teams of Oplan Bayanihan (OPB) and the

thoroughly discredited Reengineered Special Operations Teams(RSOT) of Oplan Bantay Laya notoriety.

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the people's hearts and mindsby engaging in all sorts of shal-low rituals like serving as bap-tismal or wedding sponsors,cleaning public areas in the bar-rio, playing basketball with thevillagers, going on picnics with

barangay organizations, wooingvillage women, sponsoring dis-cos and band concerts and pay-ing for drinking sessions withthe menfolk in order to getthem to loosen their tonguesonce they get drunk.

But it doesn't take long forthe COPD teams' fangs to showthrough.

Threats and beatings. Mar-

tial law reins in communitieswhere COPD teams operate, withthreats or terrorism alwaysforming part of their routine.

Those suspected of activelysupporting the revolutionarymovement are called to the AFPbattalion or company headquar-ters or to isolated or farflung ar-eas for interrogation and to be

intimidated into cooperatingwith the military.A census is conducted to as-

certain whether there are vil-lagers or family members miss-ing. Most of the time, the miss-ing are accused of having joinedthe NPA.

Known peasant and Lumadleaders are often visited intheir homes to harass them. Per-

sons suspected of actively sup-porting the NPA are constantlymonitored.

A scare tactic that is some-times used against residents isto make them believe that theirnames have come up in a com-puter search. They are then or-dered to sign a document in or-der to have their computerrecords deleted. The documentslater become surrender forms.Sometimes, those with com-puter records are actually or-dered to surrender formally.

Villagers lose the right totravel freely once the COPDteams stay in their barangays.The names of everyone enteringor leaving the barrio are takendown. Travelers are asked wherethey are going and what time

they would be coming back.Deadlines are set for their re-turn. Those who do not meetthe deadline are accused of hav-ing gone to an NPA camp.

Food and economic block-

ades. Each family's consumptionof food and other items is listeddown, and no one is allowed topurchase more than this limit.All personal effects and pur-

chases are inspected at militarycheckpoints.

The longer they stay in thecommunities, the harder it is forCOPD operatives to conceal theirorientation that is fascist to thecore. They indiscriminately firetheir weapons at civilians' hous-es whenever they get drunk.They bomb and shell civilian

communities during pursuit op-erations against the NPA andengage in other activities thatinstill fear among the peopleand endanger them.

Destroying the people's

unity. The main objective ofCOPD operations is to destroythe people's revolutionary unityto make the imposition of an-tipeople policies and projects

easier.This objective becomes evi-

dent whenever the military callsfor mass meetings to sow dis-cord and intrigues among thepeople. The villagers are encour-aged to identify the leaders ofmass organizations and turn inrelatives or acquaintances whoare with the NPA. The soldiersalso insinuate that there is atraitor among the people's ranksand that it would be better ifthey come clean and cooper-ate with the AFP.

Strengthen the people's

unity. The surest way of defeat-ing the COPD and Oplan Bayani-han is to raise the masses'fighting spirit and to firmlyhold the politico-military initia-tive.

The National DemocraticFront has called on the peoplein the region to unite in expos-ing and opposing the COPD-OPBin order to defeat it. The NDF inNEMR said there is no reasonwhy the people will not be ableovercome Oplan Bayanihan theway they overcame Oplan Ban-tay Laya.

The NDF-NEMR called on vil-

lagers to strengthen their trustin each other and to resist be-ing ensnared by the AFP's tac-tics of deception that aim todestroy their unity. The peoplemust daringly report violationscommitted by the fascist mili-tary and their minions to thenearest agencies, institutionsand human rights advocacy

groups.Should military troops insiston staying in their communitiesdespite the people's opposition,the villagers must stage an or-ganized protest in the towncenters. They must expose andoppose the military's use ofcivilians as human shields. Theycan approach government andchurch officials and seek sanc-

tuary with them while they areunable to return to their vil-lages. They can also troop to ra-dio or television stations toheighten awareness about themilitary's violations of the peo-ple's human rights.

The NDF-NEMR called on thepeople to avoid mingling withthe military and to never allowsoldiers into their homes in or-der to avoid being caught inthe crossfire in case of encoun-ters. The NDF-NEMR remindedthe people that it is a violationof the rules of war and of hu-man rights for the military tostay in civilians' houses and fa-cilities. ~

The article and artwork are from Lingkawas, the revolutionary mass paper in

Northeastern Mindanao Region.

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8

VICTORIOUS NPA OFFENSIVES

19 soldiers from 50th IBkilled in Cervantes, Ilocos Sur

An article in Lingkawas,the revolutionary mass news-paper in Northeastern Min-danao Region reported thatthe evacuees lost an estimat-ed `984,000 (or an average of`3,358 per family) because ofabandoned crops and live-

stock.Three major evacuations oc-

curred during this period. Thefirst was on May 26-June 16 inZapanta, Bangayan, Agusan delNorte. Seventy-five Mamanwaand peasant families fled their

homes due to the 30th IB'sCOPD operations. The militaryalso blocked motorcycles carry-ing wood at checkpoints. Thelocals engage in small-scalelogging as a means of liveli-hood.

The second evacuation oc-

curred on June 20-July 4 inMahaba, Marihatag, Surigaodel Sur where 141 peasantfamilies fled their homes.COPD teams spent close totwo months staying at thebarangay hall, daycare center,

Despite efforts by the Armed Forces of thePhilippines (AFP) to conceal its casualties,it could not hide the fact that it took a

severe beating in the hands of the NewPeople's Army (NPA) in a series of gun-battles in Cervantes, Ilocos Sur to-wards the end of September. Ac-cording to the latest field re-ports from the Alfredo CesarCommand (NPA-Ilocos Sur), theenemy suffered up to 19 deadand six wounded.

To conceal the real extent ofits casualties, the military trans-ported its dead and wounded us-ing various routes. Nonetheless,the AFP failed to completely hidethem from the people.

Local residents reported see-ing at least ten dead soldiers un-der a bridge in the morning of

September 25. On the same day, a

wounded soldier was airlifted by helicopter butlater died at the hospital, according to confirmedreports.

Two firefights had earlier occurred. Thefirst encounter took place when the NPA am-bushed 50th IB troops in Barangay Reme-dios on September 23, killing six soldiersand wounding six others. The second gun-battle occurred the following evening in

Sitio Bulaga, Barangay Aloling.

Another firefight took place inthe afternoon of September 26

in Sitio Maupong, BarangayConcepcion, where two sol-

diers were killed.

The military cameout with laugh-

able and in-credible state-ments regarding

its casual-

ties. Col. Eliseo Posadas, chief

ANG BAYAN October 21, 2011

health center and the officeof the Sangguniang Ka-bataan. The COPD operationwas marked by harassment,threats and deception.

The third evacuation,which took place on June 26-

July 2 in Janipaan, SanAgustin, Surigao del Sur in-volved 88 Manobo and Ma-manwa families. The evacua-tion was spurred by the ille-gal arrest by soldiers of the29th IB-COPD of six copramakers in Upper Janipaan onthe first day of the operation.With the copra makers werethree children who were also

arrested and branded as NPAfighters.

In all three instances, thefarmers returned to theirhomes only after the soldierspulled out of the communi-ties they had occupied. ~

Military operations are a baneon the masses' livelihood

The AFP and the Aquino regime claim that the revolutionarymovement obstructs development in the countryside. This is

contrary to the experience of 293 peasant families in Agusan del

Norte and Surigao del Sur who were forced to evacuate from Mayto June due to the AFP's COPD operations.

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VICTORIOUS NPA OFFENSIVES

of the 503rd IBde which su-pervises the 50th IB claimedthat their only casualtieswere a soldier who waswounded in an NPA ambush

on September 23 and anoth-er trooper who was killedduring a gunbattle on Sep-tember 24.

On the NPA side, two RedfightersKa Dindo and KaLikotwere martyred duringthe September 24 encounter.Ka Likot's body was pepperedwith bullets by the soldiers,shattering his skull and

chest.Ka Dindo's body was

found only on September 29because the military pre-vented his relatives from en-tering the scene of battle forseveral days. Due to the per-sistence of his family andtownmates, Cervantes resi-dents and human rightsgroups, his body was finallyretrieved near the encountersite.

The huge number of mili-tary casualties has promptedthe Northern Luzon Commandto pour in more than a battal-ion-size force in Cervantestown. The soldiers who usedto pose as meek lambs sud-denly acted like rabid dogs

who vented their ire on inno-cent civilians.

The military does not re-spect the Cervantes localgovernment and violates therights of civilians. The troop-ers have arbitrarily set upcheckpoints, positioned them-selves in several villages andare terrorizing the peasants.

On the other hand, theNPA's victorious military ac-tions in Cervantes are proofthat in the face of vicious at-tacks by the fascist military,the Red fighters have the ca-pability to defend themselvesdue to the masses' broad sup-port. ~

NPA releases Mayor Dano,6 POWs

In compliance with the orders of the Southern Mindanao Re-

gional Party Committee, the New People's Army ConradoHeredia Command released on October 9 Lingig, Surigao del

Sur mayor Henry Dano and his two military bodyguards Cpl. Al-rey Desamparado and Pfc. Alan Saban of the 4th ID-AFP Intelli-gence Unit.

In a statement, NDF-South-ern Mindanao spokespersonRubi del Mundo said that thepeople's court has temporarilysuspended processing the case

against Dano and his men oncondition that they desistfrom committing any more vi-olations of human rights, in-ternational humanitarian lawand the policies of the peo-ple's democratic government.

The investigations revealedthat Dano and his men weredirectly responsible for crimes

against the people, includingthe murder of a peasant leader.The detainees owned up totheir crimes. Their releasegives them the opportunity toturn a new leaf and rectifytheir past errors.

The day before, the NPAhad also released four prison-ers of warJail Inspector Mur-phy Bomoway Todyog (Badge

No. 0-08021); Jail Warden Eri-co Dacillo Llamasares (BadgeNo. 0-07022); Special Jail Of-ficer 2 (SJ02) Rogelio Be-gontes (Badge No. 960187);and Jail Officer 1 (JOI) Rolan-do Delta Bajoyo, Jr. They werereleased on humanitariangrounds on orders of theNational DemocraticFront of the Philippines.

The four prisonerswere disarmed and takeninto custody by the Her-minio Alfonso Com-mand-Guerrilla Front 53on July 21. They werepart of a unit under theBureau of Jail Manage-

ment and Penology (BJMP)that was ambushed by the NPAin Barangay Sinuda, Kitaotao,Bukidnon to rescue Dennis Ro-denas, a prisoner who was be-

ing transported to a penalcolony in Davao del Norte.

The four BJMP personnelwere declared prisoners of warand granted protection as pro-vided for under internationalrules of war which the NewPeople's Army complies with.

In the more than twomonths they spent under the

Herminio Alfonso Command'scustody, the prisoners weretreated humanely, a fact at-tested to by the four captivesthemselves.

Their release was delayeddue to relentless battalion-sizemilitary operations unleashedby the 602nd and 403rdBrigades under the AFP East-ern Mindanao Command. These

failed rescue operations putthe prisoners' lives in danger.

Among those who witnessedthe release were representativesof the International Committeeof the Red Cross (ICRC) and thereligious sector, human rightsadvocates and Atty. PersidaAcosta of the Public Attorney'sOffice (PAO). ~

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provincial governments are go-ing ahead with coal miningprojects that will be conductedover 64,000 hectares in 24 bar-rios of four towns, and whichwill result in the eviction of10,000 families. Stiff resistance

from the residents led to thecessation of coal mining in2004. Aside from coal, gold isbeing mined in a 2,391-hectareconcession in Dinapigue.

The reactionary state doesnot recognize farmers' rights totheir land in the affected com-munities. It disregards the na-tional minorities' right to theirancestral lands and tramples on

the rights of fisherfolk to theirfishing grounds. The people'sright to livelihood, housing,health and safety is violated.Even the Cagayan River, whichstretches from Nueva Vizcaya tothe coast of Cagayan and is thecountry's longest has suffereddamage.

Worsening militarization

and military abuses in areas oflargescale foreign mining. OplanBayanihan primarily targets

People resist destructivemining operationsin Cagayan Valley

Amassive campaign against destructive foreign and corporatemining is underway in Cagayan Valley. The campaign formspart of the struggle for genuine land reform and national in-

dustrialization and the defense of the nation's patrimony and eco-nomic sovereignty.

Hundreds of thousands offamilies who have suffered thedeleterious effects of miningare now up in arms againstthese plunderous corporations.In Barangay Dugo, Camalaniu-gan, 78 families have beenforced to evacuate becausetheir houses have sunk belowground level. In Gen. E. Batal-la, Sapping, also in Camalaniu-gan town, cracks have ap-peared in the ground. In Aparriand Camalaniugan, up to 180houses were swept away due tothe swelling of the Cagayan

River. In Gonzaga, wells havegrown deeper and gone dry andhouses shake every time thereare mining operations. The riv-er, which used to be waist-deepis now neck-deep. Flash floodshave become commonplace es-pecially in coastal communitiesdue to the dumping of minetailings in the fields. Mean-while, residents of Purok 7,

Barangay Batangan, Gonzagaare being evicted because amining company has claimedownership of their land.

The suction effect. Landsubsidence has occurred due tothe destruction of the watertable and the entry of seawaterunderneath agricultural and res-idential lands. The cause is aseven-ton magnet that has beenpositioned under sea water toextract magnetite. Aside frommagnetite mining, there are ex-ploration activities for gold inClaveria, gold and pyrex in Bag-gao, magnetite sand in Balles-teros and limestone in Gonzaga.

Plans are also afoot to minecoal.

Magnetite mining is beingconducted on a 13,843-hectarearea along a 16-kilometerstretch that covers all therivers, beaches and seas in thecoastal towns of northern Ca-gayan. The immediate effect isdislocation in the masses' liveli-hood due to the loss of shrimp,clams, crabs and other marinelife found along the shallowseas. Magnetite mining alsoposes danger to the people be-cause the resulting floods sub-

merge houses and agriculturallands in rural areas, as well asbuildings in the town centersduring ty-phoons or evenduring strongrains. The dam-age would beworse during atsunami.

In Nueva

Vizcaya, almostall towns havebeen coveredby mining ap-p l i c a t i o n s .Aside from theold mining areaencompassingKasibu, Dupaxand Quezontowns, the ap-plications havespread to Diadi,B a g a b a g ,Solano andBayombong. InIsabela, the na-tional and


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More than 950 demonstrations werelaunched by two million people on October15 in 80 countries in Europe, North Amer-

ica, Latin America, the Middle East, Africa andthe Asia-Pacific, including the Philippines. Thebiggest demonstrations were held in countries hit

by grave economic and financial crises.Up to 1,100,000 rallied in 60 towns in Spain.

Up to 700,000 demonstrated in Italy; 40,000 inPortugal; more than 60,000 in Greece, Germany,Belgium, The Netherlands, Sweden, Croatia andSlovenia. In the US mainland, more than 50,000rallied in more than 30 states, while more than10,000 protested in Canada and Alaska. Up to

100,000 rallied in Santiago, Chile; 15,000 in Is-rael; and 20,000 in South Africa. More than15,000 rallied in Australia, New Zealand, Taiwan,Hongkong, Japan, the Philippines, Indonesia andMalaysia.

Occupy Wall Street. The worldwide people's

protest actions on October 15 were held to ex-press solidarity with Occupy Wall Street, a contin-uing protest movement in the US against capital-ist greed. This movement began on September 17when more than 150 youth camped out at Zucot-ti Park which lies at the heart of New York City,the center of large-scale banking in the US.

Information about their protest action spread

government the power to setdrug prices. Instead, it pushedfor the importation of medicinesas a way of bringing prices downeven as it limited the list ofpharmaceuticals that could be

imported. It was Roxas' bill thatwas eventually approved as theUniversally Accessible Cheaperand Quality Medicines Act of2008 or Republic Act No. 9502.

Roxas' version would nothave won out in the end were itnot for the active interventionof foreign big pharmaceuticalcompanies that spent a billion

pesos to buy the congressmen'svotes.In the US officials' discus-

sions with Roxas, they stressedthe need to protect the intel-lectual property rights ofAmerican corporations. The USwas also opposed to wide-spread drug importation, espe-cially from India, where phar-maceutical products made by

the same multinational compa-nies are being sold at pricesway below those prevailing inthe Philippines. Through theirdealings with Roxas, the USwas also able to push for limitsto drug importations from oth-er countries. ~

Cheaper Medicines Actcooked up in US Embassy

B

efore the Cheaper Medicines Act of 2008 was signed into law,

the US Embassy connived with former Sen. Mar Roxas to wa-ter it down. This was revealed in a series of confidential

memos from the US Embassy in Manila exposed by Wikileaks.org.,an online whistleblower that focuses on disclosing informationabout government and corporate wrongdoing.

Roxas was reported to havemet on May 16, 2006 with Bar-bara Weisel, US Assistant TradeRepresentative for Asia-Pacificand Pharmaceuticals Policy. Thiswas followed by a sepa-rate meeting betweenUS Embassy eco-nomic advisers andRoxas as well asRep. Junie Cua ofQuirino and other gov-ernment officials.Roxas and Cua thenheaded the Senateand Congressional

trade committees,respectively.

In the face ofthe high cost ofmedicines, Rep.Rolex Suplico ofIloilo filed in 2006the Cheaper Medicines Bill oth-

erwise known as the SuplicoBill, which was refiled in 2007by Rep. Ferjenel Biron. The bill'smost salient provision was thecreation of a Drug Regulation

Board that would have thepower to set the prices ofmedicines. The bill tar-geted an 80-90% reduc-

tion in the pricesof 1,500 medi-cines listed inthe Philip-pine DrugFormulary.

M e a n -

while, Roxasfiled Senate Bill2264 otherwise

known as the RoxasBill which was theSuplico Bill's direct

opposite. Roxas'bill was opposed to granting

Worldwide protest actionagainst the crisis of capitalism

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over the internet and eventuallyspurred bigger demonstrationsin New York and other US cities.Hundreds of demonstrators havebeen arrested in the past fewweeks. Despite this, the protest-ers have gained broader support

from unions, community organi-zations, movie actors, humanrights advocates, civil rights ac-tivists and other groups.

Police brutality has in-creased, whipped up by the bil-lionaires on Wall Street. The me-dia reported that Goldman Sachspoured in $4 million as an in-

centive to policemen to monitorthe protesters. The most viciouspolicemen were deployed, as ifto confront a horde of criminals.On October 11, policemen at-tempted to demolish the campat Zucotti Park.

Global protests. The world-wide coordinated protest ac-tions on October 15 werelaunched in response to calls tosupport and emulate the OccupyWall Street movement. Thebreadth and intensity of theprotests called that day in vari-ous parts of the globe mirrored

the breadth and intensity ofpeople's suffering the worldover due to the continuing crisisof capitalism.

Calls reverberated world-wide to unite in resisting cap-italist greed and the financial

system that has caused untoldsuffering to millions of peoplearound the globe. The protest-ers manifested their angeragainst big finance capitalistsand corrupt politicians whocontinue to wallow in luxury inthe face of the worsening cap-italist crisis. ~

19 soldiers killed in Basilan ambush

NINETEEN Special Forces elements were killed inan ambush by Moro Islamic Liberation Front(MILF) fighters in Barangay Cambug, Al-Barka,Basilan on October 18.

Forty-one Special Forces elements were out toattack an MILF encampment when they were am-bushed before they could move closer.

The fighting lasted for nine hours. The MILFsaid its fighters were not numerically superior tothe Special Forces but had the advantage ofknowing the terrain and being at a better posi-tion.

Aside from inflicting huge casualties on theAFP, the MILF also seized four M203s, five ma-

chine guns and 13 M16s from the soldiers.The MILF condemned the attack by the Special

Forces as a violation of its existing ceasefireagreement with the Government of the Philip-pines. It cited an earlier AFP violation where mil-itary forces attacked an MILF position in Payao,Zamboanga Sibugay on October 15. The MILFplans to file a protest with the InternationalMonitoring Team against the AFP's ceasefire vio-lation.

Meanwhile, up to 1,500 civilians in Basilanhave already fled their homes as of October 19because the military has been shelling theircommunities.

24 Turkish soldiers killed in PKK raid

TWENTY-FOUR Turkish soldiers were killed when

fighters from the Kurdistan Workers Party (PartiKarkerani Kurdistan or PKK) attacked various mil-itary detachments in Hakkari, Turkey in the nightof October 18. This was the biggest casualty in-curred by Turkish security forces in the hands ofthe PKK since 1993.

In retaliation, the Turkish military bombedsuspected PKK encampments in northern Iraq andsent commando units to pursue the rebels. It al-so arrested several civilians suspected of support-ing the PKK.

The PKK has long been fighting to establish

an autonomous state in Kurdistan, which encom-passes eastern Turkey, northern Iraq, northwest-ern Iran and northern Syria. After a lull of sever-al years, the PKK's guerrilla struggle resumed in2004.

Turkey has been systematically suppressingthe rights of the Kurdish people. SoutheasternTurkey where the Kurds are concentrated remainsone of the most impoverished regions in thecountry. Hundreds of thousands of Kurds have al-so been driven out of their homeland.

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