Interview with Ka Roger
Ang Bayan visited Party spokesperson Ka Roger in the middle of June. In an interview lasting more than two hours, he shared his views on burning national issues. A portion of the interview printed here has Ka Roger discussing the intensification of the anti-Moro war and how the U S - Estrada regime is doomed to fail in this venture. AB will publish the entire interview in a forthcoming special issue.
AB: The US-Estrada regime continues to intensify its war against the MILF in accordance with its June deadline. How do you view this and the events in Mindanao in general?
Ka Roger: First of all, the US-Estrada regime has been preparing for that ever since it came to power. As soon as he assumed office, Estrada implemented Oplan Makabayan, which aims to crush all groups fighting his government, primarily the Party, NPA, NDFP and the MILF.
If there is an Oplan Makabayan being waged against the Party and the NPA, there is an Oplan Pisces-Alpha for the MILF. Because Oplan Makabayan has failed, it is being replaced with Oplan Balangay. But no matter what name they choose for their operational plans, in essence they involve the reactionary government�s all-out effort to consolidate its agencies and maximize their cooperation with the objective of crushing any force fighting the regime.
Nonetheless, no matter how much effort the Estrada regime puts into this, it will surely fail. Instead of being crushed, the revolutionary movements will only grow stronger.
The same will happen in Mindanao, in spite of the regime�s conceit that it will crush the MILF after the June 30 ultimatum. This regime will one day find itself stunned with the fact that instead of having crushed the MILF, the latter will in fact have grown stronger and expanded, since it will be obliged to use guerrilla tactics. Meanwhile, in the Visayas and Luzon, the NPA will strive to intensify tactical offensives. So the regime will end up having to eat its own words.
AB: What can you say about the Al Harakatul Islamiya or the Abu Sayyaf Group, its activities and the way the Estrada government has been dealing with it?
KR: As we all know, this Abu Sayyaf group is not fighting for an ideology. It only conducts various criminal activities. Not a few are aware that it is the government itself that created the Abu Sayyaf to divide the MNLF (before the latter capitulated). But now, the government is no longer in control of the Abu Sayyaf. The Abu Sayyaf has gone berserk, or as they say, it has gone crazy, as shown by its kidnapping of civilians for ransom.
But with the way the US-Estrada regime has been dealing with the Abu Sayyaf, it turns out that it is the government that is crazier. Just compare how the regime deals with this group with its macho stance and treachery regarding the peace talks with the NDF and MILF.
Already, the world views the government as a laughing stock. The regime has had to tuck its tail between its legs in the face of the Abu Sayyaf�s hostage taking because of the pressure coming from the captives� countries of origin, which have warned Estrada not to take any action that would endanger the lives of the hostages.
We can see now that the negotiation with the Abu Sayyaf has no direction, no future. So even the hostages� countries are becoming impatient and restless. They can clearly see that the Estrada regime is not capable of rescuing these hostages and neither has it the capacity to take any other kind of action.
Even as it boasts of launching military operations against the Abu Sayyaf, it is obvious that the regime is actually inutile. So the Estrada regime is now trapped in a very diffi cult situation because of its own doing.
AB: What can you say about the recent bombings which were allegedly perpetrated by �rebels�?
KR: Revolutionaries can never do that, especially not the NPA because the principles and guidelines of the New People�s Army strictly prohibit any move that would inflict harm on ordinary citizens or on civilians.
Should the NPA conduct bombings, its target would be military and other government installations so that it is the reactionary government�s machinery, and not innocent civilians, that will be directly damaged.
Regarding the arrest of 26 Moros accused as MILF members responsible for the bombings, hardly anyone believes this propaganda. If we are to review Gen. Panfilo Lacson and his Presidential Anti-Organized Crime Task Forces� track record, this group specializes precisely in this � arbitrarily arresting people and accusing them of whatever crime they want to accuse them of.
But until now, Lacson and the PAOCTF have not proven anything, and as time passes, it is becoming more apparent that those arrested are innocent civilians, and that the evidence against them was merely planted.
AB: What motive could they have?
KR: It is clear that Mr. Estrada�s henchmen perpetrated the bombings to create a scenario similar to that concocted by Marcos in 1972. If you have had the chance to monitor the news, you will note that in Zamboanga, there have been arrests of AFP and PNP elements carrying explosives. That was exactly how it was in 1972 before Marcos declared martial law, when bombings were blamed on the NPA. Later, AFP investigations showed that some Muntinlupa prisoners were let out and ordered to carry out bombings in Metro Manila. Then such bombings were blamed on the NPA.
AB: The PNP has been adamant in its accusations against the 26 Moros arrested. Recently, the PNP also summarily executed two Moros in Quiapo, alleging that they were MILF commanders. Then the desecration of a mosque in Camp Bushra in Lanao after an AFP attack hogged the headlines.
KR: It is obvious that they intend to inflame the sentiments of the Muslim people against Christians. The mass media are also being utilized to blame all the kidnappings and other atrocities on the Moros and a revolutionary organization such as the MILF is being presented side by side with a criminal syndicate such as the Abu Sayyaf to fuel the anger of the non- Moro people against Moros. There have also been other instances where churches in Mindanao have been bombed, such as the cathedral in Jolo, a church in Davao Oriental and another in Davao City.
What they really want is to portray the war in Mindanao as a war with religious undertones. They insist on diverting the people�s attention from the real issues � the Estrada government�s exploitation of the people, its rottenness and its inability to respond to the interests of the people of Mindanao whether they be Muslims or Christians.
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