Revolutionary advance in Quezon
There is no stopping the growith of mass support for the surging people�s democratic revolution in Southern Tagalog and in Quezon province in particular. Thus said the secretary of the Communist Party provincial committee in Quezon in an interview with AB on December 28, 2004.
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The organized masses, whose number grew by over 10% and basic mass organizations, which registered an increase of over 8%, conduct spirited education sessions on various social issues. The CPP continues to set up mass organizations on a wider scale and prepare certain requisites for the establishment of organs of political power. Agrarian revolution is advancing. Resikada (the fraudulent practice of subtracting a certain percentage from the weight of copra, purportedly to allow for moisture loss during storage) has been reduced and in some areas completely eliminated. Nevertheless, the people remain vigilant in the face of maneuvers by merchants to restore resikada through various means like paying very low prices for copra.
In other areas, the people waged successful struggles to attain higher wages for farm workers, raise the farmgate prices of agricultural products, institute changes in the sharecropping system, defend the right to occupy idle lands and set up settlements and oppose landgrabbing and the use of their communities as landfills.
The masses utilized various forms of legal and illegal struggle, such as people�s encampments, dialogues, rallies, negotiations and other protest actions. The revolutionary forces likewise established links with, and organized, elements from the middle forces and the ranks of professionals, individual politicians and other higher strata of society.
They firmly faced head-on relentless enemy operations aimed at obliterating the mass base. Sparrow operations, sniping and raids against fascist troops were launched. The NPA in the Northern and Central Quezon guerrilla fronts launched 18 tactical offensives, killing 18 enemy troops and wounding 10.
There are vigorous efforts to recruit new NPA fighters and develop their capability to shoulder ever-growing responsibilities in advancing armed struggle. The NPA is also engaged in a continuing effort to develop good political relations between officers and fighters, have a firm grasp of the fighters� conditions and respond to their needs, and provide them politico-military training.
Party membership in the province is expanding, growing in 2004 by over 8% from its 2003 figure. The number of newly established Party branches in the localities grew by 7%. These branches are now spread over approximately 200 barrios, communities, factories, haciendas and schools, serve as the core and provide leadership in mass struggles in the countryside and cites.
Comrades in Quezon develop their skills and capabilities continuously and in an all-sided way in the face of intensifying militarization and enemy violence. They know fully well the need to be ready always for any violent attempt by enemy soldiers and the state to crush the revolutionary movement.
The Party in the region foresees a shift in the enemy�s priority operations from Mindoro and Laguna towards Quezon and the further intensification of the war. Thus, the more urgent need to deepen and broaden the mass base and intensify armed struggle. In particular, the revolutionary forces must invigorate and sustain the advance of agrarian revolution as the key to strengthening and consolidating the mass base in the countryside. They also aim to raise the current level of basic mass organizations and to continue to establish and consolidate mass organizations and organs of political power.
Launching tactical offensives and achieving victory both politically and militarily have become an even more critical task. The masses urgently demand that the NPA deal major blows on the enemy. To meet this demand, the NPA must struggle against traces of conservatism in military work. It must deploy units and set up, fill and strengthen its machinery in many other areas. There are a big number of new Red fighters that must immediately be given politico-military training to raise their knowledge of military tactics and techniques.
In carrying out these tasks, the Party provincial committee foresees the overall advance of revolutionary work in 2005.
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