Correspondence reports:
Military and CPLA behind marijuana production and trade

Basahin ang artikulong ito sa Pilipino

The reactionary military and police forces feign seriousness in suppressing the drug business, but in truth, they are behind the proliferation of, and trading in, drugs and provide protection to drug syndicates in the Philippines.

In the Cordillera, no less than PNP Supt. Eugene Martin of Abra and Mailed Molina, mayor of Bucloc, Abra and head of one of the factions of the Cordillera People's Liberation Army (a counterrevolutionary paramilitary group) are partners in crime in the cultivation of marijuana and the sale of hashish.

Hashish is derived from processed marijuana flowers and fruits which are more potent than the leaves. It is also more expensive, especially since the bulk of the country's production is exported. In collusion with the regional and local AFP and PNP

Some of the indigenous people are forced to cultivate marijuana because of the prodding and bribery of the military and their paramilitary accomplices like the CPLA, and because of the lack of opportunities to earn enough through honest means.

Military agents usually provide the contracted peasants with the seedlings. This is apart from the seedlings from previous plantings.

Marijuana grows on any soil and easily thrives on rocky and steep land and other terrain not favorable for agricultural production. Hence, it can easily be concealed in remote forests and steep hilltops rarely reached by people. Peasants do not tire much because after planting, they only have to wait for the marijuana plants to blossom before harvesting them.

Before harvest time, the plantations are "raided" by the PNP Anti-Narcotics Unit which is also in cahoots with drug syndicates. Photos of the burning of some plants are taken for the media, but the bulk of the "confiscated" marijuana has already been harvested and is being processed.

When the US military bases were still open, a certain US Army major was in charge of exporting hashish. Now, processing, packing and shipping are all being done in the Cordillera. From here, through the drug syndicates and with the protection of the PNP and AFP, the hashish is brought directly to Baguio, Olongapo or Manila before the bulk is exported and the rest plied to various parts of the country.

It is the military leaders assigned to Northern Luzon who benefit from the drug trade in the Cordillera.

Those now involved in the so-called "Baguio Connection" are Supt. Eugene Martin, Col. Ramsey Ocampo, Gen. Reynaldo Acop and Gen. Rogelio Aguana. Their man in Buguias, Benguet is Sgt. Arsenio Tomas who is untouchable despite common knowledge of his involvement with drugs. In Bakun, Benguet, Sgt. Henry Dayag is involved. He is also the rabid fascist who killed Fr. Nilo Valerio and three other martyrs of Bakun in 1985.

Meanwhile, in areas where the NPA operates in the Cordillera, marijuana cultivation is effectively suppressed. The Party, the NPA and the revolutionary mass organizations conduct a continuing campaign to convince peasants not to cultivate marijuana. They have since achieved huge successes, although there are still wide mountainous areas not yet within the scope of Red political power where plantations can still be found.

The NPA and the revolutionary movement's propaganda and education campaign has also been effective in reducing the number of cases of marijuana usage. The masses are well aware of the military's involvement in marijuana. They also know that the raids on marijuana plantations are just for show and are being used as an excuse to militarize their areas.

Small-time minions are encouraged to bolt the criminal syndicates and their anti-social activities. The people's army and revolutionary movement pursue and fight the military and paramilitary forces and the syndicates that are principally behind the marijuana trade.

Through agrarian revolution, the revolutionary mass organizations strive to develop agricultural production to meet the livelihood needs of the people. The units of the people's army vigorously help in this endeavor. The agrarian revolution program includes cooperative production, the development of means of cultivating and propagating traditional plant varieties and alternative products and introducing other sources of income.

07 August 2003
English Edition

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