7. RELATE THE PHILIPPINE REVOLUTION TO THE WORLD REVOLUTION!

We must relate the Philippine revolution to the world revolution. We are proletarian internationalists. We are carrying out the Philippine revolution to contribute our own share in the struggle of the world proletariat and the entire mankind to defeat imperialism and bring about the dawn of communism.

We recognize at the same time all anti-imperialist struggles and advances of the revolution in other countries redound to the benefit of the Philippine revolution and favor its advance. These bring about conditions favorable to our revolutionary efforts. We receive powerful political support and boundless inspiration. We learn invaluable lessons. We see in the victorious national-democratic revolutions and socialist revolutions abroad our bright future.

The astounding revolutionary victories of the Indochinese peoples of Vietnam, Cambodia and Laos have signaled the irreversible decline of U.S. imperialism in Southeast Asia, in the whole of Asia, in the whole world and in its very homegrounds. We are enthusiastic that the peoples of small countries can deal so stunning a blow to U.S. imperialism and make so great a contribution to the world revolution.

The stable outposts of anti-imperialism in Southeast Asia have arisen and have raised the banner of socialist revolution and socialist construction. In all unliberated countries in the region, the people are more than ever determined to carry out revolutionary armed struggle against U.S. imperialism and its lackeys.

We are witness today to the abandonment of the ignominious Southeast Asia Treaty Organization, an outrightly U.S. military instrument, and a retreat into the Association of Southeast Asian Nations. This latter organization no longer flaunts the aggressive power of U.S. imperialism and even denies being an instrument of this superpower. But it admits openly that the three main concerns of its reactionary member governments are to suppress "insurgencies"; promote "peace, freedom and neutrality" and develop "regional economic cooperation". We must not fail to recognize that the main and essential character of the ASEAN is counterrevolutionary even as we observe that this organization reflects a certain trend that is merely the result of the crisis of the world capitalist system, the U.S. imperialist debacle in Indochina and the crisis plaguing each unliberated Southeast Asian country. Such a trend should remind us the more of our responsibilities as revolutionaries.

In our vicinity are the people of China surging forward in their socialist revolution and socialist construction and standing firmly against the two superpowers. The Korean people are engaged also in socialist revolution and socialist construction in the north and are facing up to U.S. imperialism and its lackeys in the south.

Far and wide, the revolution is rapidly advancing. The people of Asia, Africa and Latin America continue to wage powerful revolutionary movements against imperialism, colonialism and hegemonism. In all other continents, including the homegrounds of U.S. imperialism and Soviet social-imperialism, the people are engaged in revolutionary struggles. Revolution is still the main trend in the world today and Marxist-Leninist parties are steadily forging ahead.

The world revolution is advancing under conditions of intensifying superpower contention, grave crisis of the world capitalist system and the rise of the third world people and countries as the main force of the world anti-imperialist struggle. All basic contradictions are sharpening and all the ingredients of both revolution and war are achurning.

Despite their off-and-on "peace" and "detente" duets to lull the people of the world, the two superpowers are engaged in an ever-intensifying rivalry for world hegemony and are feverishly making arms expansion and war preparations. They are trying to push each other out and gain an advantage everywhere. It is clear that their imperialist rivalry is the source of the danger of war.

Though the two superpowers are over-extending themselves all over the world, Europe is their main bone of contention. Their clashing interests are most concentrated here. War is likely to start here. Troubles are now increasingly erupting here and in its vicinity. Should war break out in that part of the world, the beasts can finish off or weaken each other while we push forward the revolution in our country and in our region.

But while war does not yet break out in Europe, Soviet social-imperialism is trying to penetrate even such a country like the Philippines which U.S. imperialism considers a permanent preserve in this part of the world. Soviet social-imperialism calculates that it must make diplomatic and trade inroads to weaken U.S. imperialism in as many places as possible and push hard its new-tsarist ambitions of world hegemony.

U.S. imperialist domination in the Philippines can be removed only by a powerful revolutionary movement. But the Soviet social-imperialists nurture the illusion that someday their long-discredited local agents, the Lava revisionist renegades, will be able to do turns for them and commit far more treachery and mischief than they presently can as shameless tools of the Marcos fascist dictatorship. Even now, within their narrow circles, the Lava revisionist renegades do not tire of talking about getting more help from their imperialist master to do more mischief.

The reason is clear why Soviet social-imperialism even as enemy of U.S. imperialism cannot be our friend in any way. While we must oppose U.S. imperialism, we must be alert to Soviet social-imperialism and frustrate its scheme. We are well past the early sixties when Soviet modern revisionism could still deceive well-intentioned people.

The present crisis of the world capitalist system has been the worst since the end of World War II and continues to deepen and worsen. The inherent law of motion of capitalism, bringing about a crisis of overproduction; the monopolistic competition among capitalist countries, especially the leading imperialist powers; and the reduction of economic territory by revolutions and by the assertion of independence by hard-pressed countries have spelled the present world capitalist crisis.

The imperialists shift the burden of crisis to those whom they can. They do so through accelerated rates of profits on direct investments, usurious loans and unequal trade. The people resist. Even a reactionary government like that of the Philippines, while determined to remain a puppet of U.S. imperialism, has to maneuver for its own sake.

The third world countries have increasingly asserted their independence and demanded a new international economic order in the face of the world capitalist crisis and superpower machinations. Underlying the phenomenon of even reactionary governments posing to assert the independence of their countries is the growth of the revolutionary movement and at the same time the concern of the reactionary leaders that they must lessen or palliate the crisis that threatens them.

It must be made clear to the people that the Marcos fascist dictatorship has broadened the diplomatic and trade relations of the Philippines out of desperation and weakness even as it still clings to U.S. imperialism as its imperialist master. The circumstances in the emergence of better Philippine relations with the Middle East countries and China are clear.

As the fascist dictator claims credit for promoting the U.S. line of "interdependence" in the third world, we must criticize and condemn him for acting as an inveterate agent of U.S. imperialism within the third world and for putting a brake on the most meaningful participation of the Philippines in the anti-imperialist struggle of the third world. We must make our own projection of the demands of the third world in the terms especially of its revolutionary people.

The facts show that under the Marcos fascist dictatorship the economic stranglehold of U.S. imperialism on the Philippines has become tighter. Because of the Marcos constitution and the fascist decrees giving more privileges to foreign investors, there is practically no more need for any new economic treaty replacing the Laurel-Langley Agreement.

The fascist dictator has always asserted that U.S. imperialism should keep its military bases in the Philippines, provide a "nuclear umbrella" and guard the skies and seas. Negotiations on the US-RP military treaties have been an old ritual repeatedly resorted to in a futile attempt to deflect the people's anti-imperialist struggle.

The only new thing in current negotiations on such treaties is that the Marcos fascist dictatorship wants some rent on the vast tracts of land occupied by the U.S. military bases, relinquishment of some small sections of the land for Marcos' real estate speculation and assurances of more U.S. financial and military assistance. The question of sovereignty over the U.S. military bases has long been resolved; the point has always been to assert such sovereignty by deeds.

We must strive to have the Philippine revolution enjoy not only the political support of friendly forces abroad but also concrete assistance from them. U.S. imperialism has not stopped but has even stepped up the giving of congressional and extra-congressional military and other kinds of assistance to the Marcos fascist dictatorship.

Remaining a puppet of U.S. imperialism, the Marcos fascist dictatorship misappropriates such terms as "self-reliance" and "nonalignment" in the same fashion that he domestically misappropriates such a term as "democratic revolution" for the fascist counterrevolution. Snatching terms from the revolutionary movement is an old trick of the fascist thief. But reality speaks louder.

Unlike the reactionaries, we stand on the basic principles of independence and self-reliance. Foreign assistance should only be supplementary to our independent and self-reliant efforts. Even without any foreign assistance, we should be able to fight on and advance step by step. As already pointed out, practically everything that we need can come from the people and from the battlefield.

We should be able to draw support and assistance from as many foreign friends as possible, short of falling into any trap set by the U.S. imperialists and the Soviet social-imperialists. We appreciate most the kind of assistance that enhances self-reliance, our armed struggle and our propaganda.

Aside from developing the closest and most fruitful relations with the Marxist-Leninist parties and other revolutionary organizations, we should pay attention to our own Filipino compatriots abroad. Associations of our compatriots should extend every possible kind of support to the revolutionary struggle in their motherland and should win the widest possible support from their host people.

The half-a-million Filipinos in the United States have a very important role gathering support for the Philippine revolution not only from their own ranks but also from the American people. U.S. intervention and the possibility of another U.S. war of aggression in the Philippines must be effectively opposed with the support of the American people.

Overseas Filipinos are found in various parts of the world. Wherever they are, they should do what they can to help their people and should prepare themselves to join the ranks of the revolutionaries in the motherland. We assume that the most progressive among them study Marxism-Leninism and take appropriate interest in the revolutionary struggles in their host countries.

The conditions in the world which now favor the advance of the Philippine revolution are bound to become more excellent. The future for all revolutionary people is bright. That of the imperialists and the reactionaries is bleak. * * * * *