The Communist Party of the Philippines (CPP) today called for the immediate pull-out of armed US troops doing relief work. It issued the following statement:
The Communist Party of the Philippines (CPP) calls for the immediate pull-out of armed US troops in Quezon and Aurora and the transfer of its relief operations to civilian agencies.
We denounce the Arroyo government for allowing American armed troops to swagger on Philippine soil and violate national sovereignty. We condemn the US government for taking advantage of the calamity and using "relief work" as pretext to deploy its armed troops.
The deployment of hundreds of US armed troops in Quezon and Aurora provinces is part of the continued escalation of US military intervention, vigorously supported by the militarist and puppet regime of Gloria Arroyo.
Under the Arroyo regime, American troops have virtually established permanent presence in the Philippines. The puppet Arroyo regime has allowed US nuclear-powered naval ships to dock one after another, carry-out military exercises and fly their fighter planes on Philippine aerospace. The Arroyo regime flagrantly violates its own constitution in order to serve her master's "global war of terror".
The CPP calls on the Filipino people, especially the people of Quezon and Aurora to take action to demand the pull-out of US troops. The Filipino people should not be blinded by the several million dollars of so-called "relief aid" being dangled by the US government in exchange for allowing US armed troops to trample on Philippine sovereignty. They can demand the US government to course its relief assistance through its civilian relief agencies or local civic groups.
The CPP calls on the Filipino people to continue mobilizing assistance for the people devastated by the recent landslides and flooding, especially in the face of the Arroyo government's failure to allocate substantial funding for rehabilitation. Officials of the Arroyo regime engage in bureaucratic bickering over the minuscule calamity funds in complete disregard of the people's plight.
The CPP has instructed units of New People's Army (NPA), particularly those in Cagayan Valley, in eastern Central Luzon, eastern Laguna, eastern Rizal and northern Quezon, as well as revolutionary mass organizations in these areas, to organize relief work and collective rehabilitation undertakings to uplift the peasant masses from the calamity.
The CPP welcomes the help being extended by the international commmunity to the victims of the calamity. It would be advisable for them to either course their funds through people's mass organizations who work directly among the people, or allow their civilian relief agencies to undertake direct work among the victims; instead of through corrupt government officials and agencies. This way, they can be assured that their assistance will benefit the victims of the calamity.
