The puppet Arroyo government's new amnesty scheme is bound to fail

Gregorio "Ka Roger" Rosal
Spokesperson
Communist Party of the Philippines
November 05, 2002

The puppet and overweeningly arrogant Macapagal-Arroyo government is losing steam in its bid to defeat the growing Philippine revolution led by the Communist Party of the Philippines. It celebrated what it thought was a successful campaign to have the European Union include the NPA and Comrade Jose Ma. Sision on its list of terrorists. But seeing how this has failed to compel the NDFP to come grovelling towards the negotiating table for the "surrender talks" being peddled by the government, the puppet regime has now shifted to an old and worn-out method of deception-the offer of amnesty to those who take up arms against the puppet and reactionary government.

This amnesty offer is but part of the reactionary and puppet government's dual tactics against the revolutionary forces. Its main tactic is the use of military force to crush the armed revolution. But since the reactionary government has nothing at its disposal to defeat the protracted people's war of the NPA, the use of various forms of psywar and deception is always part and parcel of the government's counterrevolutionary war.

This, however, involves nothing but lies and deception, and consequently does not have any significant effect on the resolve of revolutionaries and even on the people's perception. Those who have been touched by the revolutionary movement in the past three decades are aware that contrary to the deception being peddled by the government and the military, the revolutionary movement led by the CPP-NPA-NDFP is peopled by genuine revolutionaries who devote their full time and effort to advancing the welfare, rights and future of the Filipino people.

Contrary to the statements of the spokesmen of the puppet, reactionary and rotting government and its mercenary military, the vast majority of Party members, NPA Red fighters and activists are very much aware of the real state of our nation, the roots of our current problems and the decadence of the prevailing system. Most of all, they know what the only solution is to such rottenness. This is none other than waging armed struggle until the prevailing exploitative and oppressive system is overthrown and replaced by a new order that enjoys genuine freedom and democracy and guarantees a free, peaceful, just and prosperous social system.

Every cadre and member of the revolutionary movement from the leadership down to the mass membership has this consciousness. The Party has ensured the ideological, political and organizational consolidation of its entire membership, especially since the success of the Second Great Rectification Movement. This is the reason why none of the counterrevolutionary schemes of successive puppet regimes has been able to defeat the struggle led by the CPP-NPA-NDF. This is also the reason why any counterrevolutionary military and psywar campaign launched by the reactionary, utterly puppet and rotten to the core US-Macapagal-Arroyo government is bound to fail.

People with small militarist minds like Angelo Reyes and Roilo Golez and traitors to the revolution like Blas Ople and Rigoberto Tiglao express their contempt and reserve their insults for Filipino communists and revolutionaries. It is so easy for them to spin yarns for the pleasure of their US master and the latter's chief puppet Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo since they benefit from, and lap up the perks, attendent to their high government positions and are thoroughly isolated from the real conditions of the people.

Just like the offer of inconsequential back channel talks that trifle with and set aside the formal peace negotiations and past agreements, this new offer of amnesty for revolutionaries and communists is another deceptive scheme. It is an insult to the consciousness and integrity of all revolutionaries and Filipinos waging resistance. Revolutionaries will consider this as just another means of deceiving and entrapping everyone whose consciousness has been raised and who wages resistance. It will be viewed as an attempt by the regime to supplant efforts towards the genuine resolution of the basic problems of the people and the country.

Like all past amnesty offers, this new offer of amnesty will be an utter failure. The majority of revolutionaries and communists ignored past amnesty offers, which failed to break the will of leaders and members of the revolutionary movement to aspire and continue fighting for fundamental and genuine social change. This new amnesty scheme will be even more roundly ignored. The Arroyo regime will see just how hard a slap this new amnesty scheme will get from a stronger and more consolidated CPP-NPA-NDF and the entire revolutionary movement. Instead of receiving any attention, it will merely be overshadowed by the raging resistance waged by the democratic and patriotic people's forces and by the offensives of the people's army in the vast countryside. ###

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