The Communist Party of the Philippines castigated the Marcos regime and its defense secretary Gilberto Teodoro Jr over the sanctions he faces from China. CPP chief information officer Marco L. Valbuena said these sanctions are a “direct result of the Marcos regime’s aggressive pursuit of a militarist foreign policy aligned with the United States” amid the latter’s escalating rivalry with China.

He said Teodoro and officials like him in the military and civilian bureaucracy act as errand dogs for the US geopolitical strategy.

“They advocate expanding US military presence in the country, prepositioning US war matériel and conducting endless war exercises,” Valbuena said. They are hyping China’s “floating structure” in Bajo de Masinloc, just days after the US Coast Guard patrolled the area.

Valbuena said the Filipino people, along with other peoples in Asia, stand for the peaceful resolution of international disputes, including disputes with China. By pushing US militarism, Teodoro and the Marcos regime are provoking war.

Meanwhile, the Pambansang Lakas ng Kilusang Mamamalakaya ng Pilipinas (Pamalakaya, or National Strength of the Fisherfolk Movement in the Philippines) said the sanctions imposed by China against Teodoro was not surprising.

In its June 14 statement, the group emphasized that fisherfolk will not give sympathy or support to Teodoro, who “pushes narratives favorable to the geopolitical interests of others, particularly the US.” It said the sanctions prove that Teodoro and other Philippine officials are directly involved in the “geopolitical conflict in the region” between the US and China. They castigated Teodoro for his “unprincipled word war” while acting as a “factotum” of the US.

For the group, there is nothing “honorable” in Teodoro’s position if it solely aims to advance the interests of another superpower instead of the country’s genuine freedom.

“We will not support officials who aggressively push ‘double standard’ narratives to favor one superpower,” Pamalakaya national chairperson Fernando Hicap said. “We demand freeing our exclusive economic zone from any foreign military power.”

Hicap added that while Teodoro is busy being subservient to the US, he forgets the suffering faced by local fisherfolk. The group cited the military exercises such as Balikatan which bannned fishing and destroyed marine resources in areas such as Zambales and Cagayan due to explosions from US weapons.

Hicap said Teodoro has not even checked on them or extended concern when the senseless US military exercises caused widespread damage to fishing grounds.

Pamalakaya called for a “peaceful and diplomatic” resolution in the West Philippine Sea based on mutual respect. It also called for the end of destructive foreign wargames and the scrapping of unequal military agreements that undermine efforts to uphold maritime peace.