“The aim of extending the nationwide ceasefire is to ensure quick and unimpeded support to all people requiring urgent medical, health and socioeconomic assistance in the face of the public emergency over the Covid-19 pandemic.”

Translation/s: Pilipino | Bisaya | Hiligaynon

In the face of the continuing public health crisis over the Covid-19 pandemic, the Central Committee of the Communist Party of the Philippines (CPP) hereby directs all commands and units of the New People’s Army (NPA) and the people’s militas to extend the nationwide ceasefire up to 11:59 p.m. of April 30, 2020.

Units of the people’s army and people’s militias are ordered to continue to desist and cease from carrying out offensive military actions against the armed units and personnel of the Armed Forces of the Philippines (AFP), Philippine National Police (PNP) and other paramilitary and armed groups attached to the Government of the Republic of the Philippines (GRP).

The aim of extending the nationwide ceasefire is to ensure quick and unimpeded support to all people requiring urgent medical, health and socioeconomic assistance in the face of the public emergency over the Covid-19 pandemic. We must prioritize the fight against the pandemic and ensure the safety, health and well-being of everyone. In this situation, the revolutionary forces remain ever ready to cooperate with all other forces and elements to achieve this objective.

This extension order also supports the outstanding call of the United Nations for a global ceasefire to enable everyone to concentrate resources to surmount the present public health crisis. In line with this, the Party and NDFP also reiterate the call for justice and urgent release of all political prisoners and for declaring a general amnesty. The Party also continues to desire the resumption of peace negotiations between the NDFP and the GRP.

The Central Committee commends all units of the people’s army and people’s militias for their discipline in observing the ceasefire order and shifting priority to the anti-Covid-19 campaign despite the difficulties and dangers brought about by the continuing occupation of AFP combat troops in the guerrilla zones and base areas, the widespread and intense intelligence and psywar operations, and the attacks mounted by the AFP’s strike forces against detected NPA units. The recent armed encounters which the AFP misreport as NPA ceasefire violations are all a result of the offensive actions of the AFP.

During the ceasefire period, all NPA units must strictly limit themselves to active defense operations which shall be carried out only in the face of imminent danger and actual armed attacks by the enemy forces.

The NPA and all revolutionary forces must maintain strictest secrecy in their movement and maintaining security because the AFP has further intensified its intelligence operations and brazenly attack the exposed units of the NPA. We must also carefully guard against the surprise and treacherous large-scale attacks of the fascist regime against the revolutionary forces and the people.

A solid indicator of the fascist threat is the sustained and intensive drone surveillance in difference parts of the countryside; non-stop RCSP operations for mass surveillance, profiling, red-tagging and psywar in villages under the AFP’s focused attacks; and the deliberate refusal to touch the gargantuan budget for intelligence, military operations and for procurement of arms and military hardware despite the acute lack of funds and resources for fighting the epidemic and providing support to those affected by the lockdown.

All units of the Party, the people’s army and the revolutionary mass organizations must continue to closely monitor the attacks and other offensive and provocative maneuvers of the units and troops of the AFP-PNP-CAFGU. These must be reported expeditiously and in detail to the higher leading Party committees and commands of the people’s army, and be promptly exposed to the public.