Imprisoned Communist Party leader speaks
Interview with Jose Maria Sison litically active and wanted to bring up her child in peace. She is presently being held in solitary confinement at Camp Crame.
Sison was very cheerful, joking with his guards, who sat close behind him in
Jose Maria Sison, preisdent of the underground Communist Party of the
Philippines (CPP) has been detained by the Ferdinand Marcos regime since
November 1977. The CPP was created in 1968 on the basis of a split with che old pro-Moscow CPP and of a pro-Chinese orientation. Since the turn to the right by the Chinese regime with its policy of detente with Washing.
ton at the beginning of the 1970s, which led to them supporting the maintainance of US bases in the Philippines, the CPP has gradually taken their distance from Peking.
According to the figures given in the December 1983 issue of the CPP journal, Ang Bayan, this party, which when it was founded organised no more than one hundred members, had 30,000 members in 1981.
CPP plays the foremost role in a whole series of urban and peasant mass movements and, most importantly, leads the main armed opposition force against the Marcos regime - the New People's Army (NPA) which in
1981 organised about 20,000 fighters.
Deb SHNOOKAL
The Military Court at Fort Bonifacio was a large, light and airy room with three long tables and high-backed chairs arranged in a U shape, facing the rows of seats for the audience.
The Military Commission No. 25 was to hold yet another hearing of the "subversion case" against several alleged leaders of the Communist
Party of the Philippines (CPP) (1) charged with seeking to overthrow the government by force in collusion with an unforeign power, presumably the
Peoples Republic of China.
Jose Maria Sison, who has admitted to being chairman of the outlawed CPP, in a lively manner with
When we were introduced, he shook my hand warmly and immedthe court proceedings," he said. "I prefer to talk with the people who come
Sison was arrested with his wife,
Jose Maria Sison with Deb Shnookal (DR)
14
The Juliet, in November 1977. For most of his detention he has been kept in solitary confinement. After. his arrest he was beaten and tortured and then manacled to his bed for 24 hours a day so that he was unable to move.
For two years of his imprisonment, Sison was allowed to be together with his wife, who up until that time had also been in solitary confinement. Sison was released in March 1982 after she gave birth to their child. Sison was then placed in solitary again until July
Sison's case has gone to the Supreme Court five times with petitions for habeas
The way Marcos "openly flouts the law," Sison said, "he has practically destroyed jurisprudence in this country.
Two others accused along with Sison were also present at the August 31 hearing at Fort Bonifacio - journalist Satur teacher Mila AguillarRoque had only been arrested three weeks before. She was suspected of order to make sure they heard every word spoken. "I always talk with my guards," he said. "They are dissatisfied with their conditions, the • bullying they suffer. They want a wage raise too, don't you?" he asked, turning to his prison guards, who looked sheepishly at the ground. "All the funds Marcos gives the military never get to these men," Sison remarked.
I asked Sison what he considered the major problems the Philippines faced today. "First," he replied, "we need to achieve national independence in the political, economic, cultural and other
"Secondly, we need to realize democracy; that means the elimination of the fascist dictatorship. And lastly, we need to solve the land problem. By national independence," he continued, "I mean the cutting off of the dependence on a superpower like the United States.
To develop democracy we have to eliminate feudalism, to liberate the peasant from feudal and semi-feudal bondage. Marcos has only carried out a bogus land
Only about 2,000 hectares [1 hectare equals 2.47 acres] have been transferred to the peasants while Marcos cronies have grabbed hundreds of thou-
"We have to break up the feudalism," he said, "so that the local forces of capitalism can be liberated, that is, the national entrepreneurs and smaller businessmen. The property owned by the multinationals and traitor elements will be taken over by the state. Our economy would be a combined one - of state and Filipino private ownership.
"This involves a change of political power, of course," he concluded. "That is, a fundamental transformation of society. US imperialism, feudalism and bureaucratic capitalism have developed a virulent form of fascism in the Philippines. The solution is a national democratic revolution of a new type. That is, with the class leadership of the proletariat. The revolutions of the old type 1. The Communist Party of the Philippines (CPP) was established in 1968 and arose out of the student and nationalist movements of that decade. At the time of its formation it supported the Maoist leadership of the Chinese Communist Party. It described itself as "re-established" to claim the early legacy of the Partido Komunista ng Pilipinas (PKP), a pro-Moscow party formed in 1930.
Since its formation, the CPP has gradually moved away from loyal adherence to the views of the Chinese CP. Following its detente with Washington, Peking withdrew support fro from national liberation struggles in Southeast Asia and came out in favor of the maintenance of US bases in the Philippines — positions the CPP rejects.
The CPP leads the New People's Army, the major armed opposition to the government.
International Viewpoint 28 January 1984
were led by the liberal bourgeoisie."
What role did he envision for the liberal bourgeoisie, I asked. "They will still be progressive, but they will not have the political hegemony. They do not have the political, ideological or organizational necessary to cope with US imperialism.
"There are four forces in the Philippines today. First, the workers, who represent about 15 peasants representing 75 percent. Thus the workers and peasants make up 90 percent of the population. basic foundation of the united front nec-
Then there are additional forces in this united front - the urban petty-bourgeoisie (the small propthe educated people and lastly there is the middle bourgeoisie.
"The class enemy is the comprador banks, the big landlords and so on. old Filipino revolution was unable to liquidate this layer." Australia's role
I asked Sison what he thought the role of Australian imperialism is in the Philippines. "I think the United States is pushing Australia to assume more counterinsurgency responsibility," he said. main projects are militarily oriented. On the surface the aid looks like simply economic aid. But in fact it is used to create a psychological effect - to discourage the revolutionary movement, to infrastructures, not just for landlords, but also for the military, like roads for example.
"The Philippines government is also receiving direct military aid from Australia," Sison said.
If a revolutionary, popular government came to power in the Philippines, I asked, did he think the United States would respond the same way it did in Grenada of Washington sending troops to Central Struggle in the Philippines
I asked how he saw the development of the struggle in the Philippines.
"The maturation of the Filipino revolution will come about in five to ten years. I am considering
States and its lack of military capability to counter the Filipino revopeople will not permit Reagan to launch new adventures. I expect the Filipino revolution to win alongside several other revolutionary advances.
"Today the Marcos regime is much
The August 21 rally [to commemorate the anniversary of the assassination of oppositionist Benigno Aquino] was unprecedented in militance and mag-
American policy-making bodies couldn't help but be impressed by this demonstration of Marcos' isolation from the people."
Could this lead the United States to dump Marcos, I asked.
"On balance, it appeared that Reagan would prefer a slow process of phasing out Marcos, but I think this will be accelerated now. Of course, I'm not relying on the United States. The US government will decide. to dump Marcos, first if the legal, democratic mass movement continues to grow in strength, and secondly, with the growth of the armed struggle. These two factors will decide Marcos' fate.
"There is already a stalemate. The New People's Army [NPA] has reached the stage of wiping out larger units of the army. The NPA is now on its own counteroffensive - hitting smaller military detachments one by one. The military's and the bombing of peasant villages is only increasing support for the NPA."
What were the chances of a further military crackdown in the future, I want-
"A military crackdown or takeover that continues Marcos' policy cannot last long," Sison answered. "There may be a liberal-minded military group that would pave the way for a civilian government, as happened in Argentina. Or there might be a transitional government with some support from the left. There are several possibilities."
Finally, I asked Sison how he passed the time in prison. "I read and write, and now I can talk to the two other detainees. By shouting I can communicate with two others over a wall. I can read anything that is legally available - for instance I read drafts of opposition documents and published materials of the National Democratic Front. But I am not allowed CCP material. I now have over 500 books in my library. I am reading slowly these days.