Author Archives: admin

An Unofficial Guide to Understanding the Socio-Economic Proposals of Filipino Communists

By admin | October 1, 2017

Published by Bulatlat The most important peace document submitted by the National Democratic Front of the Philippines contains seven parts and is 82 pages long. Here’s a summary of the proposed Comprehensive Agreement on Social and Economic Reforms or CASER: The preamble links the country’s economic backwardness to its colonial history. But it also highlights […]

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Lingering Questions Remain on Duterte’s Martial Law in the Philippines

By admin | September 14, 2017

According to the 1987 Constitution, Congress is supposed to convene a joint session in order to review the government’s martial law proclamation. But leaders of both houses of Congress said a joint session is unnecessary since the majority are supporting the president’s decision anyway. This is unfortunate, since there are questions related to martial law […]

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Why the Philippines’ Duterte Should Rethink the Vice Presidency

By admin | September 1, 2017

Various political analysts and commentators have already shared their views on Rodrigo Duterte’s first year as president of the Philippines. But so far, only a few have said something about Vice President Leni Robredo’s first year in office. Those unfamiliar with the Philippine political system might ask the relevance of discussing Robredo’s performance as vice […]

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A new EDSA is emerging but will the poor have any place in it?

By admin | August 18, 2017

Published by Manila Today Epifanio delos Santos Avenue or EDSA is no ordinary road. It’s the site of two (or is it three) People Power uprisings; and it remains the principal and most important highway in Metro Manila (apologies to C-5 and Commonwealth Avenue). The growth centers of the country’s premier urban hub are all […]

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What Does Duterte’s Martial Law Mean for the Philippine Peace Process?

By admin | August 9, 2017

Though it is still early days, what has been the impact of the Mindanao-wide martial law on these ongoing peace initiatives thus far? Since the declaration of martial law, most of the headlines have been devoted to the Maute group and the ISIS threat in the Philippines, while very little has been discussed about its […]

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Back-to-basics grassroots organizing in the time of Duterte

By admin | July 21, 2017

*Summary of my contributed essay to the workshop organized by the Third World Studies Center of the University of the Philippines-Diliman and the Conflict Research Group of the Ghent University. The workshop’s theme is “Politics and Power in the Philippines: Towards a Contemporary Research Agenda”. Published by Bulatlat Political forces vie for national dominance but […]

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Is Rodrigo Duterte Really Anti-American?

By admin | July 17, 2017

Philippine President Rodrigo Duterte has a reputation of being a staunch critic of the United States government. However, it is probably more accurate to describe him as being critical of former U.S. President Barack Obama but not of current President Donald Trump. A few months after becoming president in 2016, Duterte launched a series of […]

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Bakit hindi matalu-talo ang New People’s Army?

By admin | July 1, 2017

Published by Bulatlat Lahat ng rehimeng nagdaan ay nagtangkang buwagin at talunin ang New People’s Army (Bagong Hukbong Bayan). Lahat ay nagsabing sila’y magtatagumpay. Lahat sila’y nabigo. Ano ang nasa likod ng misteryong lakas ng NPA? Paano ito nagpunyagi sa nakalipas na limang dekada? Walang sikreto maliban sa puspusang pakikibaka habang sinusulong ang pulitika ng […]

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Duterte’s Drug War is Distracting From His Social Reform Agenda

By admin | June 18, 2017

Mention the name Rodrigo Duterte and what comes to mind is the bloody “war on drugs” that has claimed the lives of more than 7,000 Filipinos. Amid the continuing spate of killings in the Philippines, it is almost impossible to discuss the social reform agenda of Duterte’s government, which came to power less than a […]

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The political legacy of the Filipino Sixty-Eighters

By admin | June 8, 2017

Published by Bulatlat Mention the year 1968 and what comes to mind are the youth uprisings across the world. The year of student strikes, anti-war rallies, and Chinese Red Guards bombarding the headquarters. In the Philippines, the political landscape during that time was dominated by Marcos. But another political event was the reestablishment of the […]

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