Governments urged to remove Communist Party of Philippines from terror list ahead of feared crackdown – Morning Star Online

by Steve SweeneyInternational editor

FOREIGN governments have been urged to delist the Communist Party of the Philippines (CPP) as a terrorist organisation amid fears that the state plans to use new legislation to crush opposition groups.

The National Democratic Front of the Philippines (NDFP) issued the appeal weeks after the CPP and its armed wing, the New PeoplesArmy (NPA), were outlawed under oppressive new anti-terror legislation introduced by the government of President Rodrigo Duterte.

An NDFP statement said: We denounce this malicious misdesignation of the CPP and NPA.

The party and the NPA are revolutionary organisations waging a national liberation struggle. The Filipino peoples armed resistance has long been recognised by domestic and foreign entities as a legitimate struggle against foreign and local oppression.

Formed in 1973, the NDFP is a coalition of revolutionary organisations,including trade unions andindigenous rights groups,which unites those fighting for national freedom and for the democratic rights of the people, according to its founding statement.

It is seen as the political wing of the CPP and had been involved in peace talks with the Duterte government in a bid to bring about an end to the decades-long conflict which has seen more than 40,000 people killed.

The NDFP warned that the government is preparing a heightened suppression drive to crack down on and potentially ban mass organisations, humanrights groups, political parties and non-governmental organisations.

The Philippines government insisted that it was necessary to designate the CPP as a terrorist organisation due to its inclusion on the terror lists of the United States, the European Union andNew Zealand, as well as Australia and Britain.

But the NDFP claimed that this is erroneous as the latter two countries do not list the CPP as a terrorist organisation and the others have not requested that the Philippines government does so.

It said it would be just and wise for the few governments that define the CPP and NPA as terrorist organisations to delist them.

It insisted that the groupsadhere to international standards on human rights and the humanitarian conduct of war.

They are against terrorism and have never engaged in any act of terrorism which is directed against innocent civilians and the people. There is not a single act of terrorism abroad that can charged against the CPP and NPA, its statement said.

The NDFP called for international solidarity and urged people to raise their voices and amplify the Filipino peoples demand to end the reign of tyranny and state terrorism.

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Governments urged to remove Communist Party of Philippines from terror list ahead of feared crackdown - Morning Star Online