NPA anniversary

AFTER the Communist Party of the Philippines (CPP) was formed on Dec. 26, 1968, it immediately organized its military arm, the New People’s Army (NPA) on March 29, 1969 mostly from the remnants of the old Hukbong Mapagpalaya ng Bayan (HMB) in Luzon. As they say, the party without an army merged with the army without a party. That would be 48 years on Wednesday.

I was reminded of this when I looked for updates on the peace talks between the Government of the Republic of the Philippines (GRP) and the National Democratic Front of the Philippines (NDFP). The last we heard was that the talks would resume and the two sides would declare their respective unilateral ceasefires. Days after, we still have to hear either side make good that promise.

Traditionally, and I don’t know if that has changed, NPA units would conduct tactical offensives on the weeks prior to its anniversary. This must be why Malacañang and the Armed Forces of the Philippines are complaining about alleged NPA attacks the past weeks. But that only serves to prove that peace negotiations are the way to end this decades-old rebellion.

Actually, I was amused early on when a top AFP official, before the resumption of the peace talks was announced, vowed to crush the NPA in only a few months. As I said before, the rebellion is rooted on societal problems that are breeding inequality, exploitation and oppression so that it can only be “crushed” if those societal problems are solved. No way could an armed offensive end it.

Besides, the CPP is the only group I know that is determined, well-disciplined, scientific and constantly learning from its mistakes. In this sense, its guidance of the NPA is what makes that armed group difficult to crush. Note how the Marcos dictatorship poured its resources in the effort to destroy both the communist and the Moro rebellions in the ‘70s. It failed miserably.

Wastewater is also a big health issue as it carries and transports diseases and illnesses. According to the World Health Organization, about 2.2 million people die each year worldwide from water-related diseases, mostly children in developing countries.

The first WWD was held on March 22, 1993. Every year, the celebration highlights a specific aspect of freshwater or corresponds to a current or future challenge. In the Philippines, the celebration lasts for at least one week by virtue of Executive Order No. 258 issued in 1996, adopting the Philippine Water Week.