THE FILIPINO ATTITUDE TOWARDS MARXISM & THE DEMONIZATION OF CPP.

What comes to mind when a person thinks of communism? Most Filipinos would probably raise their hands and point it to the sky, because a large number of us who did not formally learn the concept came across it in modern media, where the portrayal of the ideology is anchored into the horrific acts that happened during the world war. Does this outlook still stand? or is it time to consider accepting the ideology in our government system?

As a third year student of political science, I stand for the latter. As a self proclaimed democratic country, we seem to be stuck in a cycle of political dynasties centered around being conservative. 

Our country’s approach to communism can be observed from the never-ending conflict with the CPP. Formed by a Filipino writer, poet and activist Jose Maria Sison, the CPP has been engaging in a guerilla war with the state since its establishment. The main factor of this conflict lies in the party's imposition of martial law, Although outnumbered and few by force, by the end of the Marcos administration, the armed forces amounted to 10,000 combatants, only growing from Marcos’s efforts to stifle it. Its armed forces, the National People’s Army, continued to grow since then. 

Now, I personally think that the views on communist and Marxist ideology of Filipinos should not be solely based on the insurgence of the CPP, for it could be a direct analogy on how it is demonized from the Soviet Union’s action. However, the initial hope for there to be a proper communist political party here in our country was ultimately taken away as the former president President Rodrigo Duterte declared the NPA along with the CPP as terrorist organizations.

Is our perspective on the ideology synonymous to other states? The Communist Party of Chile (Partido Comunista de Chile, PCCh) has been a significant force in their  country's political and labor movements for over a century. Founded in 1912 It quickly became a leading force in the Chilean labor movement, gaining strong support among organized workers, participated in the Popular Front government and participated in the Popular Front government. Following the 1973 military coup led by Augusto Pinochet, the Chilean Communist Party (PCCh) was outlawed and subjected to severe repression during the dictatorship (1973–1990), resulting in the murder or disappearance of hundreds of its members. After the return to democracy, the PCCh initially operated as an independent opposition force but gradually re-integrated into Chile's political mainstream, eventually becoming a key participant in contemporary center-left coalitions, such as the Apruebo Dignidad alliance, where it has since regained significant political prominence. So it is actually possible for an outlawed communist party to reintegrate itself into its political environment, and it happened way before our own communist party was deemed as a terrorist. 

It’s also not a surprise to know that the outcomes of wars can determine a country’s outlook on communism. Take a look at Vietnam, for example. The Communist Party of Vietnam (CPV) is the sole ruling party and the central, guiding force of the Vietnamese state, as codified in the national constitution. The communists won the war in Vietnam so the ideology prospered.  

From here, we can conclude that the Filipino attitude towards Marxism and Communism stems from the outdated misconception that it follows Fascist ideology from World war 2, and the CPP’s conflict against the state. It has been deeply rooted within us that the ideology is flawed and infeasible, when in fact, inside multi-party systems like ours, the same can thrive. It can even function in one party systems, maybe even better than ours, seeing as Vietnam passed our country on GDP.  

Marxism and Communism are classified as extensions of Democracy. As a democratic country, shouldn’t we be allowed to have the option to enjoy all it has to offer? By allowing a communist political party to participate in our electoral system, there could be hope for exactly that.