aktibista

i have never identified myself with the political left in the philippines. i have always thought that the age of class struggle is long over and what was needed was sweeping reform that starts from the top. images of the Kilusang Mayo Uno, Bayan, League of Filipino Students and other left-leaning organizations incessantly take the streets and attack the bourgeoisie while vainly attempting to assault every government that came to power just got too old. even during my social awakening days at the varsitarian, the only place in santo tomas where the Left made a dent, i was never drawn to its ideas, much less join its many protest actions.

what it did was open my eyes to the existence of a parallel society in my country. the marcos years saw a cosmetic make-over that primarily intended to put away images of dire poverty in The New Society. this segment of the population that was desparately yearning to be heard, was muffled by the sounds of the orderly march of Bagong Lipunan. while the ascent of cory aquino in 1986 paved the way for the leftist elements to come out in the open and participate in the political process, it was later drowned by the return of old politics within just a couple of years of the new regime. the flimsiness of its base support which consisted mainly of its armed component, the New People's Army, organized labor, organized peasantry and a small percentage of the intellegentsia did not match the depth and power of mainstream political forces.

mainstream politics that hardly has any set of beliefs. mainstream politics that lacks any intellectual substance. mainstream politics that thrives mostly on its ability to unabashedly use money and patronage politics to remain in power. for the duration of the country's existence since independence, it has been this brand of politics that was solely responsible for the country's decline and the moral corruption of the people. the absence of real political parties has seriously undermined the accountability of those in power and resulted in the shameless looting of the nation's wealth. from one government to the next. from one promise to the next. from macapagal to macapagal-arroyo, the philippines sank deeper and deeper.

but the Left hardly appealed to my political senses. its loud methods and tired slogans against the US-Marcos, US-Aquino and US-Ramos regimes seemed like worn propaganda straight from 19th century Marxist-Leninist pamphlets. the very idea that one class needed to be dismantled in order to establish a new proletarian order was in itself already problematic. coming from a middle class, medium scale landowning clan, i did not just feel alienated from its tirades against the bourgeoisie, but the sheer violence that the movement was prescribing in order to effect reforms was shivering. this added to the fact that the genteel grounds of UST's campus did not provide fertile soil for these "progressive" thoughts.

for almost 20 years at that time, the leftist movement in the philippines under the moral and military leadership of the communist party appeared headed for a strategic victory when the marcos government seemed to be on a decline following the assassination of ninoy aquino. the CPP-NPA was the single largest resistance against the strongman that any collapse of the present order at that time would necessarily involve, if not dominated by the Left. the EDSA revolution of 1986, however, erupted and the military came to fill that power vacuum. in the initial euphoria of establishing the first post-marcos government in 20 years, every element of society that participated in the struggle were invited to participate in the beginning. cory aquino, chummy with the leftist elements that stood beside her long before the named politicos joined the bandwagon, had to share the table with the military that ultimately brought her to power.
but while mainstream political forces were gearing for the first real elections in 14 years in their own provinces, the Left and the Right were slugging it out at the presidential table. this was classically represented by johnny enrile of the military Right vs bobbit sanchez of militant Left.

in a matter of weeks during those tumultuous times in the capital, when aquino announced her firing of both leaders from her cabinet along with other personalities, the unstable coalition among all the forces that brought down the marcos regime was finally crumbling. it signaled the end of the Right vs Left telenovela within the government as well as the slide of the so-called progressive elements back into their days in the streets. they have been banished from the establishment.

election after election, the Left through its various front organizations fielded candidates in an electoral environment where the rules were set comfortably by those that were left behind in the reinforced, new establishment. the tactics used by these self-proclaimed revolutionaries were the same as when they were still in protest marches for their progressive advocacies. and while the moral compass was shifting to them somewhat by a public that was now asking those in power about the lack of progress on the promised reforms, the answers didn't come fast as the newly minted, the newly powerful are just starting to warm their asses on their newly renovated offices. as the post-marcos governments reneged or failed to deliver on the promises of democracy and economic recovery. the people's apathy towards government and society became more evident. ironically, however, it still wasn't fashionable to don the red attire of the aktibista.

the aktibista, regardless of its higher claim to social and political thought, were again relegated to a lower status in the new universe of cory aquino. the resurgence of the insulares and peninsulares in society and inside malacanang, as well as the expanding business opportunities for the burgeoning chinese community with the dismantling of several industrial and crop monopolies, were bullish about the larger space. the old pre-marcos political parties realigned and resulted in a conflagration of groupings that share little political principles, but are loosely bound by the more urgent need to be in power. they are comprised of personalities that range from the very old political families to the new set of political animals that seemed to have emerged out of nowhere. these newcomers, nouveau as they are called in the upper circles, are hungrier, more greedy and lack any political sophistication. they view political power as their coming out party into society. the declaration of their new wealth.

the emergence of these new dynamics in politics particularly in the countryside where these new political entities showed up perhaps contributed to the Left's further slide. the brief economic boom of the 90s made possible the creation of a limited but larger than usual liquid money for more people than before. these new politicos, eager to retain whatever standing they think they have attained in society, are willing to spend their life's savings just to retain their positions as mayors, congressmen, governors, or even councilors. taking the lead from their more seasoned predecessors, every city, municipality or province was virtually sold to the highest bidder.

while this kind of politics gave the left the moral ammunition to attack the ruling system, it also left them with fewer potential supporters on the ground. enterprising henchmen would rather work for the evil that pays than for the evil that kills. more and more, the relevance of the leftist movement came into question. throughout the 90s, various data from both the government and NGOs indicated a steep decline in the forces of the NPA. as the socialist regimes of eastern europe collapsed, the force of their persuasion eroded considerably especially among the middle class. the brief boom demonstrated the inherent capacity of economic development to counteract any insurgent socialist cause. it also helps eliminate the sources of discontent in the countryside and in the urban work force.

but that boom was very short-lived. the ripple that started in bangkok reached manila as the full-blown asian financial crisis in 1997. once again, the optimism that pervaded the philippines in the 90s vanished completely as estrada and arroyo came to power. perceptions of corruption became validated cases of plunder on these two governments. arroyo's persistent clamping of civil and political liberties in order to preserve power mobilized all sectors of society into mass actions reminiscent of the 80s anti-marcos demonstrations. once again, the Left is in the thick of things. again, the Left is proving its versatility and staying power.

the Left's role in the philippines is now being redefined as its legal arm has joined the political process. several seats in congress are not occupied by people who identify themselves as those of the Left. they are still tackling the age-old advocacies of labor, the peasantry and human rights, but its alignment with mainstream political parties provide it a new platform. how far it will go in its alliances with the political opposition in the struggle against arroyo remains to be seen. based on the pronouncements of its main characters in congress, the left remains unshaken in its socialist objectives.

i have virtually grown up watching the Left shift battles and change villains, but has remained single-minded in improving the human condition. perhaps unique among all the socialist movements in other parts of the world, the Philippine Left has been relatively untainted by corruption. regardless of the questions on its methods in obtaining power, its patriotism and sincerity are seldom, if at all, came into question. the frugal lifestyle of its leaders are in stark contrast to the ostentatious lives of their mainstream counterparts.

i am seriously rethinking the socialist path. i have given up on the hope that an inspiring leader from the center is still attainable. it is made harder by the fact that corruption, incompetence and the propensity for abuse have become synonymous with the traditional politician. the bankruptcy of ideas in government is largely the reflection of the incompetence that thrives well in the traditional philippine political setting.

i am still not a socialist though. it would not be fair for them who have spent their whole lives studying socialism and literally laying their lives for the struggle. i now see socialism in a new light as i am beginning to consider that it might be the only answer to my country's woes. unlike the other members of the Philippine Left, however, i am still inclined to advocate traditional means to obtain power and effecting progressive reforms thereafter.

that is hardly a socialist statement.