Duterte bravely resists American hegemony despite media slander

The chairperson of the International League of Peoples’ Struggle and chief political consultant of the National Democratic Front of the Philippines, the author of books on Philippine and global issues, and the outstanding Filipino poet,  Prof. Jose Maria Sison, explains the aggressive campaign in the media against President Duterte and talks about the successful steps towards the country's independence.

The anti-terrorist program of President Duterte is directed particularly at the terrorist group Abu Sayyaf. Abu Sayyaf and its allies are responsible for bombing  the public market in Davao city on September 2nd.  Abu Sayyaf is also engaged in kidnapping foreigners. It is only natural that Duterte's government must fight against them. The latest act of terrorism was intended to harm innocent civilians. But the terrorists’ actions cannot intimidate the Philippine nation. Terrorism is senseless.

The Duterte government has been undertaking a successful campaign against drugs. There have been casualties as a result of that campaign, as the latest count shows that 3500 people have been killed. Of course, a number have been killed because they resisted police who were arresting drug dealers and drug users. Also, there is the phenomenon of police officers who are involved in the drug trade. Those officers have been killing their former agents in order to cover their crimes. There are many explanations for the rise of casualties. Among the drug lords there is also a competition for the market. Anyway, 600.000 people have surrendered themselves for rehabilitation. Those addicts are victims. I think it might help to strike drug lords on different levels.

Of course, there are some forces in the Philippines who are hostile towards Duterte's government. The main force interested in the fall of Duterte is the former Aquino regime. The US intelligence agency is also interested in Duterte’s overthrow. There is a report that, two months ago, the US was plotting some elements in Manila. The USA is the main foreign force interested in undermining President Duterte.

When, a few weeks ago, Duterte was about to leave for ASEAN summit, anti-Duterte elements were happy to receive assurance from the U.S. embassy that U.S. President Obama would lecture and scold Duterte on human rights violations. But Duterte promptly reacted and declared that the Philippines was no longer a colony of United States and that the US itself is a big human rights violator in the history of mankind. The US has not even apologized for killing hundreds of thousands of Filipinos in order to conquer the Philippines from 1899 to 1914. The Americans killed 1.4 million Filipinos. Duterte has been using historical facts to point out that the US has no right to dictate the Philippines what to do. America is responsible for killing 35 million people all around the world since the end of the Second World War. Also, the US is responsible for the refugee crisis in Europe.

Duterte has declared his determination to pursue an independent foreign policy. We are living in a multipolar world, and the US can no longer play a role of a supreme power who decides everything in the world. President Duterte also has spoken of ending the US’s military presence in the Philippines and joint U.S.-Philippine naval patrols in the West Philippines, and instead accessing weapons from China and Russia. Duterte is trying to strike out the path of an independent policy. This is good for the Filipino people, because it can lead them to national independence, democracy and economic development. We need to get rid of the traditional US dominance over the Philippines.

I could say that Duterte is doing well in constructing an international foreign policy. If he does so, then the National Democratic Front of the Philippines will find it easier to reach a full peace agreement. As you may know, the government of Philippines and the NDFP are negotiating a peace in Oslo. Both sides have already agreed on a comprehensive agreement on respecting human rights and international humanitarian law since 1998. Now, the work is to be focused on the need for social and economic reforms.

The Philippines can find expanding relations with the BRICS countries useful. Of course, in terms of security, Philippines can also join the SCO in order to block the attempts of the US to dominate East Asia at all cost. The Filipino people can thus find their proper place in the world and enjoy full national independence and social justice, economic development, and international solidarity with all nations willing to have fair relations with Philippines.