Partido Lakas ng Masa
The electoral debacle of the Philippines left
By Reihana Mohideen
[The first two in a series of commentaries in the lead-up to the May 10, 2010 elections in the Philippines.]
Asia-Pacific calls for protests during Obama's visits to Guam, Indonesia and Australia
Statement by the Working Peoples Association (Indonesia), People's Democratic Party (Indonesia), Socialist Alliance (Australia), Socialist Worker (New Zealand), Partido Lakas ng Masa (Philippines), Solidarity (Australia), Labour Party Pakistan, Socialist Alternative (Australia), Socialist Party of Malaysia and the Confederation Congress of Indonesia Union Alliance. Supported by James Petras
[If your organisation would like to add their names to the statement, please email international@prp-indonesia.org.]
March 8, 2010 -- We, the undersigned progressive, anti-war, anti-neoliberalism and anti-imperialist organisations in the Asia-Pacific region, call for a wave protests to meet US President Barack Obama's planned visits to Guam, Indonesia and Australia in March 2010.
[To add your organisation's support, email: Ign Mahendra K at
international@prp-indonesia.org.]
January 27, 2010 -- On January 12, 2010, a 7.3 Richter scale earthquake struck Port-au-Prince, the capital of Haiti. The earthquake caused great destruction and 200,000 people are thought to be dead. Further, 3 million Haitians have been rendered homeless by the quake, which also damaged many public service buildings, such as hospitals and schools.
The quake has caused Haitians, who have struggled under decades of poverty and imperialist intervention and exploitation, even deeper suffering. Approximately 75% of Haitians earned less than US$2 per day and 56% of Haitians – around 4.5 million people – earned less than $1 per day. Most Haitians live in houses made of adobe and mud.
Philippines: Justice for murdered journalists and human rights heroes! End trapo politics now!
By Sonny Melencio, Partido Lakas ng Masa
November 25, 2009 -- The Partido Lakas ng Masa (PLM) condemns in the strongest possible terms the massacre in Maguindanao. We assert that this is not only a problem confined to Mindanao, but that it’s a symptom of a festering and rotten political system. We predict that this violence will be the feature of the coming elections, as the political elite struggle with increasing desperation and ferocity for a share of the ever-dwindling national wealth and power.
[On November 23, 57 people were massacred by the ruling Ampatuan clan that governs the province -- see news report below.]
The Philippine elections are a veritable killing fields and the killings have begun!
Philippines socialists: `Moratorium on foreign debt to pay for a modern weather forecasting service'
Scenes from Manila in the aftermath of Typhoon Ondoy. Photos: Vitamin OC.
By Partido Lakas ng Masa
Moratorium on foreign debt servicing to pay for essential and basic services! Upgrade Pagasa’s equipment now!
Philippines: Flood relief appeal from Partido Lakas ng Masa
By Reihana Mohideen, international desk, Partido Lakas ng Masa (Party of the Labouring Masses)
The Philippines left and Corazon Aquino
Corazon Aquino (far right) in 1986.
Solidarity protest in Sydney, Australia, July 1, 2009. Photos by Peter Boyle.
Below are just some of the statements released by solidarity groups, left parties and governments, and international organisations demanding the return to power of Honduras' elected presidet Manuel Zelaya. They have been compiled by Australia's Green Left Weekly.To view the complete list, click HERE.
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Statement by the Australia-Venezuela Solidarity Network (AVSN)
Philippines: `Let us now begin the Revolution for Change'
Opening talk by Sonny Melencio to the “Pagbabago! No More Trapos in 2010!” forum
June 1, 2009 -- On behalf of Partido Lakas ng Masa (Party of the Labouring Masses), I would like to extend our thanks to our two guests here who will be speaking together with me in this forum.
One has already symbolised the struggle against the trapo [elite politicians], and I refer to Among Ed. Among Ed has in fact defeated not only the three Gs that have come to symbolise the ``guns, goons and gold'' wielded by the trapos. In Pampanga, Among Ed has beaten the five Gs – which includes two more Gs representing Philippines President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo and the gambling lords.
The other one symbolised the call for change, in fact the call for the ouster of the Arroyo regime, during the Manila Peninsula rebellion on November 29, 2007. He is not with us today, because he’s still in detention, but he is represented by his lawyer Attorney Trixie Cruz-Angeles, who’s going to give us the message from Brigadier General Danilo Lim. [See following article.]
May 14, 2009 -- The Partido Lakas ng Masa of the Philippines has attempted to follow the developments in Nepal over the recent period. We welcomed the ouster of the monarchy achieved by the people’s struggle and the mass movement, the unity of the main left forces, the Unified Communist Party of Nepal (Maoist) and the Communist Party of Nepal (United Marxist Leninist), and the elections which gave the left control of the government. We welcomed as a victory for the left and progressive movement worldwide the election of a left government led by the UCPN (M), along with the CPN (UML).
We therefore consider the forced resignation of this government as a result of the refusal of the pro-elite Nepalese military hierarchy and the president, backed by the country’s elite, to follow the directives of a democratically elected government carrying out the platform that it was elected upon, as detrimental to the people’s interest and only serving the interests of the Nepalese elite.
Socialist feminist revival spearheaded by Venezuelan and Cuban revolutions
May 4, 2009 – There is a revival of socialist feminism in Latin America, spearheaded by the Venezuelan and Cuban revolutions.