Joyful greetings to Kalipunan ng Damayang Mahihirap (Mutual Help Association of the Poor)! Two decades of struggle for wages, jobs, housing, social service and human rights. Two decades of serving as the militant center of urban poor in the entire country and enlightening millions of the poor so as to achieve national democracy and socialism.

Militant history of KADAMAY

Even before KADAMAY was established, the urban poor had already shown a significant role in the mass movement, especially during the time of the Marcos dictatorship. Organizing among the urban poor allowed a base for many wanted organizers during the Marcos fascist martial law. These communities became a source of many mass activists who joined and mobilized tens of thousands to topple Marcos.

From 1975, poor Filipinos suffered the violence of demolitions brought about by Presidential Decree 722 or the Anti-squatting Law. The residents were violently dispersed and pushed into the mire of poverty.

However, at the same time, the struggle to defend homes flared up from attack by the state. Unfortunately some organizations turned to reformism and collaboration to get concessions from the government; instead of raising the consciousness of the masses while fully exposing the injustice while gaining the sympathy of the public.

I think this is what KADAMAY has shown in its history and it is but fitting to honor. The key and keen analysis is to correctly lead the struggle and interest of the masses, while taking a strong stand against reformism, collaboration and Right opportunism.

Exploitative and repressive Duterte regime

Under the US-Duterte regime, the semicolonial and semifeudal society is deeply steeped in crisis. The country’s economy has been brought to the peak of enslavement while the cronies, associates and foreign capitalists from the US and China are being benefited.

The mass movement must confront the double burden of TRAIN law and Build, Build, Build (BBB). Until now, the mantra of the Duterte economic managers is that TRAIN will bear good long-term results for the economy. BBB in particular is being drummed up by the regime as the solution to the continuous market price rises of basic necessities.

In fact, it is the biggest cause of the soaring prices of basic goods and services, and the impoverishment of the Filipino masses because it is to them that the tax burden is passed on from the corporations and the rich. Simultaneous inflation, joblessness, and depressed wages are their lot. Such is the cruelty of the violence of daily exploitation.

The implementation of BBB is an order of the International Monetary Fund and the World Bank. It will be implemented by the regime for the country to be able to get loans and continue the vicious exploitative cycle of tying the Philippines to the imperialist powers.

Competition and rivalry are intensifying among the imperialists but they still unite on exploiting underdeveloped countries like the Philippines under the neoliberal police regime. They are all offering loans to the Philippines to boost sales of their surplus manufactures and earn superprofits from bloated prices of building infrastructure projects with high-interest loans.

The government lacks resources for implementing. Thus it is falling all over itself in seeking foreign loans from Japan, South Korea, US and EU. The Duterte regime now cling to loans from China and contracts from Chinese corporations, in exchange for the treasonous mortgaging of the natural wealth in the West Philippine Sea and other areas in our country.

Chinese loans per se have the highest interest rates and on top contracts, equipment and materials from China for these projects are overpriced. About 60 to 79 percent of the workers are from China. It is not true that BBB generates huge employment for Filipinos. Unemployment, depressed wages and rising prices will worsen.

Billions of funds are collected from taxes to further pour funds into anti-people projects and enable Duterte to boast of false development. At the same time, the growing expenses for the military and police strengthen the brutal iron hand against the working masses in the entire country. But the provisions for such social services as education, health and housing have been drastically reduced. The urban poor are not only being pushed to the edge of death and hunger but are also being killed en masse. Duterte’s hold on the majority of the members of the ruling class is relatively weak. The struggle and competition among the various factions of the ruling class are obvious. Thus Duterte collaborates with the worst plunderers in the country such as the Marcoses and Gloria Macapagal Arroyo.

Simultaneous to this is the cultivation of the PNP and AFP, the mad dogs being used to suppress his critics and stop any opposition. In exchange, the reactionary army and police are given the license to launch all-out war against the people for the benefit of the rotten ruling system of big compradors, landlords and corrupt bureaucrats.

The rewards are gross for those in the top brass and rank and file of the police and military for undertaking mass murder, illegal arrests, bombing, forced mass evacuation, land and house grabbing and other fascist attacks.

Since the beginning, the urban poor have been the Duterte regime’s target in his so-called war against drugs. Shortly after, his entire scheme has been exposed as a war against the poor. It is a policy that he cannot release because it serves his own pretentious, greedy and fascist agenda.

In fact, the regime is terrified by the growing number of poor Filipinos who are intensely angry at Duterte. He will do everything to prop up efforts to overturn the negative public perception in a futile bid to wreck the unity of the poor. New tactics are being added to the existing mass killings, widespread arrests and mass intimidation.

In the past year, KADAMAY remained firm and once again showed its correct analysis and method for advancing the national democratic struggle. When it launched the occupation of abandoned housing, it exposed the ceaseless state corruption. The government was forced to the wall and put on the defensive.

The people’s struggle is decisive

Above all, KADAMAY proved that the leadership and success of the mass movement do not depend on any reactionary state policy. In fact, it is the struggle of the masses that is decisive in the course of politics. And at the higher level it is also the crusher of any fang being shown to us by the enemy.

This is the lesson that should not be forgotten and should be further practiced at various times throughout the country. We push the reactionary government to follow the reasonable demands of the people for decent housing and future. We prove to the masses that we are capable of winning and it is just for them to trust us in acting together and in guiding the entire national democratic movement.

That is certainly only the first in what will be a series of victories. KADAMAY has an important role to play in ousting Duterte. The communities have the worst accumulated forms of fascist and economic attack on the people.

When the poor-mocking arrogance of the big bourgeoisie is overwhelmed and the supporters of the working class struggle, we shall see the extraordinary unity and strength of the people. KADAMAY has sufficient strength and experience for applying the national democratic class analysis to reach, transform and direct the anger of the masses, especially the working class and semi-proletariat against the reactionary state.

This means that the eruption of many more local struggles would lead to steps taking national form in uniting the broad anti-Duterte front. Furthermore it is the most effective way for increasing and training mass activists and organizers nationwide; and advance the mass movement toward complete victory of the national democratic revolution and the start of the socialist future.

Long live KADAMAY!

Long live the national democratic struggle!

Overthrow imperialism, feudalism and bureaucrat-capitalism!