Letter from the Philippines – three press statements

Dear comrades,

Thank you for offering to publish the statements I sent you from the Philippines.

First of all, I would like to extend my heartfelt thanks to you in helping me to publish some of the press statements issued by left political groups in my country. I will try to explain some of the theoretical and legal framework.

First, on the question of what is “Socialista”. What formation is it? Who founded it? Who are the constituents? The Socialista is a broad socialist formation among the masses of workers, farmers, other marginalised sectors like the urban poor, youth and women. This formation was created to propagandise, popularise and mobilise the masses of workers, farmers and other exploited classes towards socialist aspirations and actions to realize the workers' political struggle.

This was formed through the conscious efforts of some party elements, labour leaders, urban poor, youth and women’s leaders from different municipalities and cities throughout the national capital region.

Second, on the question of the trade unions: the Partido Unyunista (Unionist Party) is an organised formation of unionised workers at the level of municipal/city districts, provincial, regional to national level, as the basis of forming its national leadership body coming from the rank-and-file workers/labourers in the country. The new worker’s party started its formation from members in the national capital region and in the nearby provinces of Central Luzon and southern Tagalog regions breaking from the tradition of organizing workers within the confines of local unions and union federations. They represent from the different layers of industrial to non-industrial sectors even the overseas migrant workers. This is a step forward to concretise or to realise the full potential of workers struggles through parliamentary means, paving the way for the conception of an embryonic stage of workers' soviets from local level to national level of governance.

Third, on the question of the third paper: press statement of the Partido Socialista. Partido Socialista (Socialist Party). This party is a member of a wider civil society network (a petit-bourgeois formation) called Coalition for National Salvation-CNS, built to influence and propagate a socialist agenda and actions within these progressive groups calling for a (transitional) provisional revolutionary government of workers and ordinary citizens (masses) that will replace the present bourgeois government. Suffice it to say, Linda Montayre is out of the question with regards to the press statement. It is a press statement of the Partido Socialista and not the CNS.

Fourth, on the question of the idea of collecting the signatures of 60% representation of the working class in the parliament. The Partido Socialista has a plan of action to utilize the parliament as one of the many avenues of political struggle in consonance with the experience of Pakistan ‑ using the parliament in advancing the workers struggle within the bourgeois seats of power and to expose the limitations of bourgeois politics.

Comradely,

September 28, 2005