Today, we observe the International Day of Remembrance of and Tribute to the Victims of Terrorism. We commemorate those who have been mercilessly killed by the forces of state terrorism under the previous Duterte and current Marcos Jr. administrations.
Surprisingly, in a tweet last week, the Armed Forces of the Philippines (AFP) said it is “reaffirming their commitment to human rights” by “celebrating” the International Humanitarian Law month. But these hypocrites cannot hide their history with oath-taking ceremonies and photo-ops — they can only reaffirm their long tradition of state suppression and celebrate their decades of failure to end the armed conflict as they pay-lip service to human rights and law.
This so-called commitment to human rights is as laughable as their motto, “protecting the people, securing the state.” Time and again, these “protectors of the people” have betrayed their mandate and have acted as attack dogs of those in power. Admittedly, they have secured the state, but this is nothing to brag about. They have used their guns and grenades to protect corrupt bureaucrat-capitalists and their masters from the anger of the oppressed masses.
The AFP’s Mercenary History
Even before Philippine Independence, the enemies of the people have used false projections of peace and order and the rule of law to justify their attempts to suppress revolutionaries. During the Spanish occupation, they exploited the locals into fighting fellow Filipinos and serving colonial interests. When the country fell into the hands of the Americans, they did the same thing – they recruited Filipinos to stifle the revolution and kill their countrymen.
The AFP is a product of this imperialist bootlicking – the Philippine Constabulary was established in 1901 to fight off Anti-American revolutionaries. While the Philippines would eventually establish its own Armed Forces in 1935, it was still under the command of U.S. General Douglas MacArthur. They were trained to mimic the US military and were armed with, as MacArthur himself would say, “more or less obsolete” hand-me-downs from the Americans.
In the decades to come, the Armed Forces would continue to serve American interests in the Philippines. After the war, their main goal was to stifle the revolution and retain control of the islands. The Hukbong Bayan Laban sa mga Hapon brought Japanese imperialists to their knees during World War II, but they refused to bow down to another imperialist master, so the Armed Forces arrested, detained, and in some cases even massacred Filipinos who fought alongside them only a few years prior.
The AFP used violence to suppress opposition to unfair trade policies such as the Bell Trade Act that gave Americans free reign to exploit the Philippine market. They branded critics as communists hell-bent on wreaking havoc and amassing power. This justified the increased imperialist military presence, the establishment of US bases, and the decades of abuse that came with American militarization.
When Marcos rose to the presidency in 1966, he realized that he needed the AFP to secure his fascist dictatorship. For the first 13 months of his presidency, he also served as the Secretary of National Defense, building a patronage network within the Armed Forces and making sure that they would remain loyal as he ruled with an iron fist. The AFP would serve as the implementer of Martial Law. Under Marcos and his pet generals, they intimidated critical media entities, jailed political opponents, and enabled the capture, torture, and death of activists alongside the Philippine Constabulary to perpetuate Marcos’s dictatorial rule.
This track record clearly does not show a “commitment to human rights.”
A Commitment to Fascism
While the military was essential in kicking out the Marcoses, they have only added to their long list of Human Rights violations in the years after 1986. They abducted and tortured critics, bombed indigenous communities, and massacred activists. This is anything but “humanitarian.”
Now, they claim to celebrate International Humanitarian Law Month – the height of hypocrisy. As the number one human rights violators in the Philippines, they are like arsonists celebrating Fire Prevention Month. Despite signing the Comprehensive Agreement on Respect for Human Rights and International Humanitarian Law (CARHRIHL) in 1992, they have consistently disregarded International Humanitarian Law to repress revolutionaries.
The agreement’s provisions protect those unable to fight and non-combatants. But human rights groups like Karapatan have noted that over the years, especially under the Duterte administration, the AFP has only intensified their attacks. They have killed peace consultants, medics, and teachers in fabricated encounters. They have even desecrated corpses – something explicitly condemned by CARHRIHL.
The AFP has also violated provisions protecting prisoners of war. There have been several instances of the AFP keeping prisoners without proper charges, torturing detainees during interrogation, and even murdering surrenderees – all violations of CARHRIHL.
Their most blatant violations, however, are against civilians. Proportionality and distinction are two basic principles of International Humanitarian Law. Combatants can only use necessary force and they must keep civilians safe. But the AFP does not care – it has endangered countless lives because of heavy-handed tactics. Their red-tagging efforts have blurred the lines between critic and criminal, and their bombings have displaced peasants and indigenous communities.
Despite their willingness to disregard the rules of war, the AFP has failed to end the armed struggle because the state refuses to solve the root causes of the revolution. Their violence will never work. Their inhumanity will only further convince the Filipino people that it is right to revolt.
The only way for the AFP to actually celebrate IHL month is to stop suppressing, arresting, and killing their fellow Filipinos. If they actually want to commit to human rights and redeem themselves, they must abandon their masters, ally with the broad masses, and fulfill their mandate to actually “protect the people” by fighting against oppression and tyranny.
We know, however, that their oaths are hollow and their promises are propaganda — they refuse to recognize the human cost of their hypocrisy. As they raise their hands swearing to uphold International Humanitarian Law, they only show us the bloodstains that they can never wash away. The long list of crimes committed by AFP must be brought to our terms of justice.
We honor the people’s martyrs who have been victims of AFP’s state terrorism. We honor Chad Booc, Kerima Tariman, Recca Monte and many more who have been more committed to the international humanitarian law in the course of their struggle with the masses that the AFP terrorizes. There is no fitting tribute for them but to fight Marcos Jr.’s looming state terrorism.
Featured image courtesy of Jonathan Cellona
