The Communist Party of the Philippines (CPP) and the New People’s Army (NPA) will not declare a ceasefire this Christmas season.
In an interview with the alternative news site kodao.org, CPP information officer Marco Valbuena stated that a Christmas-New Year truce is being hindered by the“relentless war of suppression, offensive military operations and imposition of martial law in the countryside” by the Marcos Jr. administration.
Valbuena noted, “In its desperation to crush the people’s resistance, the AFP (Armed Forces of the Philippines) is currently conducting military operations nationwide against the Party and NPA.”
Traditionally, the CPP-NPA and the Philippine government have declared ceasefires to commemorate Christmas, typically lasting about a week from December 24 to January 1 of the following year.
This declaration also coincides with the celebration of the CPP’s anniversary on December 26.
It is worth mentioning that the Marcos Jr. government refused to reciprocate the unilateral ceasefire declared by the CPP in 2023 and instead launched a brutal assault on NPA camps in Bukidnon on Christmas Day.
The attacks continued until December 26, resulting in the deaths of 10 NPA members, according to CPP reports.
In early 2024, government security officials pledged to “strategically defeat” the NPA by the end of the year. (ZIA LUNA)
