The New Peoples Army and The Jihad Movement
Comparing the NPA to Terrorist Groups engaged in the Jihad Movement
Aug 21, 2009
The New People’s Army of the Philippines is fundamentally different in their makeup and agenda than most groups engaging in a Jihad, however they do share some things in common. One obvious difference is they are not launching any kind of holy war. While they do want to topple their government they don’t want to replace it with a theocratic state. Their platform is socialist in nature and they are a communist group. They don’t care about religion one way or the other; in fact they recently had a same-sex marriage between two guerilla fighters in the group. So long as religion doesn’t go against their party teachings they allow it; on their platform they state: “While freedom of thought and religion shall be accorded respect, proper safeguards shall be taken to keep this freedom from being systematically employed to resist the people's democratic revolution or hurt the people's interests," as stated in Article II, section 8 of the Program for a People's Democratic Revolution. Instead, the NPA is much more interested in land reform and distribution than controlling the masses under some religious laws.
Their Stance on Minorities
The New People’s Army doesn’t discriminate against minorities either. There are substantial Minority populations on the island of Mindanao and they claim that Chinese populations are often victims of racism. So unlike some strict groups that wage Jihad against all non-arabs, no matter their religion the NPA encompasses all religious and ethnic groups – just as long as they are “oppressed” by the Philippine government or US interests.
Similarities and Differences
However they share similarities with groups like MILF (Moro-Islamic-Liberation-Front) that operates in the southern Philippines. Both groups want to overthrow the Philippine government, which they believe is ineffective, and a puppet regime for the United States. They are both strongly anti-capitalistic and loathe any US presence in the area. Both groups get support primarily from the poor and unemployed. The NPA and any Jihadist group, like Osama Bin Laden’s Al Quida know that the best way to drum up support is to give the poor what the government is having a hard time providing. In the case of the Philippines this may be by providing schooling, health and social programs. And if the NPA doesn’t get what they want that way they can always use extortion! Unlike other groups engaged in Jihad the NPA doesn’t have an agenda that stretches across international boundaries. They only want to overthrow the government in their midst, therefore it seems highly unlikely that the NPA will spread outside of the Philippines.
 |
