Vol. VIII, No. 08 - April 30, 2026

In pursuit of its oft-lapsed deadline to end the armed revolution and upon the prodding of its US imperialist master, the Marcos Jr. regime has escalated its attacks against the Filipino people. Last April 19, reports indicate aerial strafing operations by the fascist Armed Forces of the Philippines in Toboso, Negros Occidental resulting in the massacre of 19 individuals including 9 civilian non-combatants two of which were minors.

A drone video surfaced recently showing NPA Northern Negros commander Roger Fabillar still alive but struggling, and yet he was still killed by blood-thirsty mercenaries of the AFP. One of the Red fighters killed was pregnant. The AFP did not even bother to check that they were shooting at two minors who lived in the area. Included in those massacred were a journalist, a student leader, peasant advocates, and two Filipino-American activists who were integrating with peasant communities. The killing of civilians and the conduct of military operations with complete disregard for the principles of distinction, proportionality, and humane treatment reveal the criminal character of the reactionary state’s counterinsurgency campaign.

Even in the midst of war, there are rules that must be respected. The NDFP, representing the revolutionary movement including its armed forces the New People’s Army, strictly adheres to the Geneva Conventions, otherwise known as International Humanitarian Law (IHL) as governing rules in the conduct of the civil war in the Philippines.

It can be recalled that in 1991, the NDFP issued its formal declaration to reinforce its commitment to abide by IHL. In 1996, the NDFP further explicitly undertook to respect the four Geneva Conventions of 1949 and Protocol 1 of 1977, filing a declaration on July 5, 1996, to this effect. In 2012, the NDFP adopted its declaration and program of action for the rights, protection and welfare of children as mandated under the UN Convention on the Rights of the Child and the Geneva Conventions’ provisions regarding children.

This adherence to the laws of war is codified into the rules of the NPA which operates under the absolute leadership of the Communist Party of the Philippines. In complete contrast, the AFP under the leadership of their commander-in-chief Marcos Jr., despite being party to IHL and having ratified all four Geneva Conventions of 1949 and 1952, have brazenly disregarded all these laws when they massacred civilians, a pregnant woman, and two minors in Toboso.

IHL exists to protect civilians, the wounded, prisoners of war, and all those unable to take part in hostilities. It prohibits deliberate attacks on non-combatants, collective punishment, executions and the indiscriminate use of excessive force. Marcos Jr. and the AFP trampled on these basic principles proving their contempt not only for the struggling Filipino masses, but for universally recognized standards of humanity.

And instead of owning up to their responsibility, the AFP mounted a propaganda campaign to dehumanize the victims of their massacre in Toboso, denying them dignity even in death. The AFP’s propaganda machinery deliberately sought to blur the line between combatant and non-combatant in order to justify their war crimes and conceal the political roots of the armed conflict. They have also used their war crimes in Toboso to fuel their grandiose claims that the armed revolution is over.

But what the AFP says cannot be farther from the truth. The revolutionary struggle in the countryside remains alive and continues to draw strength from the Filipino masses who confront on a daily basis the unresolved crises of landlessness, poverty, exploitation and escalating repression. The blood of the Toboso martyrs is bound to ignite a greater wave of resistance among Negrenses and the entire Filipino people against a regime that is increasingly isolated from the masses.

No matter how the AFP lies to slander the slain martyrs of Toboso, the masses know the truth. They know that those who offered their lives in the struggle to liberate the people from oppression and exploitation are among the best sons and daughters of the motherland. In fact, despite military intimidation, Roger Fabillar’s funeral was attended by hundreds of Negrenses who honored his memory and had nothing but unending gratitude for his service to the Filipino people.

Together with the Filipino masses, the NDFP mourns the fallen of Toboso and extends its deepest solidarity to their families, to their communities, and their comrades. Let their memory serve as an inspiration to continue the struggle and advance the national democratic revolution to total victory.