Luis Taruc
Luis Taruc was a Filipino political figure and insurgent during the agrarian unrest of the 1930s until the end of the Cold War. He was the leader of the Hukbalahap or Hukbong Bayan Laban sa Hapon group between 1942 and 1954. His involvement with the movement came after his initiation to the problems of agrarian Filipinos when he was a student in the early 1930s. During World War II, Taruc led the Hukbalahap in guerrilla operations against the Japanese occupiers of the Philippines.
After helping the win the war against Japan, the Hukbalahap continued their pre-war activities of seeking agrarian reform. They wanted "justice from the landowners". The government of Manuel Roxas failed to understand their history and plight fully, and although Taruc along with seven of his colleagues, was elected to the House of Representatives, they were not allowed to take their seats in Congress. They were victimized not only by the USAFFE but unfortunately also the Philippine government which drove them back to the hills. The Taruc faction opposed the parity rights that the U.S. wanted to enjoy from post-independence Philippines. In the next five years, Taruc would give up on the parliamentary struggle and once more take up arms. At the height of its popularity, the Hukbalahap reached a fighting strength of 10,000 to 15,000.
“I remain basically a socialist. It is more relevant today because capitalism has reached its apex. It will begin to slide down or will dissolve or save itself through a Third World War to control the whole world through oil and the subservience of small countries like us and I don't like that. I am happy that Cardinal Sin stated very clearly that we must be for peace. We are for America but the good America, not the America today. The good America of Washington, Jefferson, Lincoln and FDR is the America I love and admire. But the America today wants to control the economy of the world. The war in Iraq. . . is a war for oil, no matter how many millions will die so long as they can control Iraq which is the second largest oil-producing country in the world, second only to Saudi Arabia and its neighbors.”
“If the communist party under the leadership of Joma Sison insists on being too radical, too incorrigible, they will fail. They will, as the saying goes, "die on the vine." They will wither and be forgotten. The people themselves will reject them. They should instead abide by the people's interest...”
“Because to be so simplistic is not enough. Until and unless our people have learned the rudiments of the basic foundations or principles of a true republic, of a true democracy, food and housing is just a minor path or a technique. What we need is a national psyche, a national attitude that as a people we must stand up with self-respect and self sufficiency. We have a very rich country. We can produce all the food we need, but to do that we must have a good government. That government must really represent a national attitude and national characteristic, which is what the Vietnamese have done, which is what the Japanese have done. The Japanese have no trace of a socialistic or communistic ideology and yet because of their nationalism they were able to project Japan as one of the most prosperous industrial countries of the world.”
“By peaceful revolutionary unity, without violence we can do it. The poor are being driven by hate and bitterness, they want to eliminate the rich who have been oppressing them. The rich are also prisoners of the system. They will have security, peace of mind and peace in the countryside if they help the poor uplift their lives.”