The Communist Party of the Philippines (CPP) said it held a Congress, only the second so far in the party's 48-year existence, during the last quarter of 2016.
Based on the CPP's communique posted on its website, the Second Congress was "held inside a guerrilla base" and was "secured by a battalion of New People’s Army (NPA) Red fighters and enjoyed boundless support of the peasant masses and indigenous minority groups in the area. "
There were "120 delegates "both attending and non- attending."
The Second Congress basically reaffirmed the party's adherence to "Marxism-Leninism-Maoism" and the strategy and tactics for advancing "protracted people's war." These have previously been reaffirmed in the early 1990's.
In short, nothing much will change from the party's modus operandi, in an era that has seen the decline of Leftist parties all over the world that are characterized by a commitment to a singular ideology and very hierarchical, undemocratic structures.
Perhaps the one "change" the party instituted in the Second Congress is the emphasis on the age balance of the constituents of its Central Committee. According to a new rule, the party will "ensure that the Central Committee shall have a balance of young, middle-aged and senior cadres."
Not much, however, is mentioned about the composition of the newly elected Political Bureau (Politburo), which possibly manages the day-to-day operation of the party, and which is possibly entirely made up of the same old cadres that have held the positions.
The party looks poised to continue being the largest, most formally structured, most independent and richest political community in the Philippines for many more decades to come.
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