Political Quotes

“I want to speak about a subject that other Senators should be aware of. Many Members of Congress have visited the Philippines, a country with which we share a long history of strategic, economic, cultural, and other interests. We also know that, for many years, the Philippine Government has been fighting an extremist insurgency in Mindanao. The United States has been supporting the Philippine Government in that effort. According to information I have received, on February 21, 2018, the Philippines State Prosecutor filed a legal petition to declare over 600 persons as ``terrorists,'' alleging that they are members of the Communist party of the Philippines, CPP, and the New Peoples Army, NPA, two groups designated by the United States as foreign terrorist organizations. The list was published after the collapse of the peace negotiations between CPP-NPA and the Philippine Government last year. By itself, that might not be objectionable. There are terrorists in the Philippines. The problem with this ``terrorist list'' is that the government is apparently using it to persecute people who have nothing to do with terrorism, but who have engaged in legitimate, peaceful dissent and protests in opposition to government policies that threaten their way of life. The list includes a number of indigenous rights defenders who, as far as I am aware, are not at all affiliated with the CPP-NPA.…”