manoeuvres PHILIPPINES president Corazon Aquino dismissed her 'defence minister' Juan Ponce Enrile last Monday, '23 November. On 27 ceasefire with the fighters.
son of the 600,000-strong him with responsibility.
Huge protest mobilisations took place the following week. Thirty thousand went on strike in Manila on November and a reported 75,000 took strike action in a nationwide stoppage the following day. A massive 200,000 tuneral each mobilisation an accusing finger was pointed at Ennamed after the so-called KETONI ANedI Horces Movement.
Ao ulu S decision to get rid of Enrile can only e understood in this context. This also goes for her government's conclusion November she concluded a New People's Army guerrilla Enrile's removal had been demanded following the murder last month of Rolando Olalia, chairpermilitant trade federation, the May First Movement (or KMU). The day after his murder, 14 November, 10,000 people demonstrated outside Enrile's headquaters charging of a ceasefire agreement with the NPA. The NPA had been campaigning for ceasetire for ME ONLIS.
Entle nao been opposed and under his direction the RAM-boys had engaged in a number of provocative strikes Enrile's dismissal was her nulu claimed that ш~ e e ce which he headed uD 0-23 weekend November. Certainly Enrile had been associated with four previous actions aimed at purging the government of 'radical' members since Marcos was Enrile: dismissed overthrown and Aquino came lo power. Ana Inere was a meeting of 180 pro. Marcos peonle in a luxur Manila suburb the saturdav But Aquino's move was by no means a simple COHCNOI movement and a defensive CraCKOOWIl the hard liners. Above all her actions were designed to get the government into better shape Enrile's methods were just not adequate to deal with the country's Ileto: his replacement stability' continually addressed by US, Western Japanese imperialism to whom Aquino nas woked for aid immediate ponse from Washington welcomed Aquino's measures. 'We are pleased that this reported coup attempt failed' a State Department spokesperson said 'and we reiterate GHI strong anlu unequivocal support for the Aquino government' replacement, radical. He is a graduate 7 Rafael lleto is hardly the Philippine military academv and West Poin and a former vice chief of staff of the armed forces responsible for gency in the 1950s Moreover Aquino has àco ve cnv c more radical members of the cabinet while the figure to emerge with the most increased authority out of the whole affair is the arm ed forces chief of staff himselt, General Fidel Ramos Ramos is a cousin of Marcos and was chief of armed orce WICU Marcos was still dictator. Ramos is the individual most associated with Washington, has made it nain that he does not inted to 'allow the communists to take over' as he puts it KMU secretary-general Bob Ortaliz, has put out a call solidarity with the popular movement in the country TIOSU Importanll time. fight?' The tour party solidarity showed to them in Britain.
ing to the USA.
tying lessons shed learnt:
kept nothing back We should know nenacks ave sonenow reaed we all stick together of us will lose.' Barbara Collette (right) with Wapping and Silentnight strikers at Labour Party conference Rees quotes Jim Guyette's explanation that the strikers refused to be cowed, despite all the odds. 'We're being starved into submission but we don't intend this company to let us be dust to the wind' he says, as Rees reports the strikers' fight for their the North American Meatpackers As the strikers put it: 'if not this fight, which was overwhelmed by the 'I have a heart full of gratitude for being one of the people who went to England' said tour member, Barbara Collette, in a speech reporting the tour on returnCollette warmly reported the contact she'd had with Women Against Pit Closures and the 'rope'We were welcomed everywhere. They shared everything with us. They "They did the same thing for me that hundreds of us have done here. They opened their homes, they opened their hearts, they were totally honest.
that we must not allow ourselves to be separated from the farmers, from •cannot separate ourselves from Nicaragua. We cannot separate ourselves from any struggle that's going on because all the struggles 'We have to know and understand that unless • unless their is solidarity between England, American, wherever it is — all
THE GOVERNMENT at Socialist Action 5 Dec 1986 last decided to do Britain that it did in the US,
----- pull-quotes -----
and -oin economal isis the