THREATS TO NATIONAL SECURITY

Concept of National Security

Two school of thoughts for the meaning of National Security

The first school views national security as the protection of the nation’s people
and territories from physical assault. In this sense, national security is equated with
national defense, and the threats to a nation’s security are perceived to emanate
from outside the country.

The second school, however, maintains that national security has a broader
meaning. In addition to national defense, it includes the protection of vital economic
and political interests, the loss of which could threaten fundamental values and the
vitality of the state itself. In this sense, national security is the concern not only of the
military, but also of the other departments and agencies as well, and it may be
threatened both from within and externally.

We subscribe to the latter view. For this reason, we look at national security
as a state or condition wherein the people’s way of life and institutions, their welfare
and well-being are protected and enhanced.

We can also say that national security fundamentally involves the

maintenance and protection of a nation’s sovereignty, the crucial attribute of which is
the right for self-determination – the freedom of a nation to pursue its political,
economic and social goals. (CLU Policy Studies No 2 – “A Question of National
Security.” Karrel Inc., QC (1983), p.2.)

Concerns of National Security

Based on the definition, the security of a nation would largely depend on the
following elements, which constitute the concerns of national security:

1. Territorial Integrity - the territory of the country is intact and is under the
effective control of the government.

2. Ecological Balance- the environment is able to support sustainable

development strategies for the benefit of the nation and the people who depend on it
for their existence.

3. Socio-Political Stability - there is peace and harmony among the

divergent groups of people in the country, and mutual cooperation and support exists
between the Government and the people as a whole.

4. Economic Solidarity- the economy is strong, capable of supporting

national endeavors, and derives its strength from the people who have an organic
stake in it through participation or ownership.

5. Cultural Cohesiveness- the people share the values and beliefs

handed down by their forebears and posses a strong sense of attachment to the
national community despite their religious, ethnic and linguistic differences.

6. Moral-Spiritual Consensus- the people believe on the wisdom and

righteousness of the national vision, and they are inspired by their patriotism and
national pride to participate vigorously in the pursuit of the country’s goals and
objectives.
 7. External Peace- the country and the people enjoy cordial relations with
their neighbors, and they are free from any control, interference or threat of
aggression from any of them.

Threats to National Security

Threats to National Security is any expression or intuition to inflict evil, injury

or damage to the nation, people, territories, vital installations, political, economic,
and way of life.

Subversion is an act of conspiracy or an attack to a man’s mind to alter an

existing system through deceit and treachery.

Communism is a theory, which advocates elimination of private ownership. It

tends to make the world stateless and the society classless. It is a perfect form of
government in theory but in practice it is impossible and undoable.

Agitation is the subversive technique to arouse hatred and anger among the
people against an institution or a target government.

Propaganda is a line of persuasion to influence the belief, emotion, behavior,

attitude and opinion of the target audience.

Infiltration is the deceptive use of legal activities which is used to exert

influence and if possible, seize control of the target group.

Politics is an art or science of winning and control over of a government.

Aspects of National Security

There are two aspects of national security. In its internal aspects, national
security relates to the defense of the nation’s government against hostile local
elements seeking its replacement with their own government.

In this sense, national security refers to measures aimed at countering

domestic or internal challenges to the existing political and socio-economic order.
(Ibid). The PA’s ISO addresses the internal aspect of national security.
In its external aspects, national security is concerned with safeguarding the
state against outside or foreign forces, pressures or influence designed to conquer it
or undermine its sovereignty, for the purpose of placing it under the domination or
control of some foreign state or states.
In this sense, national security embraces the defense arrangements directed
at insuring the safety of the state against foreign intervention or domination.

To protect our national interest, we should consider safeguarding, both the

internal and the external aspects of national security against the existing threats.

Forms of Threats

Political- caused by person or group of person who aspires for power or

position into the government.
 Economic threat- caused by hoarders, dollar syndicates, smugglers, big time
syndicates and businessmen who amass large amount of money but do not pay due
taxes.

Psycho-social threat - caused by activities that could undermine the moral of

populace such as indulgence to vices, drug addiction, prostitution and other criminal
act.

Types of Threats to National Security

There are two (2) types of threats. The Internal threat and the External treat.
Let us first focus on the internal threat.

A. Internal threats

The internal threats to national security come from the polarized groups in the
Philippine society who oppose our present system of government.

1. LCM (Local Communist Movement)

The most prominent among the internal threat is the Local Communist
Movement started by the Partido Komunista ng Pilipinas (PKP) in the 1950s and
followed by the CPP in the later part of the 1960s.

The Local Communist Movement remains the main threat to our

national security because it has the intention to seize political power and has the
capability to pursue it to a certain degree.

The LCM is currently divided into two groups, The Mainstream

CPP/NPA/NDF of Reaffirmist and the breakaway anti-SISON Rejectionist faction.

Historically, the rift within the CPP/NPA which brought the division of
the LCM has its roots during the early 1980s when the handful of Party members
started criticizing the Marxist Lenenist Mao Zedong ideology advocated by Sison.

a) Reaffirmist

The Reaffirmist Group is headed by Jose Maria Sison with

Marxist-Leninist- Mao Tse-tung Thought. It is our primary concern at the moment
because it is far stronger in terms of manpower and firepower than the other faction.
It is also better organized and more widely scattered in various parts of the country.

This group follows three (3) basic principles. The Theory of

Classes and Class Struggle, the Theory of the State and Revolution and the
Proletarian Dictatorship, and the Theory of the Protracted People’s War (Encircling
the cities from the countryside)

The party utilizes three (3) main weapons in its revolutionary

struggle, namely: the Party (CPP), the Army (NPA) and the United Front (NDF)
1) The CPP – the Communist Party of the Philippines is the
brain of the people’s revolution. It provides the political leadership to the movement
and determines the general line and direction of the revolution. It controls the
activities of the army and the united front.
 2) The NPA – the New Peoples Army; it is the military arm
of the Party tasked with the advancement of the protracted people’s war through the
principal use of the armed struggle.

3) The NDF – National Democratic Front is the shield of the

revolution. It provides an umbrella organization for the CPP/NPA and other militant
and “progressive” organization including CPP and CPP-infiltrated groups. It is
composed of various territorial and sectoral non-governmental organizations as well
as functional organizations tasked with advancing the legal program of the
communist movement hitherto taking care of propaganda and black propaganda
activities.

The Party also maintains an International Department,

which takes care of generating support from other countries or from other communist
movement from abroad (e.g., from the communist party in Australia, Netherlands,
and from the other socialist countries in Eastern Europe).

b) Rejectionist

This faction disagrees with the CPP/NPA/NDF’s strict adherence

to the Maoist Concept of protracted people’s war and is instead advocating the
Nicaraguan model of insurrectionary strategy and tactics aimed at creating a
revolutionary situation by staging crippling strikes and urban terrorism.

It has been polarized into sub-groups due to personal and policy

differences, namely; the PMP (Partido ng Mangagawang Pilipino),
Rebolusyonaryong Partido ng Manggagawa-Marxista-Leninista (RPM/ML/RPA),

1) PMP (Partido ng Manggagawang Pilipino)

The PMP is headed by Filemon Lagman as Chairman. It

was established on 30 January 1999. SANLAKAS (Sandigan ng Kalayaan at
Demokrasya para sa Sambayanan; BMP (Bukluran ng Manggagawang Pilipino),
KAMALAYAN composed the front organization and Armadong Partisano ng
Paggawa (APP) is its armed group.

This group adheres to the teachings of Lenin. It

advocates insurrectionary struggle that calls for a combination of political and military
efforts to create an insurrectionary or revolutionary situation.

2) Rebolusyonaryong Partido ng Manggagawa-Marxista-

Leninista (RPM/ML/RPA)
This group which is based in Western Visayas is headed
by Arturo Tabara as Chairman. Its armed Group is the Revolutionary Proletarian
Army. With the government’s call for peace, it has announced its intention of
cooperating.

Under the administration of former President ESTRADA;

the government and RPA/ABB signed a peace agreement on 10 December 2000.
The agreement was signed Secretary Edgardo Angara and Nilo Dela Cruz of
RPM/ABB. The rebels said they would implement a ceasefire but their followers
would remain in the countryside.

2) Sosyalistang Partido ng Paggawa (SPP)

The Sosyalistang Partido ng Paggawa (SPP) is headed

by Sonny Melencio and Julio Rafael. The SPP is a revolutionary party created on 24
Nov 1998 with the merger of two (2) socialist groups, the Liga Sosyalista and the
Rebolusyonaryong Partido Prolitaryo (RPP). Its armed group is the Hukbong
Mapagpalaya ng Bayan.

It has two (2) objectives namely: To build an open

socialist formation that will directly intervene in the political arena and to develop a
strong labor political center.

3) Partido Marxista-Leninista ng Pilipinas (PMLP)

This group which is another breakaway faction of the
Lagman Group and it is headed by Prudencio Bation a.k.a. Drigo/Carlo. Its armed
group is the Alex Boncayao Brigade. The group has formed three regional
committees in the NCR, Central Luzon, Southern Tagalog and Mindanao.
4) Third Bloc
The group follows the teachings of Karl Marx and aims to
gain political power through mass mobilizations. It has gained momentum when its
political party AKBAYAN won a seat as sectoral representative in 1998 elections.
The bloc was reportedly divided into Partido Proletaryo Demokratiko headed by
Manjet Lopez and PADAYON headed by Ricardo Reyes.

The ideology is to advocate the popular democratic line,

which calls for a political renewal in the Leftist Movement by unifying the forces from
different ideological traditions as well as other forces that accept the National
Democratic program but not armed struggle.
6) Central Mindanao Regional Committee/ Conferential
Body

This group which is headed by Ike DELOS REYES is one

of the territorial organs that had broken away from the mainstream party in 1993. It
is based in Lanao del Norte. Reports revealed that the CMRC has established
tactical linkages with Tabara’s group.

7) Independent Political Forces

This group is led by Triumvirate called “Magdangal-Olive-

Bill” faction. Its party is The Marxist Leninist Party of the Philippines (MLPP) with the
Kilusan para sa Pambansang Demokrasya (KPD) as its united front. The
Rebolusyunaryong Hukbong Bayan serves as its armed group.

The group was organized by breakaway personalities

from the Central Luzon in 1997. The group was able to establish alliances with other
rejectionist sectoral organizations in many parts of the country.
The KPD has been active in the campaign against the
Visiting Forces Agreement (VFA) issue and has figured prominently in the protest
movements against the Balikatan exercises.

2. Southern Philippines Secessionist Groups (SPSGs)

The threat emanating from the southern Philippines (Mindanao) dates

back to the Spanish era. But the main issue then is the clash of interest between the
Christians and the Muslims; however, the present problem drew its root cause from
the neglect and total disregard for the Muslims.
 Their ideology is the extremist interpretation of the Islamic faith. The
goal is to secede from the Republic of the Philippines and to establish an Islamic
state. The separatists perceive the secular government in Manila as designed only
for the Christians. However, the basic issue is still the land.

The Filipino Muslims wanted the lands that the Christians had slowly
accumulated throughout the decades of resettlements to be returned to them.

The SPSGs are divided into two groups:

a. BIFF

The first group is the Bangsamoro Islamic Freedom Fighters

headed by Ameril Umbra Kato until 2015. Following Kato’s death, the group into
three factions, one which has aligned with Islamic state of Iraq while the other two
are less radical.

The BIFF objective is self-determination with the creation of a

Mindanao Islamic Republic. The group wants to carve out portions of the Philippine
territory where it intends to establish an Islamic state.

To attain its objective, the BIFF relies on Dawah or Islamic call

and Jihad or struggle in the way of Allah. Dawah calls for the Islamization of the
individual.

b. Abu Sayaff Group (ASG)

The ABU SAYAFF, was founded in 1990 as the MUJAHIDEED

COMMANDO FREEDOM FIGHTERS, or MCFF by ABDURAJAK ABUBAKAR
JANJALANI,a veteran of the international Islamic Brigade that fought the Soviet
Regime in Afghanistan.

The ASG objective is the establishment of an independent

theocratic Islamic state in Mindanao through violence and terror. The group has an
extremist view of advancing its objective through armed struggle. For them anyone
who does not follow their brand of Islam, even Muslims, should be terminated. The
ASG was renamed to AL HARAKATUL AL-ISLAMIYA in 1994 but the name ABU
SAYYAF GROUP stuck.

It is worthy to note that the ASG is not one cohesive group but it
is composed 26 different groups and operates mainly in the islands of Basilan and
Sulu. This intensive government campaign is still on going.

3. Syndicated Crime Groups

Another threat to national security is the existence of syndicated crime

groups locally and internationally which continue to sow terror, panic and wreak
havoc to the Philippine economy.

These syndicated crime groups are the local and foreign crime groups
who engage in the dealing of prohibited drugs, those who are engaged in the
smuggling of economic goods and arms and other deadly weapons, and those who
engage in mercenary works to liquidate prominent personalities in the public and
private sectors.
 4. Organizations, Individuals and other groups involved in economic
sabotage.

The numerous illegal organizations, private individuals and groups or

cartels who engage in economic sabotage also pose a threat to national security by
crippling the Philippine economy by their illicit and illegal activities like piracy and
traffic of explosives.

5. Rightist Groups

These are disgruntled politicians, businessmen, oligarchs, intellectuals,

military men and big time criminals who work hand in hand to restore the old order to
pave their way into power and position in the government.

It also includes group organizations and temporary alliances not

ideologically identified with LCM but are also concerned with the overthrow of the
government.

6. Religious Radicals

All religious and religious influenced individuals and organizations

advocate changes and reforms through legal means. These are members of the
religious sectors who find fault into our system.

They claim to be spokesman of the oppressed. The fact is that they

become radical when a number of legitimate religious organizations were used to
undermine our government and denounce the abuses of the military be they real or
fictitious.

B. External Threats

External threats pose a big problem to the maintenance of national

security. The Philippines’ main concern on this arena is the maintenance of good ties
and relationship with the neighboring countries to avoid disputes that might result to
military conflict.

Among the countries in Southeast Asia that pose a threat to Philippine

national security are the countries of Malaysia, Vietnam, Taiwan, and the People’s
Republic of China. These countries, together with the Philippines, are contesting
jurisdiction over the Kalayaan (Spratlys) group of islands, located southwest of the
Philippines.

Another threat is the intrusion of foreign and unidentified foreign

vessels into Philippine territorial seas. The archipelagic nature of the country
hampers the effort of tracking and preventing foreign vessels from intruding into
Philippine waters. Local and foreign enemies of the state utilize this advantage in
providing logistics and supplies to their followers like arms cache.

Another menace to national security is the presence of foreign terrorist

groups, foreign intelligence agencies, persona non grata, and other foreign entities
which threaten national security like those who are engage in economic sabotage,
international conspiracy and other activities contrary to Philippine vital interest.