Most people who read ‘The Communist Manifesto’ probably have no idea that it was written by a couple of young men who had never worked a day in their lives, and who nevertheless spoke boldly in the name of ‘the workers.’ Thomas Sowell

rofessor Jose Maria Sison (a.k.a. Joma and Armando Liwanag) 68, graduated from UP with a degree in Literature. He is a hardcore commie having founded the CPP and its dreaded and brutal armed wing, the NPA. A few days ago Joma was arrested in the Netherlands not for milking the country's generous welfare program but for allegedly giving the orders while in his host country to assassinate his former comrades in the revolution. The NPA had admitted killing both Kintanar and Tabara, former high ranking members of the movement.

To have an unrepentant communist exiled in a democratic state with a vibrant economy seems awkward. Especially for Joma who is alleged to be running the Philippine communist insurgency by remote control. He should instead join his comrades in the jungles of Luzon and ensure that their "revolutionary taxes" are collected and spent well. When the US and the EU listed him as a terrorist, a chorus was heard demanding that his democratic rights be protected. At the other side of the fence, many wondered how Joma the communist could of all things claim democratic rights! Neither the former Soviet Union or the China ruled by Mao (where he patterned his revolutionary struggle) had such a thing as "democratic rights." Does anyone see North Koreans enjoying their democratic rights, or exercising their right of suffrage? These leftist groups must be joking!

As a revolutionary, should he not be with his comrades? The whole world knows that Joma lives off the welfare of a democratic state, fearful that if he instead sought asylum in China or North Korea, he may be made to work for his keep. So, he choose the Netherlands with its open arms policy to freedom fighters—of which Joma is not. Many wonder how he got to enjoy those welfare privileges paid for by Dutch taxpayers. Well, what he is doing in Utrecht is beyond me. You see his picture with the voluptuous movie star Ara Mina (below). He lives a very good life in Holland even though his status has been determined to not be that of a political refugee. Now the country of tulips and windmills is at a loss as to what to do with him.

People praise Joma for his intellect yet deride the foolishness of his followers who create terror, cause destruction and wreak havoc in the Philippine countryside and extort from the poor peasants they claim to fight for. The irony is that Joma and his comrade-in-exile Luis Jalandoni both claim that their struggle is for the poor; for a classless society. To date, thousands have died on both sides of this issue, the vast majority of them poor and underprivileged. No doubt communism looked good on paper but turned out to be a total failure in actuality.

So let Joma indulge in his vanity, his ultimate folly. Let him in his twilight years believe that the Philippine communist revolution can still be won. Let him die without seeing it come to pass. This ultimate folly is his own choosing.

But let the thousands of his young and gullible followers return to the fold of law and see for themselves the dawning of a new day, new hopes and aspirations for a better tomorrow. It is about time that these young men and women give up their struggle for nothing and begin rebuilding their lives. If only one communist leaves the movement or only one person stops himself from joining this collective delusion after reading this article, the effort would have been well worth it.

How do you tell a communist? Well, it's someone who reads Marx and Lenin. And how do you tell an anti-Communist? It's someone who understands Marx and Lenin. Ronald Reagan.

By Roberto Tio