MANILA, Philippines — An alleged former rebel claimed in a Senate hearing on Tuesday that even the entertainment industry is involved with the communist movement.
“Hindi po totoong walang program ang CPP (Communist Party of the Philippines) sa showbiz industry, entertainment [industry], musicians and artists,” Jeffrey Celiz, who claims to be a former member of the national operational command of the New People’s Army (NPA), told senators.
He claimed that underground groups operate within the industry, one of them being “ARMAS” or the “Artista at Manunulat ng Sambayanan.”
Celiz tagged the Concerned Artist of the Philippines (CAP) as an alleged “open organization” formed by the CPP to supposedly act as a front for recruitment.
“Ang open organization na tinayo ng CPP para magkaroon ng recruitment ground para dito na hindi mahalata ay Concerned Artists of the Philippines,” he added.
“From that open organization of showbiz personalities, entertainers, musicians composers ay nabubuo ang underground organization,” he also said.
Further, Celiz alleged that two filmmakers, who are national artists, are involved with the communist movement.
He mentioned the supposed movies they directed, namely “Maynila sa Kuko ng Agila” and “Walang Himala.”
“They were part of a very long tradition of infiltration and recruitment into the showbiz personalities at ang iba ay active pa, but they are not NPA right away but they are supporting the NPA indirectly or directly,” he added.
‘Dubious witness’
But the CAP denied Celiz’ allegations and branded his accusations as “baseless, dangerous and shameful.”
“The supposed and dubious witness Celiz alluded to CAP’s founding leaders: the two late filmmakers and National Artists for Film Lino Brocka and Ishmael Bernal being part of the communist movement for the entertainment industry, daring not identify them by name but by their classic films ‘Maynila sa Kuko ng Liwanag’ (not Maynila sa Kuko ng Agila) and ‘Himala’ (not ‘Walang Himala’),” the CAP said in a statement on Facebook.
“This recalls the Hollywood blacklists of the post-war years and McCarthyist witch hunts in the US to the Philippines during the 1960s, which only led to grave rights violations of citizens which should never happen again,” it added.
The CAP said it has always stood for freedom of expression and the welfare of the public.
“Even if it means having to call out and criticize those in power. That is activism, not terrorism,” the organization said.
“The Philippine arts community knows that CAP traces its roots to 1983 when artists and media successfully united in protest against censorship during the Marcos dictatorship. From then until today, we are an organization of writers, artists and cultural workers committed to the Constitutionally-protected principles of freedom, justice, and democracy,” it added.