Philippines’ hunt for Red October communist plot: a Duterte hoax?
The administration has a reputation for silencing its critics in outlandish ways – opponents believe a confected coup is its latest such scheme
The “Red October” plot, which came to light late last month, will allegedly be executed by various opposition forces. If true, the claims suggest that in his short tenure as commander-in-chief, Duterte has managed to do what seemed impossible in the modern political climate of the country – to unite almost all of the largest social movements in the country against him.
Presidential spokesperson Harry Roque has backed the military’s claims and pointed the finger at the left-leaning Liberal Party and the far-right coalition aligned with Senator Antonio Trillanes. Furthermore, he singled out the Communist Party of the Philippines (CPP) as one of the plot’s primary architects.
But could the claims be a smokescreen for something else? After all, the current administration has a record of silencing its critics in the most outlandish ways. Two political opponents in the Senate have been indicted on criminal charges: Trillanes (later deferred by court) and Leila De Lima, a figurehead of the Liberal Party. Left-leaning lawmakers have also been hit by arrest orders for a decade-old double murder case, which have since been quashed.
Maria Lourdes Sereno, up until three months ago the Chief Justice of the Supreme Court, also had inclinations towards the opposition. Her appointment was voided by an unprecedented ruling by her fellow justices, who were allied with Duterte.
Suspicions that the plot was indeed a smokescreen gained traction when a senate hearing this week cleared the Liberal Party and the Trillanes camp of involvement. And when the military was asked about their knowledge of the various groups’ participation, they responded by saying new evidence suggested the CPP had only intended on collaborating but had not done anything concrete, as of late.
Whatever the truth of the matter, the development has allies of the regime cultivating a hysteria that could justify more repression of those who call out the faults accumulated in the last two years of the Duterte administration.
