AT A GUERRILLA CAMP, Philippines: A kerosene lamp flickers beside a Macbook in a jungle camp as ageing Philippine communist leader Jaime Padilla plots the next step in one of Asia’s oldest insurgencies with a new generation of fighters. Most also had on thick red makeup, many decorated with the hammer-and-sickle communist logo rendered in yellow, to conceal their identities. While their numbers are relatively small, there continue to be frequent reports of communists killing security forces across the Philippines. Padilla, the NPA leader, said millions more young Filipino adults fared little better working in low-paying contractual jobs after completing their schooling. This made the NPA a viable option even for fresh graduates of the country’s top universities, he added.

Source: Manila Times August 16, 2017 04:07 UTC