Formative years of the NPA (1969–1972) Initial strength and tactics When Buscayno's forces became the NPA in 1969, they were reported to have only 60 guerrillas and 35 World War II-era guns. At first, the NPA tried to follow the Maoist military doctrine of "establishing stable base areas", but this was abandoned when their forces took heavy casualties in Northern Luzon, in favor of dispersing their forces. The NPA's stockpile of weaponry allegedly grew to 60 guns, but all 60 of these guns were lost in an encounter against the Armed Forces of the Philippines, and they were not able to regain firepower until the defection of Lt. Victor Corpus and the 1970 PMA Armory raid. Even on September 23, 1972, when Martial Law was announced, the Philippine National Security Council did not see the NPA as a major threat. Just a few days earlier on September 19, 1972, the council's threat assessment was "between 'normal' and 'Internal Defense Condition 1'", the highest being condition "3." supposedly because this would help build up political and monetary support from the US, which was caught up in
red scare paranoia at the time. As a result, as security specialist Richard J. Kessler notes, the administration "mythologized the group, investing it with a revolutionary aura that only attracted more supporters."
December 1970 PMA Armory raid The NPA was finally able to regain weaponry on December 29, 1970, when
Philippine Military Academy instructor Lt.
Victor Corpus defected to the CPP-NPA and led a raid on the PMA armory, timing the raid when most cadets were out on Christmas vacation and the PMA's senior officers including its superintendent, General Ugalde, had left the camp to meet President Ferdinand Marcos upon his scheduled arrival in nearby Baguio City. Corpus, who was PMA's designated officer of the day (OOD), guided the NPA raiding team which managed to escape with Browning automatic rifles, carbines, machine guns, and various other weapons and ammunition. the first act of violence taken by the NPA was the
Plaza Miranda bombing which took place on August 21, 1971. Corpus alleges that it was NPA cadres who threw three grenades onto the stage at a
Liberal Party rally in
Manila, killing nine people and injuring 95 others. This has been disputed in numerous historical texts, which blame President
Ferdinand Marcos as the perpetrator of the bombing.
Jose Maria Sison continuously denied that he and the
Communist Party of the Philippines were responsible for the bombing up to his death. More recently, historian Joseph Scalice has argued that while the Marcos government was allied with the
Partido Komunista ng Pilipinas (PKP) in carrying out other bombings throughout the early 1970s, "the evidence of history now overwhelmingly suggests that the Communist Party of the Philippines, despite being allied with the Liberal Party, was responsible for this bombing, seeing it as a means of facilitating repression which they argued would hasten revolution." Relying on small armed community-based propaganda units, the NPA found itself in an all-out rebellion by 1972.
Rapid growth of the NPA under the Marcos martial law era (1972–1986) The Communist Party of the Philippines underwent rapid growth from 1972 during the period of
martial law under Ferdinand Marcos. Other watershed events that would later radicalize many otherwise "moderate" opposition members include the February 1971
Diliman Commune; the August 1971 suspension of the writ of habeas corpus in the wake of the
Plaza Miranda bombing; the September 1972
declaration of Martial Law; the 1980
murder of Macli-ing Dulag; and the August 1983
assassination of Ninoy Aquino. This radicalization led to a significant growth of the CPP and of the New People's Army under the Marcos administration. The parallel
Moro insurgency created favorable conditions for the development of NPA. During the 1970s, 75% of the Philippine military was deployed on the island of
Mindanao, a Moro stronghold, despite the 1976 peace deal between the government and
MILF. As of 2000, 40% of the
AFP troops continued to engage Moro rebels. The splinter group's new stated goal was to fight for autonomy for the people of the Cordillera. Shortly after Ferdinand Marcos was ousted by the
People Power Revolution, the CPLA made a "
sipat" or
ceasefire with the newly established
Provisional Government of the Philippines at the Mt. Data Hotel, in
Bauko, Mountain province on September 13, 1986. The agreement between the two sides was called the 1986 Mount Data Peace Accord.
Corazon Aquino administration (1986–1992) Release of Political Prisoners and "resurfacing" of activists After Ferdinand Marcos was deposed during the 1986 EDSA Revolution, president
Corazon Aquino ordered the release of political prisoners, Buscayno ceased activities related to the CPP-NPA
Mendiola massacre and cessation of peace talks Preliminary peace talks were held between the new administration and the CPP–NPA–NDF, but these ended when the
Mendiola massacre took place on January 22, 1987. This effectively ended dialogue between the CPP–NPA–NDF throughout the rest of Corazon Aquino's administration. and because of social pressures arising from the
Asian Financial Crisis that year.
Ramos administration (1992–1998) Repeal of the 1957 Anti-Subversion Act A breakthrough in the peace process between the Government of the Philippines and the Communist Party of the Philippines took place on October 11, 1992, when Republic Act (RA) 1700 – the 1957 Anti-Subversion Act – was repealed by RA 7636 and the government declared a policy of amnesty and reconciliation. This was quickly followed by the Hague Joint Declaration of September 1, 1992, in which the Government of the Philippines and the Communist Party of the Philippines (through the National Democratic Front) agreed to work towards formal negotiations and "a just and lasting peace."
Formation of the MLPP-RHB (1998) In 1998, a group which operates mainly in
Central Luzon broke away from the Communist Party of the Philippines, taking up a
Marxist-Leninist ideology instead of the CPP's
Marxism-Leninism-Maoism. This became the
Marxist–Leninist Party of the Philippines which soon initiated conflict with the Philippine government through its armed wing, the
Rebolusyonaryong Hukbong Bayan (RHB). The conflict is still ongoing, although incidents covered in the media focus more on incidents arising from the rivalry between RHB and NPA.
Benigno Aquino III administration (2010–2016) Several efforts to move forward with peace talks between the Government of the Philippines and the CPP, NDFP, and NPA were initiated throughout the administration of President
Benigno Aquino III, with the government of the
Kingdom of Norway providing support to the peace negotiations as a third-party facilitator.
Duterte administration (2016–2022) In the
State of the Nation Address by President
Rodrigo Duterte which happened in July 2016, Duterte declared a unilateral ceasefire to the leftist rebels. Due to this declaration, the peace talks between the government and the NDF resumed in August 2016. The peace talks were carried out in
Oslo, Norway. In February 2017, the CPP–NPA–NDF declared that it would withdraw from the ceasefire, effective on February 10, 2017, due to the unfulfilled promise by the government that it would release all 392 political prisoners. After the communists killed three of their soldiers, the government also withdrew from the ceasefire. The peace talks were informally terminated and an all-out war was declared by the AFP. In March 2017, the government announced a new truce and the resumption of peace talks, to take place in April. The fifth round was planned to take place in June. However, on December 5, 2017, President
Rodrigo Duterte declared the CPP and NPA as terrorist organizations after several attacks by the NPA against the government. The
NDFP, the political wing of the communist rebellion was not included on the proclamation. In order to centralize all government efforts for the reintegration of former communist rebels, President Duterte signed Administrative Order No. 10 on April 3, 2018, creating the Task Force Balik Loob which was placed in charge in centralizing the Enhanced Comprehensive Local Integration Program (E-CLIP) of the Department of the Interior and Local Government (DILG), and the
Payapa at Masaganang Pamayanan (PAMANA) program of the Office of the Presidential Adviser on the Peace Process (OPAPP). As of December 30, 2019, the Task Force reported over 10,000 former CPP-NPA rebels and supporters who have returned to the fold of the law and availed of E-CLIP benefits, which include PHP65,000.00 cash assistance, livelihood training, housing benefits, among others. On December 4, 2018, President Rodrigo Duterte signed Executive Order No. 70, which institutionalized a "whole-of-nation approach" in attaining an "inclusive and sustainable peace" to help end the decades-long communist insurgency, while also forming the
National Task Force to End Local Communist Armed Conflict (NTF-ELCAC) which was directed to ensure the efficient and effective implementation of the approach. This order further intensified the Philippine government's campaign against the insurgency, with the Armed Forces of the Philippines alleging 11,605 rebels and supporters surrendering to the government, with 120 rebels being killed and 196 more arrested in military operations from January 1 to December 26, 2018.
Marcos Jr. Administration (2022–present) Under the administration of
President Ferdinand "Bongbong" Marcos Jr., peace talks have restarted with aims to end the conflict. On November 22, 2023, Marcos Jr. granted amnesty to many political prisoners and former rebels under the aim of "reconciliation," noting that this amnesty covered those who committed crimes "in pursuit of political beliefs." It would not grant amnesty to those guilty of war crimes, kidnapping for ransome, rape, or "other gross violations of human rights." Between 2023 and early 2024, talks weakened, as NPA forces and the military continued skirmishing. Despite the Philippine government claiming on March 2, 2025 that the NPA was defeated in Bukidnon, 100 NPA rebels clashed with the army in Bukidnon with an FA-50 fighter jet also going missing two days later. The two pilots in the jet were later found and confirmed dead. In August and September 2025, the NPA attacked multiple army outposts in northern Philippines, killing 3 and injuring 3 more in an attack near Ligao City. While in Northern Negros on September 3–4, the NPA attacked military assets, and seized arms and ammunition. While on September 4, in South Central Negros three soldiers were wounded in an ambush. The armies response to the ambush resulted in 480 people being forced to evacuate the area. ==Support to the NPA from other countries==