Former CPP cadres Maya and Carlo Butalid, who served underground and abroad during the Marcos dictatorship regime, counter persistent myths about the Communist Party of the Philippines and its founder Jose Maria Sison. The book exposes, among others, undemocratic and patriarchal practices, flawed protracted war strategy, leadership cult and entanglement in corruption – urging a critical reexamination of the Philippine revolutionary left.
It draws on insider experience to analyze the CPP’s internal contradictions: lack of transparency, patriarchal structures, strategic dogmatism, lessons from Eastern Europe’s collapse, and Sison’s overstated legacy. The book is primarily written for young activists.
The rare, candid voice of former high-level cadres, enriched by scholarly editing, blends personal testimony with rigorous analysis. Accessible yet unflinching, it humanizes political critique while grounding arguments in historical evidence, making it both educational and empowering.