Chapter 18: Elpidio Quirino Era 1948-1953 - Chris Pforr Homepage

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War against the Huks The Hukbalahap guerrillas, who had fought the Japanese during World War II, were mostly illiterate, landless farmers who just wanted their own plots of land. But the counterinsurgency campaign devised by Lansdale and Magsaysay portrayed them as dangerous Communists directed by the evil Russians. There were several parts of the new counterinsurgency strategy: Chap 18, pg 4 In 1950 Colonel Lansdale arrived in the Philippines to work with the new Defense Minister, Ramon Magsaysay, to create a military counter-insurgency operation against the Huks. The two worked closely, Lansdale providing the innovative ideas and unconventional methods and Magsaysay issuing the official orders. 1. Conventional military operations The Philippine Constabulary was merged with the Armed Forces of the Philippines and expanded, then given new guns, vehicles, and a small air force by the US. They aggressively pursued the Huks and offered cash rewards to any soldier who killed a guerrilla. 2. Psychological Warfare A new Civil Affairs Office (CAO) was set up to create anti-Huk propaganda. This was Lansdale’s specialty, and he supervised the production and distribution of millions of anti-Huk leaflets, the making of movies and books, organization of anti-communist rallies in colleges and grade schools, hiring of spies to infiltrate the Huks, and waging of a disinformation campaign by spreading lies about the Huk leadership. 3. Dirty tricks campaign Of many new techniques used, one became famous: Lansdale decided to apply some psyops (psychological operations) to displace Huk guerrillas who were hiding out in a mountain region. First local intelligence agents planted stories in the community about asuang (vampires) living in the hills. Then Constabulary soldiers set up an ambush along a Huk trail. When a Huk patrol came by, the troops let them pass, except for the last man, whom they grabbed. After killing him, they made two small holes in his neck and then hung him upside down and allowed all his blood to drain out. The body was left on the trail for the Huks to find when they came back looking for him. The Huk unit vanished into thin air the next day, leaving the mountain to the government troops. A Great Success The Anti-Huk campaign was one of the most successful anti-guerrilla wars in modern history. It pleased the Philippine landholding elite who feared losing their big estates to the poor peasants. The U.S. was relieved because survival of the Quirino Government assured the crucial military bases would stay in American hands. The strategy became the model for future American counterinsurgency wars in Vietnam and Latin America.
1950 Philippine Expeditionary Force to Korea (PEFTOK) At the urging of the United States, the Philippines sent an expeditionary force of 7,500 combat troops to fight in the Korean War in August 1950. The Philippine units were armed and supplied by the United States and fought under the command of U.S. General Douglas MacArthur as part of a United Nations multinational force. Filipinos losses included 110 soldiers killed in action and an additional 300 wounded, before all the Filipino soldiers were brought home in 1955. 1951 Mutual Defense Treaty 1953 Philippine Presidential Election Chap 18, pg 5 In 1951 the Philippines and the United States signed and ratified the Mutual Defense Treaty. The overall accord contained eight articles and dictated that both nations would support each other if either the Philippines or the United States were to be attacked by an external party. In the 1953 Philippine election, President Quirino ran against Defense Minister Magsaysay, who had become very popular due to his exploits against the Huks. The U.S. Central Intelligence Agency helped to funnel funds from American business interests to Magsaysay’s campaign, and he won with 68% of the vote to become the new Philippine President.
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Chapter 18: Elpidio Quirino Era 1948-1953 - Chris Pforr Homepage

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