Fidel Agcaoili

On July 23, 2020, the National Democratic Front of the Philippines announced that Agcaoili died, 12:45 pm, in Utrecht, Netherlands. The cause of death was a pulmonary arterial rupture which caused massive bleeding. Agcaoili was cremated on July 30 in Crematorium Daelwijck in Utrecht, and was sent to the Philippines for burial. A tribute was also streamed live over the internet on August 8, 2020, on what was to be Agcaoili's 76th birthday.

In 2004, Agcaoili served as the co-chair of the GRP-NDFP Joint Monitoring Committee which looked into CARHRIHL violations. He continued in this position until his death. In 2016, he replaced Luis Jalandoni as chairperson of the NDFP Negotiating Panel, in time for the resumption of peace talks under Rodrigo Duterte. Agcaoili engaged in a series of talks with Duterte which paved the way for the resumption of peace talks in August 2016.

Agcaoili also headed the NDFP Reciprocal Working Committee for Human Rights and International Humanitarian Law, which drafted the Comprehensive Agreement on the Respect for Human Rights and International Humanitarian Law, adding specific provisions for the respect of rights for political prisoners. CARHRIHL was formally signed on March 16, 1998

Agcaoili joined exploratory talks between the GRP and the NDFP in 1989 when President Aquino sent Jose Yap to the Netherlands to negotiate. Talks continued on and off at the tail-end of the Aquino administration and into the Fidel V. Ramos administration. On September 1, 1992, when both sides adopted the Hague Joint Declaration as the framework of the GRP-NDFP peace negotiations, Agcaoili assumed the role of Vice Chairperson of the NDFP Negotiating Panel.

From 1989 until his death, Agcaoili was involved in peace negotiations between the Government of the Republic of the Philippines and the National Democratic Front of the Philippines. Most notably, he was instrumental in signing the Comprehensive Agreement on the Respect for Human Rights and International Humanitarian Law (CARHRIHL) in 1998. Agcaoili continued to serve in the peace panel, becoming co-chair of the GRP-NDFP Joint Monitoring Committee in 2004, and eventually succeeding Jalandoni as chief negotiator in 2017.

In 1988, Agcaoili was targeted for arrest and decides to go on voluntary exile in Europe, taking a job with the Spanish non-government organization Instituto de Estudios Políticos para América Latina y Africa (IEPALA).

Agcaoili was also involved in the Preparatory Committee which established the Partido ng Bayan (PnB, precursor to Bagong Alyansang Makabayan) on August 30, 1986. Agcaoili took over as Chairman when labor leader Rolando Olalia and his driver Leonor Alay-ay were kidnapped and murdered by elements of the Armed Forces of the Philippines as part of the "God Save the Queen" plot, in time for the 1987 senatorial elections.

On his release, Agcaoili returned to activism. He formed the Samahan ng mga Ex-Detainee Laban sa Detensyon at Aresto (SELDA), a prisoners' rights group. He also helped organize Families of Victims of Involuntary Disappearance (FIND) in 1985, becoming its Executive Director.

The lifting of Martial Law in 1981 resulted in the release of multiple political prisoners. Agcaoili, however, was not scheduled for release due to his status. He first applied for bail in 1982, but no action was taken by the court. He filed a petition for mandamus on April 14, 1984, to compel the government to release him on bail. He was eventually released on October 24, 1984, more than ten years after his initial arrest.

During the visit of Pope John Paul II to the Philippines in 1981, Agcaoili and other political prisoners were transferred to Bilibid prison in Muntinlupa, where they were threatened by armed gangs inside the prison. Agcaoili reportedly called all the gang leaders in a meeting and said, "We know you are all armed. But we political prisoners, we have an army outside prison, the New People's Army. If you harm any of us, you will be held accountable by the NPA." The threats ended and the gangs eventually joined the political prisoners in protest actions.

While in prison, Agcaoili continued to push for better living conditions, visiting hours, and so on. In 1976, Agcaoili and more than 140 other political prisoners staged a 14-day hunger strike to demand the release of two nursing mothers and their babies. They were subject to brutal retaliation from soldiers, and the strike's leaders, including Agcaoili, were forcibly taken by soldiers from their cells. A "literal tug-of-war" occurred between soldiers and the other detainees over Agcaoili, but he eventually willingly went with the soldiers to prevent injuries on the detainees.

Agcaoili and his family were eventually arrested on May 12, 1974, in Balicon Subdivision, Calasiao, Pangasinan. A military tribunal charged with rebellion related to the M/V Karagatan incident. Agcaoili was incarcerated in various detention centers while contesting the charges, such as Camp Crame, Bilibid, and lastly in Camp Bagong Diwa, Taguig.

While underground, Agcaoili became instrumental in founding the National Democratic Front of the Philippines on April 23, 1973. He was also reportedly involved in the purchase of the M/V Karagatan, which was used by the New People's Army in an attempt to land arms in Palanan, Isabela, and the M/V Doña Andrea II in a similar attempt in 1974.

Agcaoili, Rosario, and their two children went underground before the imposition of Martial Law in September 1972. State forces interrogated his family in a bid to know their whereabouts.

In 1970, Agcaoili became part of the Central Committee of the CPP. He also became the chair of the CPP's Finance Committee. Agcaoili was involved in "discreet" action as part of the CPP. Although he did not take an active part, he was present in the Battle of Mediola on January 30, 1970. Agcaoili and Satur Ocampo were also involved in aiding Victor Corpus' defection to the New People's Army, assisting in the 1970 raid of the Philippine Military Academy raid in Baguio.

In 1963, his father sent him to study in California, fearing that he was "straying too far into revolutionary activism." While in the United States, he became a part of the protests against the Vietnam War. He returned a year later, in time to participate in the founding of Kabataang Makabayan in 1964. It was also during this time when he met, eloped, and married his wife, Rosario.

Agcaoili first became a student at the University of the Philippines Diliman in the early 1960s, taking up Political Science. As a freshman, he was first exposed to activism when he became a member of the Student Cultural Association of the University of the Philippines (SCAUP). As a member of SCAUP, he encouraged his friends and neighbors in Philamlife Homes to join in mass actions organized by SCAUP. He also joined a fraternity in UP, encouraging his fraternity brods to be politically active.

Fidel V. Agcaoili ((1944-08-08)August 8, 1944 – (2020-07-23)July 23, 2020), also known as Ka Fidel, was a Filipino activist and revolutionary. He was a member of the Communist Party of the Philippines' Central Committee, along with Jose Maria Sison and Luis Jalandoni during the Marcos dictatorship. In 1974, he was arrested and became the longest detained political prisoner under Marcos, being imprisoned for 11 years. On his release, Agcaoili founded the Samahan ng mga Ex-Detainee Laban sa Detensyon at Aresto (SELDA), a prisoners' rights organization.

At some point, Agcaoili became a high-ranking officer in his father's insurance company. He also became a member of the Partido Komunista ng Pilipinas-1930 during this time, which was undergoing a split between the old Lava faction and the younger faction led by Sison. He organized studies, produced publications, and entered negotiations with other local and foreign parties, and eventually contributed to the reorganization brought about by the First Great Rectification Movement.