The insurgency, whatever ideology it carries, feeds on government neglect and the hate that is generated as a result.

“Destroying the concept of relying on religion and the basic social unit of relatives are among the first targets of indoctrination.

Thus, the effort of giving a better life which the administration of President Rody Duterte has embarked on should be a key solution to stopping the communist rampage particularly in the countryside.

Young Filipinos whose idealism is fresh and have a romanticized view about fighting an oppressive system for the sake of the downtrodden are the perfect targets of the communist movement, first as propagandists and later on as cadres who spread the ideology and lead the recruitment of New People’s Army rebels.

Indeed, most of the supposedly missing recruits, some of whom are children of high government officials or even military officers, have forgotten their families. In exchange they are latching on to their “collective” made up of similar recruits led by a political officer as their family. Their goal shifts from obtaining a degree to using their education to push the ultimate aim of a proletariat revolution, which is drilled into their youthful minds as the only solution to even out social inequities.

As what was brought out in the Senate hearing, the recruits go through a lengthy process that can be considered as indoctrination to become hardened members of the movement which becomes the center of their life similar to a religious conversion.

The test first comes through more basic issues such as tuition increases which will naturally draw every student. The determination of those who join the rallies on such issues reveals the susceptibility of a student to a deeper involvement in the movement.

A glib “political officer” starts the ball rolling by giving a perspective on the social situation which involves mostly analyses and accounts that lay the groundwork for hatred against the government.

One of the former rebels who appeared before the Senate under an assumed name said her being part of the insurgency started with a book lent to her, which was “The Prince” by Niccolo Machiavelli.

The book introduces politics to a layman through a discussion of how a prince should conduct his ways. It was written by Machiavelli, a political theorist who made famous the view that the end justifies the means.

After the sharing of books comes the discussions with other recruits about imperialism, feudalism and bureaucrat capitalism.

Next would be bringing them to an exposure to poverty among the depressed areas in Metro Manila and later on to rural communities.

The recruits get separated from their families due to design since destroying the concept of relying on religion and the basic social unit of relatives are among the first targets of indoctrination.

The call for the government to help in recovering the missing children may not work since it is the parents themselves who should make their children know that the family is irreplaceable.

The former rebel who was in disguise told the hearing: “Even if my face is covered, I mustered the strength to tell our stories that Filipinos don’t know. This will also be an appeal to my former comrades to be sympathetic to the parents who want their children to come home alive. Don’t take that away from them.”

Defense Secretary Delfin Lorenzana held an accurate view about the Communist Party of the Philippine-New People’s Army-National Democratic Front (CPP-NPA-NDF) turning to schools for their recruitment as a sign of growing desperation as their forces and influence tremendously diminish as the economic state of most Filipinos continue to improve.

He said by using “legal front” organizations that purportedly advance the people’s democratic rights, the cadres freely operated in democratic spaces, such as campuses and vulnerable communities to lure the young and other citizens into joining sectoral organizations and eventually, the armed movement.

The seduction of young Filipinos is what makes the communist movement’s efforts loathsome for they take advantage of the youthful spirit to advance their aims.

Idealism will always be a characteristic of the youth and it is up to the parents and the government to harness and channel such energy for the good of their family and the nation.