“If you tremble with indignation at every injustice, then you are a comrade of mine….” - Che Guevara

Greetings. The result of the last Philippine elections was disheartening, even heartbreaking. Two years hence, we find ourselves facing multiple crises: climate change is accelerating, poverty remains widespread, and violence against the oppressed continues. But there is also much reason to be optimistic. Over the past few years, more and more people appear to be yearning for more systemic alternatives; many seem more open to the idea of socialism.

Building on this, a number of us–some long involved in progressive politics, others entirely new to the movement–have come together and engaged in nearly two years of collective reflection, discussion, and debates. After much reflection, we have decided to form a new above-ground socialist political party which we are calling Partido Sosyalista. We explain our reasons for doing so in this Statement of Purpose and in this essay “Why we are forming a new socialist party.”

Committed to forging intra-left unity while also determined to explore new paths, we seek to build a new kind of party—one that is cognizant of the accomplishments of existing organizations but one that is also unafraid to experiment and try new or different ways of achieving our objectives.

Knowing that you share our overall objective of building a better society, we would like to invite you to join us in a small gathering and celebration so we can tell you more about us and begin to talk with you about how we can work together to pursue our common goals. The celebration will be on January 27, 4:00-7:00 PM, at the UP Balay Kalinaw, but you can also join us via Zoom.

Please let us know if you have any questions about us—we are more than happy to talk to you about our vision, plans, and activities. And please confirm if you will be able to join us whether face-to-face or online by responding to this letter by January 6, 2024. Your presence will mean a lot to us.

If you are unable to join us but would like to support our party, please let us know too. Any amount or any form of support will go a long way as we try to build our foundations and begin to work to pursue our goals.

Thank you very much.

In solidarity,

William Aguilar, Pang Delgra, Herbert Docena, Leomar Doctolero, En Mayordomo, Jed Montes, JD Noveras, Cielo Roldan, Nathan Sarcia and other Founding Members