Guillermo Capadocia
{{Short description|Filipino politician and communist labor leader}}
{{Infobox person
| name = Guillermo Capadocia
| image =
| image_size =
| birth_name =
| birth_date = c. 1909
| birth_place = Negros Oriental, Philippines
| death_date = {{death date and age|1951|9|28|1909}}
| death_place = San Remigio, Antique, Philippines
| parents =
| children =
| occupation = Politician
| relations =
}}
Guillermo Capadocia (1909–September 28, 1951) was a Filipino communist politician and labour leader. He was a prominent leader of the Communist Party in the Philippines (PKP) and different labour movements. During the last one and a half years of his life he was a regional guerrilla commander of the Hukbalahap.Kerkvliet, Benedict J. [https://books.google.com/books?id=h5Xq7nQE_ZoC&pg=PA50 The Huk Rebellion: A Study of Peasant Revolt in the Philippines]. Lanham, Md: Rowman & Littlefield, 2002. p. 50
Early life
Capadocia was born in Negros Oriental, the son of a poor labourer. Capadocia himself survived through various employments, such as working as a chef and waiter. He became active in trade unions in the 1920s. Despite lacking a formal education, Capadocia became highly literate and gained a deep knowledge of Marxist-Leninist thought.
Prominence in the PKP
When the Partido Komunista ng Pilipinas (Communist Party in the Philippines or PKP) was founded, Capadocia was included in its first Central Committee.Kerkvliet, Benedict J. [https://books.google.com/books?id=h5Xq7nQE_ZoC&pg=PA221 The Huk Rebellion: A Study of Peasant Revolt in the Philippines]. Lanham, Md: Rowman & Littlefield, 2002. p. 221 In the labour movement, Capadocia was a leading figure in the Katipunan ng mga Anak-Pawis sa Pilipinas (KAP).Guevarra, Dante G. [https://books.google.com/books?id=V3hVIawEXVUC&pg=PA58 History of the Philippine Labor Movement]. Sta. Mesa, Manila: Institute of Labor & Industrial Relations, Polytechnic University of the Philippines, 1991. p. 58
Capadocia became the general secretary of the Communist Party in 1938, in the unification process with the Socialist Party.Schirmer, Daniel B., and Stephen Rosskamm Shalom. [https://books.google.com/books?id=TXE73VWcsEEC&pg=PA73&lpg=PA73 The Philippines Reader: A History of Colonialism, Neocolonialism, Dictatorship, and Resistance]. Boston: South End Press, 1987. p. 73Guevarra, Dante G. [https://books.google.com/books?id=V3hVIawEXVUC&pg=PA52 History of the Philippine Labor Movement]. Sta. Mesa, Manila: Institute of Labor & Industrial Relations, Polytechnic University of the Philippines, 1991. p. 52
[http://www.philippinerevolution.net/cgi-bin/cpp/pdocs.pl?id=recte;page=03 Rectify Errors, Rebuild the Party!] In the same year, Capadocia became the executive secretary of the Collective Labor Movement.Guevarra, Dante G. [https://books.google.com/books?id=V3hVIawEXVUC&pg=PA61 History of the Philippine Labor Movement]. Sta. Mesa, Manila: Institute of Labor & Industrial Relations, Polytechnic University of the Philippines, 1991. p. 61Kurihara, Kenneth K. [https://books.google.com/books?id=w3KaAAAAIAAJ Labor in the Philippine Economy]. Stanford, Calif: Stanford University Press, 1945. pp. 74-76
On January 25, 1942, Capadocia, Pedro Abad Santos, and Crisanto Evangelista were arrested by the Japanese forces.Taruc, L., 1967, He Who Rides the Tiger, London: Geoffrey Chapman Ltd.{{rp|61}} He was imprisoned at Fort Santiago. He was released after some years.Guevarra, Dante G. [https://books.google.com/books?id=V3hVIawEXVUC&pg=PA80 History of the Philippine Labor Movement]. Sta. Mesa, Manila: Institute of Labor & Industrial Relations, Polytechnic University of the Philippines, 1991. p. 80
When the Congress of Labor Organizations was formed in July 1945, Capadocia was included in its leadership. Capadocia became the vice president of CLO.Guevarra, Dante G. [https://books.google.com/books?id=V3hVIawEXVUC&pg=PA89 History of the Philippine Labor Movement]. Sta. Mesa, Manila: Institute of Labor & Industrial Relations, Polytechnic University of the Philippines, 1991. pp. 89, 91
Later years and death
When the Hukbalahap rebellion broke out in 1949, Capadocia stayed overground and continued to work as a Congress of Labor Organizations leader. However, in late 1949 he went underground to lead the Huks on the island of Panay. The national government offered a $50,000 reward for him. Capadocia and several of his fighters were killed by an Army task force, led by Col. Alfredo Ramos, in an attack on their hide-out in the mountains of San Remigio, Antique, on September 28, 1951.{{cite news |date=September 29, 1951 |title=Rebel killed |url=https://trove.nla.gov.au/newspaper/article/194968262?browse=ndp%3Abrowse%2Ftitle%2FD%2Ftitle%2F1005%2F1951%2F09%2F29%2Fpage%2F21783746%2Farticle%2F194968262 |agency=Australian Associated Press |newspaper=The Daily Examiner |location=Grafton, New South Wales |publisher= |access-date=January 29, 2025 |page=2 |via=Trove}}Kerkvliet, Benedict J. [https://books.google.com/books?id=h5Xq7nQE_ZoC&pg=PA236 The Huk Rebellion: A Study of Peasant Revolt in the Philippines]. Lanham, Md: Rowman & Littlefield, 2002. p. 236
References
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{{Communism in the Philippines}}
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Category:Politicians from Negros Oriental