In 1973, he became one of the founding members of the National Democratic Front of the Philippines (NDFP). He would be one of the drafters of the NDFP’s original Ten-Point Program – together with Satur Ocampo, Enrique Voltaire Garcia II, Angel Baking, Simeon “Sammy” Rodriguez, Dante Simbulan, and Jose Maria Sison.
In the underground he would edit the news service Balita ng Malayang Pilipinas; Liberation, the official publication of the NDFP; and Ang Bayan, the CPP’s official newspaper.
He would be entrusted with more and more responsibilities in the revolutionary underground, and eventually became a member of the CPP Central Committee.
Tony was one of only a few in the top leadership of the revolutionary underground who were never caught by the forces of the Marcos dictatorship. With that, he is credited with having contributed considerably to the continuity of the CPP’s leadership at a time when its top officers were being seized left and right.
He surfaced in 1986 as a member of the NDFP peace negotiating panel, together with fellow journalists Ocampo and Carolina “Bobbie” Malay; but they returned to the underground after the suspension of talks with the Government of the Republic of the Philippines (GRP) following the Mendiola Massacre.
In 1989 he was sent on a special task to Utrecht, The Netherlands, where the NDFP International Office is located. He served as NDFP chairman from 1990 to 1994 and was senior adviser to the NDFP peace panel from 1992 until his death in 2001.
“Manong was one person who was respected both by comrades and by the enemy,” De Leon said. “I think it is because he knew how to respond to people and how to carry out the struggle and debate. I just love reading his letters to people with opposite ideas and beliefs.”
Continuing Zumel’s legacy
A few years after his death, the Antonio Zumel Center for Press Freedom (AZCPF) was set up in his memory.
The AZCPF aims to continue Zumel’s legacy in fighting for press freedom, as well as raising the ethical standards of the journalistic profession. It also counts among its objectives the holding of skills training programs for journalists and aims to serve as a resource center for media people. It also intends to do research on media issues and the conditions of journalists and other media workers.
“I dream of the Zumel Center as serving also as a physical base where media can come together, drink beer, and talk,” De Leon, who is also an international coordinator of the AZCPF, said. “It could just be a social club at the start just like NPC, what is important is that media people would have a place to go to after work. From there they can discuss things and issues. Media people are like lawyers, they have a strong individualism but when there are issues they put up.”
Launched in August 2004, the AZCPF is reportedly set to be relaunched soon. It presently maintains a website at www.zumel.com. (Bulatlat.com)
