The incident in Makabulos exemplified the vicious cycle now playing out across Luzon and, increasingly, across the Philippines as a whole. Due to the corruption of the government and abuses by its soldiers, a civilian population had stood by as rebels prepared an assault. Having been caught off guard and badly beaten in that assault, the surviving soldiers knew it could only have been launched with the connivance of the local civilians. Now, the soldiers would regard those locals as enemy supporters, spurring the next round of abuse, which would then ensure the success of the next insurgent
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