The Japanese Period in

the Philippines

PERDEV -3 RD QUARTER
 The Transfer of the
Commonwealth
Government to America
The Fall of Bataan and Corregidor
 The Fall of Bataan and Corregidor

On December 8, 1941, the Japanese invades the Philippines hours

after bombing Pear Harbor in Hawaii. While the forces of Gen.
Douglas MacArthur retreated to Bataan, the Commonwealth
government of President Quezon moved to Corregidor Island. Manila
was declared an open city to prevent further destruction. After the fall
of Bataan on April 9, 1942 and Corregidor, In March 1942, MacArthur
& Quezon fled the country and by invitation of President Roosevelt,
the Commonwealth government went into exile to Washington D.C.
American and Filipino forces surrendered in May 6, 1942.
As many as 10,000 people died in the
Bataan Death March
As many as 10,000 people died in the
Bataan Death March
Life During the Japanese Period in the
Philippine
Japan launched a surprise attack on the Clark Air Base in
Pampanga, Philippines on December 8, 1941, just ten hours after
the attack on Pearl Harbor. Aerial bombardment was followed by
landings of ground troops on Luzon. The defending Philippine
and United States troops were under the command of General
Douglas MacArthur. Under the pressure of superior numbers,
the defending forces withdrew to the Bataan Peninsula and to
the island of Corregidor at the entrance to Manila Bay.
 The Huks
In the midst of fear and chaos, the farmers of Pampanga
banded together and created local brigades for their
protection.

Luis Taruc, Juan Feleo, Castro Alejandrino, and other

leaders of organized farmers held a meeting in February 1942
in Cabiao, Nueva Ecija. In that meeting, they agreed to fight
the Japanese as a unified guerrilla army.
The Huks
Another meeting was held the following
month, where in representatives from
Tarlac, Pampanga and Nueva Ecija
threshed out various details regarding
their organization, which they agreed to
call "Hukbo ng Bayan Laban sa mga
Hapon" or HUKBALAHAP.

Taruc was chosen to be the Leader of

the group, with Alejandrino as his right
hand man.
The Puppet Government
The Puppet Government
On October 14, 1943, the
declaration of the Philippine
Independence was read and
the “Puppet Republic” was
formally inaugurated. Jose P.
Laurel was declared as the
President of the “Puppet
Government”.
The Japanese Influences in
the Philippines
 Negative Effects:
1.Many Filipinos, Americans, and Japanese died in the battlefields. It
was an all-out war in the air, on land, and on water.

2.Hundreds of cities, towns, and barrios were destroyed. Millions of

dollars’ worth of property were lost.

3.Economic activities during the war were limited. Industry, commerce,

and trade wee at a standstill. Work animals decreased and agriculture
suffered. Most of the people engaged in the buy –and-sell business.
Effects of Japanese
Colonization
 Effects of Japanese
Colonization
1. Subjects such as Japanese culture and Niponggo, a Japanese
language, were made compulsory

subjects in schools.

2. Different types of livelihood were taught in vocational schools built by

Japanese. They controlled the industries, factories and food production.

3. Filipinos learned to engage in different business like buy and sell and
barter trade to earn a living.
 Effects of Japanese
Colonization
4. Filipinos were encouraged to write on a condition that
they would use Tagalog as a medium.

5. The HUKBALAHAP or Hukbong Bayan Laban sa Hapon

tried to fight the Japanese
The Japanese Influences in
the Philippines
 Livelihood
The Filipinos learned to engage in
different businesses like buy and sell
and barter trade to earn a living.
 Literature
Filipinos were encouraged to write on a condition
that they would use Tagalog as medium.
However, the writers did not fully enjoy the
freedom of expressions.
The Liberation of the
Philippines from the
Japanese Occupation
By mid-December, the American soldiers had reached
Mindoro. The Japanese, meanwhile, secured other area
where they thought other American units would land.
Nevertheless, US liberation forces successfully docked at
Lingayen Gulf on January 9, 1945. The news alarmed the
Japanese. Lt. Gen. Tomoyuki Yamashita, supreme
commander of the Japanese troops in Manila, mobilize his
kamikazes (Japanese suicide pilots); but they failed to stop
Americans. The Japanese also deployed MAKAPILI units to
defend Manila but neither succeeds.
On December 8, 1944, President Laurel and his cabinet moved to
Baguio upon orders of Yamashita, who is also known as the tiger
of Malaya. The Japanese forces retreated to Yamashita line a
jungle battlefront stretching along the Sierra Madre Mountains
from Antipolo, Rizal to Apari Cagayan.

The Japanese in Manila would not give up easily. In fact, it took 3

weeks of intense fighting before they finally surrendered on
February 23. Gen. MacArthur continued to liberate other parts
of the country. And finally proclaim general freedom from the
Japanese on July 4, 1945.