NAME: Mardee Louise M.

Docena
PROGRAM: BSECE-II
SCHEDULE: Tuesday, Friday (7:30-9:00 a.m)

REFLECTION

In 1580’s, the maladies that beset the colony had gone from bad to
worst. Spaniards found themselves settling a territory unable to provide wealth
and threatening their survival. Starvation was widespread from the unpaid and
mutinous Spanish soldiers, ordinary colonists and bewildered Filipinos. Only
those in the top position got rich by extracting capital out of the provinces and
invested it with the increasing China trade.

In 1582, Domingo de Salazar, the first Bishop of the Philippines, alarmed

by reports from Filipinos themselves on the abuses they were suffering at the
hands of Spanish officials and soldiers. All this was set down in a handbook for
confessors. The handbook for confessors of the Synod of Manila of 1582 is not
only the unintended witness to early Spanish abuses that it describes in
appalling detail, it is also a vivid portrait of the Lascacian generation of
missionaries who defended native rights and human divinity. It is the only
surviving document produced by the assembly that influenced Spanish colonial
policy in the Philippines crucially for at least the next two centuries.

In 1582 Japanese pirates begin to threaten Luzon, but are defeated and
held in check by the Spanish troops. In 1583, occur two most notable events,
one of these is the appointment for the islands of the royal Audiencia or high
court of justice especially ordered by the king to watch over and shield the
Indians, the other is the opening there of a branch of the Inquisition or Holy
office. Fuller details of all these matters are herewith given in the usual
synopsis and documents. In a letter dated June 16, 1582, Governor Peňalosa
reports that the conversion of the natives is making good progress, but there
are not enough missionaries. He recommends that a convent be established in
every city and village, and that missionaries be sent directly from the mother-
country, rather than from New Spain, as in the latter case they soon become
discontented after coming to the Philippines. He complains because the
Franciscans have gone to China, he renews the plea advanced by former
officials for the conquest of that country, but regards the present Spanish force
in the Philippines as inadequate for that purpose. Meanwhile, he is
endeavoring to strengthen the colony and has founded the town of Arevalo in
Panay. Another new town is being established, Nueva Segovia, in Luzon. The
governor thinks that the customs duties heretofore levied in the islands, three
percent in both imports and exports are too small; and he decided to raise the
rate to five percent for merchants in the Philippines, and seven for those in
Mexico.

The next circumstance were encomiendas that had no doctrine but

encomenderos had prepared them for the Christian faith through their efforts
of indoctrination, securing the natives and administering justice. The
encomenderos were accessories to the gospel, and should be supported by the
tributes of the Indians like what ministers received. If the 4th part of the tribute
shall be for the erection of the church, ornaments and other accessories of
religious instructions or if not be remitted to the Indians, he suggested that it
will be considered a deposit for three years to assist in the expenses related to
religious instructions.

Dasmarinas raised a dilemma to Salazar, and that was which of the two
evil is less. If encomenderos will be deprived of tributes, it would mean
depopulation and mass departure from the islands. It is interesting to note the
Church-State politics between the religious orders and the bishop, and the
religious orders among themselves. The Governor complained to the King on
the excessive freedom of movement and speech that this religious had shown in
how they confronted him of being “most cruel, intolerable and wicked”. In
1582, Peñalosa sent Juan Pablo de Carrion to deal with the Japanese
incursion. De Carrion immediately sailed from Ilocos with six ships and 40
men; he himself was aboard the Sant Jusepe. Their voyage to the Cagayan
River took roughly 34 days.

Upon reaching Cape Borgador, de Carrion encountered a Japanese pirate

ship and decided to engage. They began by using their artillery, which killed
several men and damaged the ship’s mainmast. The Japanese countered by
using their grappling irons to latch onto the Sant Jusepe for boarding. Two
hundred pirates poured onto the deck of the galley and engaged in combat
against de Carrion’s men, while 60 arquebusiers opened fire from a distance.
The galley became a small battlefield as the Spaniards held their lines against
waves of pirates. Slowly they were pushed back until they were cornered near
the mainmast. Somehow, superior tactics and arms managed to win the day,
and the small force was able to beat back the pirates, who began to retreat. De
Carrion decided to pursue and boarded their ship. They managed to beat the
pirates until only 18 remained, who then surrendered.

Entering the river, de Carrion encountered a fort and at least 11 to 18

ships waiting for them. Panic set in when a soldier aboard a frigata shouted,
“Return, return to Manila! Set the whole fleet to return, because there are a
thousand Japanese on the river with a great deal of artillery, and we are few.”
Their captain, Luys de Callejo, began to turn back, but de Carrion managed to
rally. They attacked the fort but their numerical disadvantage didn’t deal any
real damage. Left with a few options, the Spanish troops entrenched
themselves in a defensible position up the river. They then began shelling the
Japanese position until the pirates were forced to surrender. As part of the
terms, de Carrion ordered the pirates to leave Luzon, which they did. A synod
is a council assembled by the church wherein they decide matters of doctrine,
administration, or application. In the Manila synod of 1582, the first bishop of
Manila, Domingo de Salazar, along with his fellow missionaries and some
laymen, decided on why they were settling here, how they were supposed to
act, how much tribute they should collect, and — surprisingly (though it is the
synod’s necessary consequence) — how they were to make amends for all the
wrongs their countrymen inflicted upon the natives ever since the day the
conquistador, Miguel López de Legazpi, set foot on the islands in 1565. This
information alone is enough to send scholars and history enthusiasts
scrambling; it seems that we got something wrong with the way we view the
Spanish occupation. Not to say that the Spaniards were all good guys, but it
was certainly not 333 years of darkness with guardias civiles lashing out the
first Indio they saw, nor were all priests Damasos or Salvis. Dr. Dumol’s work
not only sheds light on the early days of Spanish occupation, it also grants us
a new perspective with which we could view the deeds of our colonizers — one
which is not centered on slavery, greed, or oppression, but a fair, Catholic
sense of justice that was ahead of its time. In an age when real estate was as
abundant as air, the electronic industry was yet to come and financial bubbles
didn't exist, the big business was spices. Discovered by the Romans many
centuries ago, they had become an essential part of European life pretty
quickly. There was a catch: they were only found in India, over seven thousand
miles away, and there was a whole industry of middlemen making money by
bringing them from over there to, for example, the Golden Mile in Marbella.
Perhaps the fact that opium was considered a spice import may put Europe's
dependence on this trade system into perspective. In any case, whenever they
weren't waging war against each other or arranging to marry their offspring,
the monarchs of Europe would devote themselves to finding new routes from
which to bring the spices themselves -- that way they could cut the middle man
and join in on this lucrative business. In fact, the game-changing discovery of
America in 1492 was a blatant mistake. The courses the Spanish had set
before sailing were actually aimed towards finding the Middle East. Even
though the fortunate discovery had a lot of other advantages, Charles V was
aware that he hadn't found his way to India. So he sent a new explorer, a
Portuguese-born captain called Ferdinand Magellan, to finish the job. He didn't
find India either. Instead, he did the Columbus thing of accidentally
discovering new land. He also waged one of the strangest wars in Spanish
history. It would be another 40 years until Spain finally attempted the Spanish
conquest of the Philippines again. Namely, with the Miguel López de Legazpi.
This man, Spain's first royal governor, found his way to the islands from New
Spain, or Spanish Mexico as we call it nowadays. He decided to name the
islands after King Philip II. Working his way from Maynilad what now is
Manila, he moved Spain's sway up north. It is not known what he did when he
met Lapu Lapu. The Philippines weren't the gold mine that Peru was. In fact,
there were no spices or minerals that attracted Spanish attention. The islands'
worth was more strategic than anything else: the islands were a fantastic
stopover in the middle of the Pacific Ocean, brimming with food and peaceful
people. They learned from the Spanish how to grow corn and then watched
their colonists move on to other, more lucrative endeavors. Luckily for the
natives, the Spanish conquest of the Philippines was not as bloody as the
American ones.p.
Name: Andrea Suzette T. Gadat BSABE II

Readings in the Philippine History

Abuse and indifference have been prevalent during the Spanish colonization.
Which is why a guidance of confessors correcting some cases and abuse in the
Philippines was done in 1582 led by Friar Domingo de Salazar. The concerns heard
regarding this case alarmed the Friar to the point that he decided to hold an assembly
which he thought could help solve this matter as soon as possible through armistice
negotiations. This initiative of Salazar was actually essential to maintaining rights and
stability in the islands of the country. Also, some rights of island possession might have
been deprived which is why a good negotiation is called to be done. It is also to
prevent huge complications which might lead to a more complex discussions and war
between the involved parties.

According to a source “the beginning of the colonization of the Philippines in the

late 16th century was marred by abuses and acts of injustice committed by Spanish civil
authorities upon the natives. The colonizers used force in the pacification, and
collected excessive tributes in the name of the Spanish King. Worth noting however is
that there were people of conscience among the Spaniards who raised their voices in
defense of the colonized”.

Spanish Augustinians, Franciscans, Jesuits and Dominicans did not tolerate such
misconduct by Spanish civil authorities. They even denied absolution to the erring
officials who refused to amend their lives and make restitution for their extortion and
other abuses. But while the other friars and religious’ moral sensitivities were assuaged
by withholding the sacraments from the erring Spanish civil authorities, two great
Spanish Dominicans were determined to point out the primary cause of this scandal
perpetrated by the Spaniards, and were resolute in coming up with a viable solution.
When Bishop Domingo de Salazar, OP, was troubled, deeply troubled, by the multiple
reports of the abuses Filipinos suffered at the hands of Spanish soldiers, guardia civil,
and other functionaries, he convoked a synod of the clergy a.k.a. the First Manila Synod
of 1582, which was later confirmed by Pope Gregory XIII, in order to address the
problems.

This Synod of Manila handled the cases of injustices by the Spanish civil
authorities pertaining to the collection of tributes from the natives, and the question of
the legitimacy of the Spanish regime in the islands. Salazar was so dedicated and
passionate in fighting for the rights of the natives that he personally brought these issues
to the Spanish court in Madrid, in the course of which he met his untimely end. This is
during 1894, which made the publication plans of the synod was delayed. This delay
may have left a lot of pending cases to be handled with the help of the synod which, in
my opinion, have led to more complicated cases.

Bishop Domingo de Salazar, OP, had made some people look up to him for his
initiative of the synod. Pure courage always coexisted with holiness in the man of the
cloth. He dauntlessly fought for the downtrodden, for those wala-nawala-at-binalewala
sector of society, and espoused the cause of the Filipinos with valor that won for him
the title of “intrepido Salazar.” The trouble that he has gone through with for these
people is a heroic deed for most.

The conflict may have took place is probably due to the fact that Spain, the
most powerful state at the time, saw some cultures as “second-class civilizations,” a
subculture that distanced the conquerors “from the reality of a people” and separated
them from the natives, surely a “disrespect of humankind” (borrowing the words of
Pope Francis, Synod of Bishops for the Amazon, October 7, 2019). However, with the
help of people like Friar Salazar, a lot of people took courage to stand up against
inequality and abuse of the colonizers. He helped the abused that time to draw a line
in the sand and pointed out to the Spanish functionaries the limit of their authority, and
that limit was characterized by social justice for the less privileged. His efforts and those
of other missionaries tempered the ruthlessness that often marred the Spanish
governance of our people.
 The sole purpose of the conference perhaps is to create amendments on the
status quo taking those who are in the position that is less advantageous to advantage.
If without the Spanish oppression and forced labor, the revolt against them might not
have taken place. Sad to say it happened paving the way for the conference to take
place. Despite of numerous complain regarding the abuse towards people during this
time, truth have been hard to distinguish from lies during the assembly. Probably
because some have doubts on the claim of people. The guidelines given to determine
the truth were made as basis to make decision-making easier.

The assembly took the chance to create division and order in the treatise. Also
mentioned in the assembly the duty of the people involved and what must be done. In
this case, the Spain have over exercised their power over the Philippines especially
those in authority. Things could have been different, if not provoked by Spaniards, the
Filipino people could have had a better relationship with them during the time of
Spanish colonization. This is what triggered Friar Salazar to initiate such kind of gesture.
To raise awareness to the Spanish government that most people under their jurisdiction
are abusing their position to exercise slavery towards people they consider are in lesser
level of disposition. This kind of mindset have been present in the minds of the Spaniards
during their stay in the county. Which is why many people have fought for equal rights
including Rizal and Friar Salazar. It is for the reason that abuse have been torturing most
of the victims.

However a lot of present-day conclusions have been made towards the

creation of the synod and its sole purpose. Central to the synod was putting into words
their reason for staying in the Philippine islands, a place where the Spanish king had no
natural right to establish dominion upon. And unlike the Americans who arrived at the
end of the 19th century, the Spaniards recognized that “(the Indians) had very good
governance in some things,” and that “they had some good things and that those
should not be changed.” There were even objections from the missionaries who
pointed out that “perhaps we are more savages in their eyes than they are in ours.”
Indeed, the Manila Synod of 1582 is incorrigible proof that while we rub salt on the
wounds brought by the “lost years under colonial rule,” we do disservice not only to the
good lot among our colonizers, but also to ourselves.

These conclusions are simply saying that by agreeing to the synod made during
the assembly we are actually prolonging and giving the Spaniards another reason to
stay in the country. That by desiring to get a better displacement in our country we
have become impulsive in some way. In short, they got us wrapped around their
fingers.

Spaniards considered it legitimate to enslave non-Christian captives from wars

and trade them legally in the past. This is because they did not consider this as an
uncivilized and unchristian act because they believed that men were not created
equal and the inferior men may be ruled by the superior ones. Christians, however,
were anticipated to show sympathy to the people suffering and this made some
masters free their slaves. A lot of them apprenticed their slaves so they could still work
under their supervision once they were freed. There were slavery cases before the
Spaniards came in the Philippines but the difference of the Philippine slavery from the
Spanish slavery was that it was arbitrary in a sense that datus may take slaves just from
committing minor violations from their laws. Also, Philippine slavery was less harsh in a
sense that some of them could eat together with their masters and those who did not
live in their masters’ houses supported themselves. On the other hand, Spanish slaves
worked solely for their masters and everything that they earned were given to them
(the masters). A slave owned by a Spaniard debtor could even be rented out to his
creditor and work to pay his debt and the slave could also serve a jail sentence in
place of his master. Filipinos made other Filipinos their alipins. On the other hand,
Spaniards generally got slaves from other races or religions.

Although the king enforced laws to end Spanish slavery in the Philippines, he did
not include laws that may end the native Philippine slavery between the Filipinos.
Although it was not completely abolished, it underwent considerable changes during
the Spanish occupation. The mangangayaw raids, which were the raiding of
barangays for obtaining slaves and territories, disappeared. Tyrannical enslavement
also disappeared since the datus were forced to free their slaves and the exchange of
slaves in the weddings was not allowed after most Filipinos were converted to
Christians. By the middle of the 18th century, Philippine slavery disappeared in areas
under the Spanish control. In areas that were not under the Spanish control like
mountains in Mindanao and Cordillera, however, it was still present.

This means that the Spaniards were not the only ones enslaving the Filipinos but
also some Filipinos as well. The problem with regards to abuse do not just merely
happen because of the Spanish colonization but of those Filipinos that are in greed of
power. The solution to the said problem should not just apply to the Spaniards but to
others who are abusing other people’s rights.

Another contributing factor that led to abuse is the Encomienda. This is when
Spanish Crown granted a person a specified number of natives from a specific
community but did not dictate which individuals in the community would have to
provide their labor. Indigenous leaders were charged with mobilizing the assessed
tribute and labor. In turn, encomenderos were to ensure that the encomienda natives
were given instruction in the Christian faith and Spanish language, and protect them
from warring tribes or pirates; they had to suppress rebellion against Spaniards, and
maintain infrastructure. In return, the natives would provide tributes in the form of
metals, maize, wheat, pork, or other agricultural products. The abolition of the
Encomienda in 1542 marks the first major movement towards the abolition of slavery in
the Western world. However, coerced labor continued in other forms throughout the
Spanish colonies and this includes the Filipinos during the 16th century.

The cause of the Encomienda system was the Spanish crown offering land and
Indian slaves to conquistadors going to the new world. The effect was heavy
depopulation of Indians from brutality and disease leading into African slaves
becoming a new labor force. This only means that encomienda did not only take place
in the Philippines but also to other country that gave the Spain a sovereign power to
rule over various countries around the word.

Going back to the Synod (1582-1586), during the discussion of the publication of
the synod, many of the early missionaries who arrived from the New World came, not to
replicate the mistakes made in the Americas, but avoid them. Priests like Salazar were
noted for upholding and defending native rights in Mexico. He brought that same
sensibility to the Philippines.

Contrary to popular opinion, this is precisely why our native languages were
preserved. At the time, based on the disastrous missions in Philippines et al, a conscious
decision was made to learn and preserve as much of native language and custom as
possible. Granted, this also meant preserving what was in accord with existing Catholic
doctrine, and conversely try and ease out that which was not (not always successful to
be sure). But still, compared to our imperial brethren it was a step up. I should note, that
there was also a man-power consideration involved here. By the way, one of the
reasons that it does not appear that often in our history books is essentially because of
the content and the decisions of the Synod. Does not really jive with our popular
interpretations of what went on during the Spanish empire.

There was violence and neutral terms like 'pacification’ in a sense obscures what
was really going on. Part of the reason for the Synod was truly to attempt to combat
some of the more egregious violations of native rights by Spanish 'authorities’ and minor
functionaries. What is interesting when looking at our Spanish history is that what was
occurring on-the-ground usually was in direct violation of Spanish law’s governing the
Islands.

Anyway, Salazar and his brethren were advocates of 'pure justice’ (a term that
frequently showed up in reports and in Salazar’s rhetoric), native rights (here and in the
Americas) and were vehement critics of the Spanish empire and its conduct. The Synod
was their attempt to infuse some of these beliefs into the archipelago.
 A lot of conclusions were made about the synod in manila that was overseen by
Friar Salazar. As above mentioned the possible reasons and purposes why it was in the
first place was agreed to take effect especially to those whose problems are being
addressed during this time. It was therefore both helpful and doubtful. For this may be
their avenue to stay and take charge of the country in the subtlest way possible. Or
probably like Salazar, they have got a pure intention to help people not to be deprived
of their liberal rights. This is still deliberated by most people however what’s important is
its sole purpose to stop the abuse among people they consider their slaves. This is why it
is therefore essential to better analyze history and dig into deeper accounts of the past
to be able to discern their lives like how did the transition of the life of people before up
to the present happened. Further studies for this is also essential for us to determine how
is it different when the church is in-charge of governing the people and in modern day
situation when the state is in charge of legal rights of the people.