Th , . Fee Rea jae OS oo aes Kagalanggalangang Kars aot ort ee Remi in the Bo ee most “Ty movements” . { ilippine history. While anti-colOM® og prior to the and organizations had already been established °°.” a foundation of the Katipunan, it was only this orEéa7200". ards for (2) (1) a united Filipino nation that would revolt against !P° Spied revolts the total independence of the coutry from Spain. Previou® arput none of had already occurred before the foundation of the KAUPUNAN tonizers, them envisioned a unified Filipino nation revolting against the see For example, Diego Silang was known as an Tlocano Wh? See poner and led one of the longest running revolts in the country: See Ei Rey was mainly concerned about his locality and referred t© pmsl as BI Re de Ilocos (The King of Ilocos). The imagination of the nation was largely oo in the aspirations of the local revolts before Katipunan. OP re Pila , the propaganda movements led by the ilustrados like Marcelo H. del Pilar, | Graciano Lépez Jaena, and Jose Rizal did not envision a total separation of the Philippines from Spain, but only demanded equal rights, representation, and protection from the abuses of the friars. In the conduct of their struggle, Katipunan created a complex structure tion as a collective and a defined value system that would guide the organizat aspiring for a single goal. One of the most important Katipunan documents was the Kartilya ng Katipunan. The original title of the document was "Manga [sic] Aral Nang [sic] Katipunan ng mga AN.B." or “Lessons of: the Organization of the Sons of Country.” The document was written Emilio Jacinto in the 1896. Jacinto was only 18 years old when he join the movement. He was a law student at the Universidad de Santo Tomas, Despite his youth, Bonifacio recognized the value and intellect of Jacin that upon seeing that Jacinto’s Kartilya was much better than the Decalogu he wrote, he willingly favored that the Kartilya be distributed to their fell Katipuneros. Jacinto became the secretary of the organization and charge of the short-lived printing press of the Katipunan. On 15 April 189 n Readings in Philippine HistoryBonifacio appointed Jacinto as a commander of the Katipunan in Northern Luzon. Jacinto was 22 years old. He died of Malaria at a young age of 24 in the town of Magdalena, Laguna. The Kartilya can be treated as the Katipunan’s code of conduct. It contains fourteen rules that instruct the way a Katipunero should behave, and which specific values should he uphold. Generally, the rules stated in the Kartilya can be classified into two. The first group contains the rules that will make the member an upright individual and the second group contains the rules that will guide the way he treats his fellow men. Below is the translated version of the rules in Kartilya: I. The life that is not consecrated to a lofty and reasonable purpose is a tree without a shade, if not a poisonous weed. Il. To do good for personal gain and not for its own sake is not virtue. Il. It is rational to be charitable and love one’s fellow creature, and to adjust one’s conduct, acts and words to what is in itself reasonable. IV. Whether our skin be black or white, we are all born equal: superiority in knowledge, wealth and beauty are to be understood, but not superiority by nature. V. The honorable man prefers honor to personal gain; the scoundrel, gain to honor. VI. To the honorable man, his word is sacred. Do not waste.thy time: wealth can be recovered but not time lost. Defend the oppressed and fight the oppressor before the law or in the field. The prudent man is sparing in words and faithful in keeping secrets. On the thorny path of life, man is the guide of woman and the children, and if the guide leads to the precipice, those whom he guides will also go there. Thou must not look upon woman as a mere plaything, but as a faithful companion who will share with thee the penalties (Chapter 2 | Content and Contextual Analysis of Selected Primary Sources in Philippine History 23,weakness will i eure sical of life; her (physica a thee of the mo her and she will rem! reared thee. XII. What thou dost not des brothers and sisters, th: brothers and sisters of thy neighbor: tc a ki aus XIII. Man is not worth mo e is a king, aa wrist, is aquiline, and his color white, not because he #5 & Pt f servant of God, nor because of the high prevos Paes he enjoys upon earth, but he is worth most who a ds, i i weps his words, is proven and real value, who does good, keeps pears worthy and honest; he who does not oppress ean cea being oppressed, he who loves and cherishes his fathe aa though he be born in the wilderness and know no tongue but his own. XIV. When these rules of conduct shall be known all, the longed- for sun of Liberty shall rise brilliant over this most unhappy portion of the globe and its rays shall diffuse everlasting joy among the confederated brethren of the same rays, the lives of those who have gone before, the fatigues and the well-paid sufferings will remain. If he who desires to enter has informed himself of all this and believes he will be able to perform what will be his duties, he may fill out the application for admission. his nose re because h [As the primary governing document, which determines the rules of e Kartilya will thus conduct in the Katipunan, properly understanding th help in understanding the values, ideals, aspirations, and even the ideology of the organization. Analysis of the “Kartilya ng Katipunan” one Similar to what we have done to the accounts of Pigafetta, this primary source also needs to be analyzed in terms of content and context. As document written for a fraternity whose main purpose is to overthrow a colonial regime, we can explain the content and provisions of the Kartilya as’ s reaction and response to certain value systems that they found despicabl in the present state of things that they struggled against with. For example, the fourth and the thirteenth rules in the Kartilya are an invocation oft inherent equality between and among men regardless of race, occupati ma Readings in Philippine Historyor status. In the coy etext of the Spanish colonial era where the indios were ior of i air white Europeans, the Katipunan saw to it sal at they wished to promulgate through their Toyed this kind of unjust hierarchy. Moreover, one can anal; consistent with th and nineteenth ce: revolution necessarily d a hawt ales values upheld in the document as ata Equalh ee and liberal ideals in the eighteenth that first emerged in iho slatteaneh ei ey Renting cae throughout Europe and oa eae French Revolution, which spread an ilustrado himself evden yn educated class of the colonies. Jacinto, from the Hberal vale Gre i Ge understanding of these values. Aside dodtheh nica tan e dissected in the document, we can also bet g certain Victorian and chivalrous values in the text. For example, varie Provisions in the Kartilya repeatedly emphasized the importance of in words and in action. The teaching of the Katipunan on how women should be treated with honor and respect, while positive in many respects and certainly a significant stride from the practice of raping and physically abusing women, can still be telling of the Katipunan’s secondary regard for women. in relation to men. For example, in the tenth rule, the document specifically stated that men should be the guide of women and children, and that he should set a good example, otherwise the women and the children would be guided in the path of evil. Nevertheless, the same document stated that women should be treated as companions by men and not as playthings that can be exploited for their pleasure. In the contemporary eyes, the Katipunan can be criticized because of these provisions. However, one must not forget the context where the organization was born. Not even in Europe or in the whole of the West at that juncture recognized the problem of gender inequality. Indeed, it can be argued that Katipunan’s recognition of women as important partners in the struggle, as reflected not just in Kartilya but also in the organizational structure of the fraternity where a women’s unit was established, is an endeavor advanced for its time. Aside from Rizal's known -Letter to the Women of Malolos, no same effort by the supposed cosmopolitan Propaganda Movement was achieved until the movement's eventual disintegration in the latter part of the 1890s. Aside from this, the Kartilya was instructive not just of the Katipunan’s conduct toward other people, but also for the members’ development as individuals in their own rights. Generally speaking, the rules in the Kartilya can be classified as either directed to how one should treat his neighbor or to how one should develop and conduct one’s self. Both are essential to the 25 Chapter? | Content and Contextual Analysis of Selected Primary Sources in Philippine Historythe Katipunan's ideals. For example, the Kartilya’s e’s word and not wasting time are teachings directed toward self-development, while the rules on treating the neighbor's children, and brothers the way that you want Yours to be treated is an neros should treat and regard their neighbors. ‘All in all, proper reading of the Kartilya will reveal a more thorough understanding of the Katipunan and the significant role that it played in the revolution and in the unfolding of the Philippine history, 48 we know it. success and fulfillment of teachings on honoring on wife, instruction on how Katipw Philippine Independence’ Every year, the country commemorates the anniversary ofthe Philippine » soot June 1898, in the province of Cavite. Indeed, Independence proclaime such event is a significant turning point in the history ‘of the country because it signaled the end of the 333 years of Spanish colonization. There numerous studies done on the events leading to the indepen! nance to read the actual document of country but very few students had the cl the declaration. This is in spite of the historical importance of the document and the details that the document reveals on the rationale and circumstances of that historical day in Cavite. Interestingly, reading the details of the said Gocument in hindsight is telling of the ‘kind of government that was under Aguinaldo, and the forthcoming hand of the United States of America in the next few years of the newly created republic. ‘The declaration was a short 2,000-word document, which summarized the reason behind the revolution against Spain, the war for independence, and the future of the | new republic under Emilio Aguinaldo. | The proclamation commenced with a characterization. of the conditions in the Philippines during the Spanish colonial period. The document | specifically mentioned abuses ‘and inequalities in the colony. The declaration | says: Reading the “Proclamation of the «taking into consideration, that their inhabitants being already weary of bearing the ominous yoke of Spanish domination, on account of the arbitrary arrests and harsh treatment practiced by the Civil Guard to the extent of causing death with the connivance and even with the express orders of their commanders, who sometimes went to the extreme of ordering the shooting of prisoners under the pretext that they were attempting to escape, in violation of the provisions of the Regulations of their Corps, which abuses were unpunished and on account of the unjust deportations, especially those decreed by General Blanco, of eminent personages and of high social position, at the instigation of the Archbishop and friars interested in keeping them out of the way for their own Readings in Philippine History |