Professional Documents
Culture Documents
Philippine History: By: Teodoro Agoncillo
Philippine History: By: Teodoro Agoncillo
By:
TEODORO AGONCILLO
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TABLE OF CONTENTS
Geography
Economy
Population
Governent
Filipino Traits and Values
Early Settlers
Economic Life
Social Life
The Government
Culture
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Political Changes
Economic Changes
Spanish Influence
Impact of Cultural Changes
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Chapter 10 BONIFACIO AND THE KATIPUNAN (1892-1896)
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The Fall of the Mabini Cabinet
The Assassination of Luna
The Conquest of the Visayas
The Kiram-Bates Treaty
Aguinaldo Retreats to Palanan
The Stage of Guerilla Warfare
Government Reorganization
Filipinization under Harrison
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Improvement in Trade and Industry
Transportation and Communication
Democracy and Civil Liberties
Language and Literature
Negative Results of American Rule
Crisis in Society
The 1971 Constitutional Convention and the 1973 Constitution
Declaration of Martial Law
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The Assassination of Ninoy
The 1986 Snap Elections
People Power at Edsa
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CHAPTER 1
How come Filipinos have such varied physical features? Such diversed
economic activities? Observers say, one’s geography (e.g., archipelagic and
tropical) can help shape not only a people’s physical appearance but also
their economy, character traits, history and development.
GEOGRAPHY
The coastline of the Philippines is irregular and stretches for about 36,289
kilometers, about twice as long as the coastline of the United States,
excluding that of Alaska and Hawaii. In a note verbale submitted by the
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Philippine government to the United Nations on March 7, 1955, the
Philippines is defined as “a mid-ocean archipelagic state.”
Thus, “All waters around, between and connecting different islands belonging
to the Philippine Archipelago, irrespective of their width or dimensions, are
necessary appurtenances of its land territory, forming an integral part of the
national or inland waters, subject to the exclusive sovereignty of the
Philippines.” Because of the irregular coastline, the country abounds in good
harbors, landlocked straits, and hundreds of rivers, bays and lakes. Manila
Bay, which has an area of a little less than 2,000 square kilometers and a
circumference of about 190 kilometers, is considered one of the finest natural
harbors in the world. The Philippine Deep, which is found east of the
Philippines near Samar and Leyte, is considered as one of the deepest sea
trenches in the world.
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Outside of these big mountain ranges are the small mountain ranges of
Zambales and the Tagaytay Ridge. The Zambales Range begins at Cape
Bolinao, follows the coast of the China Sea and ends in the Bataan
Peninsula. The Tagaytay Ridge crosses the provinces of Cavite and
Batangas. Mount Makiling in Laguna and Taal Volcano are parts of the
Tagaytay Ridge. Mindoro, Panay and Negros have small mountain ranges.
The highest peaks in these parts are Mount Halcon in Mindoro and Kanlaon
Volcano in Negros. Leyte and Samar are not as mountainous as the
provinces mentioned above.
Mindanao, on the other hand, has four distinct mountain ranges. They are
the Eastern Mountain Range, which begins at Surigao and follows the Pacific
coast; the Central-Eastern Mountain Range which begins at Butuan and
extends south to Agusan on the East and to Pulangui on the west; the
Central-Western Range, which begins at Mount Apo, follows the boundary of
Cotabato, and ends in the Zamboanga Peninsula; and the Western Range
which begins west of Iligan Bay and ends on the shores of Basilan Strait.
There are many volcanoes in the Philippines whose eruptions caused much
damage to lives and property. Twenty-six of the volcanoes are considered
active, while the rest are supposed to be dormant or “sleeping.” The most
famous of these active volcanoes are Iraya in Batanes; Taal in Batangas;
Banahaw in Quezon; Mayon in Albay; Bulusan in Sorsogon; Hibok-hibok in
Camiguin Island; and Makaturing in Lanao. Mayon and Taal are the most
active of these volcanoes. They have erupted for no less than twenty-five
times. Mayon is famous over the world for its perfect cone shape, while Taal
is famous for being the smallest volcano in the world. In 1966, Taal volcano
erupted, which led to the resettlement of the people of Volcano Island to
other places.
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The Philippines is within what is called the seismic belt, that is, it lies in the
path of earthquakes. Manila and many parts of Luzon experienced several
earthquakes over the years including that of 1863, which caused the
destruction of many residential houses and government buildings and the
death of the famous priest, Father Pedro Pelaez in the Manila Cathedral; that
of 1937, which destroyed, partially, or completely, many big buildings in
Manila; that of 1968, when many buildings were partially destroyed while an
apartment building was completely destroyed resulting in the death of
hundreds of people; and that of 1990, which registered 7.8 on the Richter
Scale, killing and injuring thousands of people and damaging about 20,000
square kilometers of densely populated areas in Luzon.
CLIMATE
Generally, typhoons have influenced the climate and weather of the country.
These typhoons may be classified into “remarkable” and “ordinary.” The
former have destroyed millions of pesos worth of crops and property.
Typhoons and tropical cyclones most frequently enter the Philippine area of
responsibility (PAR) during the months of July to October. Some of the worst
typhoons that ever struck the country include Uring in November 1991,
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Rosing in October 1995, Reming in November 2006, Ondoy in September
2009, Pepeng in October 2009 and Yolanda in November 2013.
NATURAL RESOURCES
Nature has given the Philippines rich soil and plenty of natural resources.
The rich valleys and fertile plains are planted to crops such as rice, corn,
coconuts, sugar cane, bananas, pineapples and varieties of vegetables. The
country has enough water resource for electricity; food such as fish,
seaweeds, sea shells, as well as pearls for jewelry. There is an abundant
supply of minerals like gold, copper, silver, lead, zinc, nickel, manganese and
chromium, as well as non-metallic minerals like salt, clay, coal, sulphur,
asbestos, limestones, gravel and gypsum. Gum resins and lumber can be
obtained from the country’s vast forests.
The Philippines also has oil. Called “black gold”, its discovery at
Malampalaya, Palawan has encouraged foreign and Filipino firms to drill
wells for oil. Its commercial exploration will greatly improve the country’s
economy. However, despite this natural abundance, conservationists and
civil society have expressed concern over the depletion of forests, abuse and
misuse of land resources and threats to marine and coastal ecosystems. A
significant response by the Department of Environmental and Natural
Resources (DENR) was its lobby for Congress to pass the National
Integrated Protected Areas System (NIPAS) Bill in 1992. Now called R.A.
7586, the law is premised on the concept of the involvement of local
communities in biodiversity conservation and habitat management. Thus,
indigenous peoples living in the protected areas are given responsibility over
their territories and sustainable livelihood alternatives. Other laws that protect
our environment include the Philippine Clear Air Act of 1999, the Ecological
Solid Waste Management of 2000, and the Clear Water Act of 2004.
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ECONOMY
Rice is the main crop of the country and is cultivated in large quantities in
Central Luzon, Western Visayas and Mindanao. Its production, however,
remains insufficient due to several factors. First, destructive typhoons and
floods often destroy thousands upon thousands of rice lands leading to
government importation of rice. Second, the agricultural sector remains
backward despite government effort to modernize it through the introduction
of programs like the “Masagana 99” technique in the sixties and the
Comprehensive Agrarian Reform Program in recent years; the use of
“miracle rice varieties”; the use of fertilizers and pesticides to increase rice
production, which puts a toll not only on poor farmers, who oftentimes cannot
afford them, but also on the environment, particularly on the quality of the
soil. Third, the production shift to sources of biofuels such as jathropa and
other cash crops, which command higher prices in the market, has also
affected rice production in no small way. Fourth, the massive conversion of
farmlands for residential and commercial use has also contributed to low rice
productivity, not to mention the lost of farm labor.
The major Philippine products for export include coconut oil, fresh bananas,
pineapples, sugar, gum resins and abaca, among others. Among the
country’s growing industries are mining, lumber, metal, woodcraft, furniture,
and petroleum. The Philippines is also among the world’s supplier of
semiconductors and manufactured goods like ignition wiring sets and other
wiring sets used in vehicles, aircrafts and ships; cathodes of refined copper;
and microprocessors. Clothing and clothing accessories are also produced in
the country. The United States of America remains our top market for exports
followed by Japan, Hong Kong, and the People’s Republic of China. Other
big markets of Philippine products are the Netherlands, Germany, Singapore,
Malaysia, Republic of South Korea and Taiwan (National Statistics Office,
2007).
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Population
Based on the latest figures from the National Statistics Office (2008-2009),
the Philippines has one of the fastest-growing population with a birth rate of
26.42 births/1000. Life expectancy stands at 67.89 years for men and 73.85
years for women. There are approximately 100 million Filipinos today as
projected by the NSO. Concentrated in the more urbanized sections of the
country, 84% of the population is functionally literate. As of 2009, an estimate
of 35 million Filipinos is employed. Thirty-four percent of employed Filipinos
are engaged in agriculture (hunting, forestry, and fishing); 15% work in the
industry sector (mining and quarrying, manufacturing, electricity, gas and
water and construction); while 51% are employed in the service sector
(wholesale and retail trade, repair of vehicles, household goods; hotels and
restaurant; transport, storage, and communication; financial, real estate,
renting and business activities; education, health and social work, etc.).
These figures raise the question whether the country is truly on its way
towards industrialization or not.
The majority of the Filipinos belong to the Austronesian ethnic group. Due
to the early trade contacts and subsequent colonization by the Spaniards
and later by the Americans, Filipinos today are a mixture of races. The
offspring of a native Filipino and a foreigner, whether Chinese, Spaniard,
American is called mestizo. With the phenomenal growth of Filipinos working
overseas (OFWs) the mestizo group has expanded to include Arabs,
Japanese, Koreans and Europeans. There are around 170 spoken
languages with almost of all of them belonging to the Austronesian language
family. Among the major languages are Bicolane, Bisaya, Cebuano,
Chabacano, Hiligaynon/Ilonggo, Ilocano, Kapampangan, Maguindanaon,
Maranao, Pangasinense, Tagalog, Tausug and Waray. Filipino is the
national language with Filipino and English as the official languages of the
country.
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Government
The country has undergone five constitutional changes since the Malolos
Constitution of 1899, which set up the First Filipino Republic with Emilio F.
Aguinaldo as president. These constitutions are:
1. The 1935 constitution, which served as the basis for the transition
Commonwealth government with Manuel L. Quezon as president
followed by Sergio S. Osmena;
2. The 1943 Constitution of the Japanese-sponsored government which
recognized the Second Republic under President Jose P. Laurel;
3. The 1935 Constitution, which set up the Third Republic under President
Manuel A. Roxas, followed by Elpidio R. Quirino, Ramon F.
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Magsaysay, Carlos P. Garcia, Diosdado P. Macapagal and Ferdinand
E. Marcos (for his first term);
4. The 1973 Constitution that extended the term of President Marcos
beyond the provision of the 1935 Constitution, and set up the fourth
republic; and
5. The 1987 Constitution during the presidency of Corazon C. Aquino (as
the president of the Fifth Republic), to that of Fidel V. Ramos, the short
lived administration of Joseph E. Estrada and that of Gloria Macapagal-
Arroyo.
The Filipino people have many common traits. Perhaps the most important
trait of the Filipinos is their hospitality. They welcome visitors, whether
Filipinos or non-Filipinos, with open arms and warm hearts. Visitors are given
the best in the house and they would go to the extent of incurring debts to
make their visitors contented, happy and comfortable. Filipino hospitality is
unequaled and known the world over.
Filipinos maintain close family ties. The family is the unit of society and
consists, at least until very recent times, of the parents, the grandparents and
the children. The head of the family is the father, but it is really the mother
who governs. The mother does a lot of things for the family: she is the first
teacher of the children; she is the treasurer of the home, the accountant, the
censor, the laundrywoman and the cook. Thus, in many Filipino families,
even the father calls the wife “Mama” or “Mommy”. He dutifully hands over
his salary or earnings to the wife, who in case of the father’s illness, works to
support the whole family.
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alone; it is all the problem of all the adult members of the family. If Juana,
one of the children, wants to continue her studies, say in high school, the
older brothers and sisters help the parents in sending her to school. If she
finds employment, she in turn helps her parents, brothers, and sisters to
send the younger children to school. Thus, cooperative work within the family
circle is not uncommon.
Respect for the elders is one of the best Filipino traits. Filipino parents
exercise moral influence over their children. The latter obey their parents
willingly and help them in their work. The younger men and women do not,
as a rule, disturb their elders when the latter are talking or conversing with
other people. Even among strangers, respect is shown by slightly bowing the
head or by using some words of respect. The Tagalog po is commonly used
by almost everybody to show respect even to a younger man (or woman) if
the latter is a stranger.
Filipinos as a people have several values. Values are those aspects in life
that include customs, traditions, etc., which the people regard as necessary
and important in their dealings with one another. One of these values is
pakikisama, or sense of togetherness or comradeship. Pakikisama refers to
doing somebody a good deed, such as helping a relative or neighbor build a
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house without asking for compensation, or helping someone look for a job,
and so on. If one does these, he/she is said to be mabuting makisama. If one
does the opposite, he/she is said to be masamang makisama. Pakikisama
does not mean doing crooked or dishonest things in order to look good to
others. Pakikisama is a positive value and means doing somebody a good
turn or being helpful without ulterior motive.
STUDY GUIDE:
1. Using a graphic organizer such as one below, list the products found in
your province. Indicate which of these are exported to foreign countries
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and which among these are imported from other countries or obtained
from other parts of the Philippines.
Etc.
2. Look at the map of the Philippines and that of the United States.
Compare their coastlines. What do you think is the advantage of the
Philippines over continental United States in this respect? What do you
think are the disadvantages of being an archipelagic country in the
tropics?
3. In your opinion, which among the reasons cited in the chapter on why
the Philippines imports rice from foreign countries, can easily be
remedied? Explain your answer.
4. Do you agree that the Philippines is not yet an industrialized country?
Explain your answer.
5. Does having around 170 languages pose an obstacle in unifying the
Filipinos? Provide evidence and data for your arguments.
6. Which among the five promulgated constitutions were under foreign
domination? Which were not under foreign domination and hence
expected to be more democratic? Justify your answer.
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7. In your opinion, given the archipelagic character of the Philippines, is
the present unitary and presidential system of government suited to its
geographic characteristic? Explain your answer.
8. Filipinos have values. From your observation or experience, which
among the following values: (a) hiya, (b) utang na loob and (c)
pakikisama involve a lot of grey areas or issues. Explain your answer.
9. How would you describe your physical characteristics – are you a
native Filipino or a mestizo? If you are a mestizo, what type of mestizo/
mestiza are you?
SUGGESTED ACTIVITIES:
1. What are the major exports of the Philippines today? Which among
these are the major earners?
2. How many typhoons usually visit the country? Which among these
were the most destructive and when did they occur?
3. Consult a physical map of the Philippines. Reread the first section of
the chapter that describes the physical characteristics of the
Philippines. Identify the geographic features mentioned in this chapter.
Draw a sketch of your province and indicate in your drawing the
following: (a) the mountains, (b) the rivers, and (c) the valleys or plains.
(You may ask help from your parents or local authorities).
4. Draw a blank map of the Philippines on a sheet of bond paper. Identify
the name of the major islands in the country. On the same map,
indicate the location of the major mountain ranges in the Philippines.
5. Make a portrait of yourself, capturing the features of a Pinoy. Use
colorful materials and art paper. Post the portrait on the classroom
walls for viewing, comments and appreciation.
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CHAPTER 2
EARLY SETTLERS
Some theories on Philippine prehistory suggest that the Philippines and the
rest of the islands in Southeast Asia may have been sites of human evolution
between 200,000 and 30,000 years ago. One theory says that during the ice
Age, meters below its level. Because of this, large areas of land came to the
surface and formed “land bridges” to mainland Asia. It is said that it was
during this period that the first settlers were hunters and gatherers on an
exploration trip. The earliest stone tools and animal fossils found in Cagayan
Valley in northern Philippines were dated back to at least 200,000 years ago.
Although no human fossils were found yet, the artifacts suggest their
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existence. Collectively, they were called Cagayan Man or homo erectus
philippinensis. They had similar characteristic as the Java man of Indonesia
ad Peking man of China. In 1962, a skull cap of man was discovered in the
Tabon caves of Palawan. From this skull, archeologists learned that man
had been in the Philippines for at least 22,000 years.
The cave where the Tabon man was found was dated back to half a million
years old and had been occupied for more or less 50,000 years. A piece of
charcoal which dated back 30,000 years was also found which may indicate
the first use of fire in the archipelago. The prehistoric people had a primitive
culture characterized by the use of stone implement. They hunted animals
such as the pygmy elephant and rhinoceros. In some languages of the
Philippines, including Tagalog, the world for elephant is gadya. This shows
that once upon a time there were elephants in the Philippines. They wore
clothing made from materials that they got from nature.
Some 25,000 to 30,000 years ago, another kind of settlers, the ancestors of
the Negritos (Aeta, Ati, Dumagat), came to the Philippines by crossing the
“land bridges.” They were said to have come from the south, by way of
Palawan and Borneo. Another Negrito immigrants used blow gun, bow and
arrow. They practiced dry agriculture similar to the kaingin system that is
practiced today by some hill and mountain people. Their tools were made of
stone.
Their clothing cosnsisted of bark of trees, and their houses were made of
leaves and branches of trees. More that 7,000 years ago, long after the ice
that covered the world melted, the resulting rise in the sea level ushered in
the arrival of another group of people, the Austronesians. They came to
Southeast Asia by boats from Southern China. They had brown skin
(Kayumanggi) and an early stone-age culture. Much later, some of them
came to the Philippines from Indochina and South China also by boats.
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They built their houses with pyramidal roofs. They practiced dry agriculture
and produced yams, rice, and gabe. Their clothing consisted of pounded
bark of trees with various printed designs. The Kalingas, the Gaddangs, the
Apayaos, the Igorots, and the Ilongots, all indigenous group of Luzon; the
native Visayans; the Tagbanuas of Palawan, the Bagobos, the Bilaans, the
Manobos, and the Tirurays of Mindanao, are probably descendants of this
group.
By 500 to 800 B.C., the early Filipinos knew how to make copper and bronze
implements. They irrigated their rice lands and built the first rice terraces in
the Philippines. Another migration allegedly occurred about 300 to 200 B.C.,
or more than 2,000 years ago. Those who came to Luzon by way of Palawan
and Mindoro were said to have known Irrigation, smelting, and manufacturing
of weapons, tools, utensils and ornaments made of iron and other metals.
This Austronesian migration continued up to the beginning of the Christian
era ing the 13th century. The latest group was more advanced than the
previous immigrants. They had a syllabary or alphabet that might have come
from India. These Austronesians were the ancestors of the settlers that
traded with ancient China and early Southeast Asian communities. They
would later lay the foundations of Islam in Sulu and Mindanao. These
theories of migrations, however, are still subjects of debates. The artifacts
are not enough to warrant definite conclusion about Philippine prehistory.
ECONOMIC LIFE
The ancient Filipinos practiced agriculture, which was the main source of
their sustenance. Rice, coconut, sugar cane, cotton, banana, hemp, orange,
and many kinds of fruits and vegetables were raised. Land cultivation was
done in two ways: the kaingin system and tillage. In the kaingin system, the
land was cleared land was then planted to crops. In the tillage system, the
land was plowed and harrowed, then followed by planting. Pigefetta, the
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historian of the Magellan expedition which reached the Philippines in 1521,
said that he found in Sugbu, (Cebu) such foodstuffs as sorgo, orange, garlic,
gourd, lemon, coconut, sugar cane, and many fruits. The ancient Filipinos
practiced irrigation.
They increased their crop production by irrigating ditches. The rice terraces
in Banawe, Mountain Province attest to this ancient practice. The ditches of
these rice terraces are stone-walled and run for thousands of feet up the
mountain side. If viewed from a distance, the whole rice terraces give the
viewer the picture of a huge stairway to the sky. It is estimated that if placed
from end to end, the length of the Banawe rice terraces would total about 19,
312 kilometers or almost half-way around the world from North Pole to South
Pole. The rice terraces of Banawe is one of the Wonders of the World.
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Ilocos, the Visayas especially Cebu, and along the Butuan river in Mindanao,
as places where “very good gold” could be found. Shipbuilding and logging
were also thriving industries.
Morga testified that many Filipinos were “proficient in building ocean going
vessels.” This skill can perhaps be explained by the abundance of thick
forest in archipelago that are rich in hardwoods, and by the fact that the
Philippines, being surrounded by water, naturally produced good sailors. The
Filipinos shipbuilders built all kinds of boats for travel, war, and commerce.
The Spaniards later classified these boats into banca, lapis, caracoa, virey,
prau, and vinta. These boats carried products between Manila in Luzon and
Cebu in Visayas and as far as Butuan and the rest of Mindanao. No currency
was used in trading. Goods were bought and sold, through the barter
system called baligya. For example, a goat is exchanged for a big basket
full of fish. Sometimes, the Filipinos would exchange gold for products sold
by the Chinese, who trusted the Filipinos and consigned their goods to be
paid only upon their return trip to the islands. Commerce extended far and
wide into nearby foreign lands such as Borneo, Malaya, Thailand, Cambodia,
Sumatra, and India.
SOCIAL LIFE
The ancient Filipinos were divided into social classes. These were the
nobles, the freemen, and the dependants. The nobles, composed of the
chiefs and their families, were the early society’s upper class. They were
highly respected in their community. In the Tagalog region, the nobles
usually carried the title of Gat or Lakan. One finds these words today in
some surnames like Lakandula (Lakan Dula), Lakanilaw (Lakan Haw),
Gatmaitan (Gat Maitan), Gatchalian (Gat Saian), Gatbonton (Gat Bunton),
and many others. Next to the nobles were the freeman who may be
regarded as the society’s middle class during the ancient period of Philippine
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history the members of the lowest class were the dependents called alipin
among the ancient tagalogs.
The low social status of the dependent was acquired by captivity in battle, by
failing to pay one’s debt, by inheritance, by purchase, or by being
pronounced guilty of a crime. Among the Tagalogs, the dependents were
classified into aliping namamahay and aliping sagigilid. The namamahay
had his own house and family. He served his masters by planting and
harvesting his master’s crops, by rowing the master’s boat, and by helping in
the construction of the master’s house.
On the other hand, the sagigilid had no house of his own, he lived with his
master, and could not marry without the latter’s consent. Among the
Visayans, the dependents were of three kinds: the tumataban, who worked
for his master when told to do so; the tumarampuk, who worked one day a
week for his master; and the ayuey, who worked three days a week for his
master.
Dependent were further classified into three levels or grades: first, as full
dependant (with one parent being one-half dependent and the other free).
These levels were not permanent. Anyone could move up or down a level
upon payment of debts or by purchase. Thus, there were no slaves in the
real sense of the word ---- only dependents due to debts or captivity from war
or battles.
The Filipino women, before the arrival of the Spaniards, enjoyed high
position in society. They could own and inherit property and sell it; they could
engage in trade and industry; and they could succeed to chieftainship of her
community or barangay in the absence of a male heir. Wives also enjoyed
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the right to give names to their children. The names usually were derived
from an event or trom the physical features of the child.
Thus, a beautiful girl was named Si Maganda; a very healthy boy was
named Si Malakas, and so on. The men respected the women. To show this
respect, the men, when accompanying women, usually walked behind the
latter. This was done not only to show respect for the women, but also to
protect them from any harm that may come from behind.
MARRIAGE CUSTOMS
In most cases, a woman of one class married into the same class. Thus, a
noble married a woman from a noble family; a woman from the freemen
class married into this class; and the man from the lowest class married into
his own class. However, there were exceptions when a man, for example,
showed bravery and courage in battle, or when he had become powerful
enough to lead the people of his community. A man could marry as many
women as he could support. His children by his first wife were considered
legitimate children and could, therefore, inherit his property. The so-called
illegitimate children were not given the right to inherit from their father.
Courtship during that period of Philippine history was long and difficult. A
man served the parents of the girl he loved for a years. He chopped wood,
fetched water, and did errands for the girl’s parents. When accepted by the
latter, the marriage was then arranged.
The man was required to give a dowry, called bigay-kaya, which usually
consisted of a piece of land or gold. To the parents of the girl, the man must
give a gift called panghimuyat. To the girl’s wet-nurse, the man must also
give a gift called bigay-suso. These arrangements were made by the
parents of the bride and the groom. The marriage ceremony was simple. It
consisted of the groom and the bride drinking from the same cup. Then an
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old man would announce that the ceremony was about to begin. A priestess
would bow to the assembled guest and then would takes the hands of the
couple and join them over a plate of uncooked rice. She would then shout
and throw the rice to the guests. The latter would respond with a loud shout
and ceremony was over.
MIXED MARRIAGES
Mixed marriages, that is, marriages between a man and a woman belonging
to different social classes, were not common. A marriage, for example
between a dependent and a freeman would result in the division of their
children into two classes. If the father was a freeman, the eldest, the third,
the fifth, the seventh, and so on, belonged to father’s class, The rest of the
children, that is, the second, the fourth, the sixth etc., belonged to the
mother’s class. If there was only one child, this child was classified as half-
free and half-dependent. If the number of children was odd, that is, three,
five, seven etc., then the third, the fifth, and the seventh would become half-
free and half-dependent.
THE GOVERNMENT
The community called the Barangay was the basic unit of government. It
consisted of 30 to 100 families. The Tagalog word “barangay” was derived
from the Austronesian balangay, a boat which transported the Austronesian
immigrants to the Philippines. The Spaniards changed the letter “I” in
balangay to “r” and pronounced it the Spanish way: barangay. Each
barangay was independent and was ruled by a chieftain. It was the primary
duty of the chieftain to rule and govern his people justly and to promote their
welfare.
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The subjects, on the other hand, served their chieftain in times of war with
other barangays and helped him in tilling and sowing the land. They paid to
attribute to him. This tribute was called buwis, the Tagalog word for “tax”.
The chieftain’s children and other relatives were highly respected in the
community and were exempted from paying tribute and from rendering
personal services to the chieftain. The chieftain was powerful and exercised
the power of the executive, the legislative, and the judiciary. In war, he
was the supreme commander.
The chieftain of a barangay made the laws of the community. When he had a
law in mind, he called in the council of elders to give their opinion. If the
elders approved the proposed law, the chieftain ordered a town crier, called
Umalohokan, to announce to the community the approval of the law. With a
bell in one hand, the umalohokan would ring it as he went along to call the
attention of the people. Then he explained the new law to them. Any person
violating the law was immediately arrested and brought before the chieftain
for trial.
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DECIDING CASES
Most disputes during the ancient times were decided peacefully. The court of
justice was composed of the chieftain as judge and the elders of the
barangay as member of the “JURY.” If conflicts arose between members of
different barangays, the differences were resolved by arbitration. A board
composed of elders from neutral barangays acted as arbiter. The trial of a
case was usually held in public. The accuser and the accused faced each
other with their witnesses. The witnesses usually took an oath to prove their
honesty.
The oath took such form as, “may the crocodile devour me if I tell a lie”; “may
I die here and now if I do not tell the truth;” and so forth. Then the parties
who do the ligitation present their arguments and their respective witnesses.
The man who had more witnesses was usually judged to be a winner. If the
defeated person contested the decision of the chieftain, the latter openly
sided with the winner and compelled the loser to accept his decision. The
loser had no other alternative than to accept the decision of the chieftain.
The trial by ordeal was not unique to the ancient Filipinos. It was also done in
Europe to determine who of the disputants was right or telling the truth. As
practiced in the Philippines, trial by ordeal consisted of ordering the
suspects, in the case of the theft, to dip their hands into a pot of boiling
water. The suspect whose hand was scalded the most was judged guilty.
Another form of trial by ordeal consisted of ordering the suspects to plunge
into a deep river with their lances. The one who rises to the surface first was
pronounced guilty. Still another from was ordering the suspects to chew
uncooked rice. The one whose saliva was thickest was the culprit.
30
CULTURE
Clothing
When the first Spaniards came to the Philippines in 1521, they found the
early Filipinos with a culture that was different from their own. Some aspects
of this old culture were undoubtedly Malay, but the other aspects were
probably the result of a different environment. Among the ancient Filipinos,
the male clothing consisted of the upper and lower parts. The upper part was
jacket with short sleeves called kangan, the color of the jacket indicated the
rank of the wearer: the chief wore a red jacket, while those lower in rank
wore either black or blue. The lower part of clothing was called bahag, which
consisted of a cloth wound about the waist, passing down between the
thighs.
The women were usually naked form the waist up. They wore a saya or
skirt. Among the Visayans, this lower part was called patadyong. A piece of
white or red cloth, called tapis, was usually wrapped around the waist or the
chest. The ancient Filipinos had no shoes. They walked about barefooted.
Men usually wore a headgear called putong, a piece of cloth wrapped
around the head. The color of the putong showed the number of persons the
wearer had killed. Thus, a man wearing a red putong had killed at least one
man, and the one wearing an embroided putong had killed at least seven
men.
Ornaments
The ancient Filipinos wore ornaments made of gold and precious stone.
Women as well as men wore armlet called kalumbig, pendants, gold rings,
earrings, leglets, and bracelets. Gold was common, so the ancient Filipinos
used it not only in making rings, armlet, and bracelets, but also as fillings in
31
between the teeth. These fillings were made to adorn the teeth. The body as
also adorned by tattooing including the face. The women also tattoed their
arms and faces to make themselves beautiful. Among men, however,
tattooing had another use. It was used as man’s war record, that is, the more
a man was tattooed the more he was admired by the people of his
community for his bravery in battle. According to the first Spaniards
missionaries who wrote about the ancient Filipinos, the Visayans were the
most tattooed people of the Philippines. For this reason, the Spanish
missionaries called the visayans, pintados or painted people.
The Houses
The Filipino house of today in the barrios is no different from the typical
ancient Filipino house. The ancient house was built of bamboo, wood and
nipa palm. This kind of house was (and is) suited to the tropical climate of
the country. The house was set on stakes called haligi, which were made of
bamboo. This held the house above the ground. The lower part of the house
was enclosed with stakes. Fowls were placed inside the enclosure. To go up
the house, one had to ascend a ladder made of bamboo. At night or when
the owner of the house was not around, the ladder was drawn up. There was
also a sort of gallery called batalan where household work was done.
What is called the sala now was used not only as an area for receiving
visitors, but also as a place to sleep in, a small room near the sala, called
silid, was a place where mats, pillows, and baskets of rice were kept. Among
the Ilongots and the Kalingas of northern Luzon and among the Mandayas
and the Bagobos of Mindanao, the houses were built on treetops. On the
otherhand, the Bajaos or Sea Gypsies of Sulu had their houseboats. They
lived in such houses because they are a sea-loving people. They roamed the
seas for a living and for adventure.
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Education and System of Writing
There were no formal schools but children of school age were taught in their
own homes by their mother who their first teachers. Based on the testimony
of the Spanish Jesuit missionary, father Pedro Chirino, there was hardly a
man or woman who did not know how to read and write. Perhaps it is an
exaggeration to say that the literacy rate was 100% but it is safe to say that
the ancient Filipinos were generally literate.
It is very likely that music and religion were also taught to the children for it is
unthinkable that a religious people like the Filipinos would neglect the
teaching of religion to the children. Our ancestor possessed a system of
writing or alphabet called a syllabary, baybayin or alibata where every letter
is pronounced as a syllable. The syllabary consisted of seventeen symbols,
three of which are vowels (patinig) and fourteen are consonants (katinig). It is
still debated whether the ancient Filipinos wrote from left to right or from right
to left or from top to bottom or from bottom to top.
Writing and language experts still argue about the writing orientation of the
baybayin. Perhaps Pedro Chirino, who wrote a book about the ancient
Filipinos with whom he had early contacts, was correct when he said that the
early Filipinos wrote from top to bottom and from left to right. The early
Filipinos wrote on large leaves of plants and trees, and sometimes on barks
of trees and bamboo tubes. They used the colored saps, of trees as ink,
while they used pointed stick or iron as pencil. Some examples of this
ancient writing that have come down to the present are found among the
Hanunuo Mangyans of Mindoro and Palawan.
33
Mga Kasabihan (Sayings) Salawikain (Proverbs) Bugtong (Riddles)
Ang kapalaran ko di ko man Ang tumakbo ng matulin kung Isda ko sa Mariveles, nasa
hanapin, dudulog lalapit kung matinik ay malalim. loob ang kaliskis
talagang akin. (sagot: sili)
May tainga ang lupa; may Ang hindi lumingon sa Nagtago si perico, nakalitaw
pakpak ang balita. pinanggalingan ay hindi ang ulo
makakarating sa paroroonan. (sagot: pako)
Huli man daw at magaling ay Pag may sinuksok, may Matanda na ang nuno hindi
naihahabol din. madudukot. pa naliligo
(sagot : pusa)
EARLY LITERATURE
The ancient Filipinos had a literature that may be classified into written and
oral. Among the Tagalog, the oral literature consisted of sabi (maxims),
bugtong (riddles), talindaw (boatsong), tagumpay (victory songs) and many
others. In the nineteenth century, the kumintang became a love song. During
the revolution it disappeared and was replaced by the kundiman. The early
Filipinos had also written literature.
The Ifugaos of Northern Luzon, for example, had epics which were originally
recited but later on were written down. Their epics are the Hudhud and the
Alim. The former glorifies ifugao history and its hero, Aliguyon. The Alim, on
the other hand, tells the story of god that resemble the Indian gods in the
epic Ramayana. The epic of the Ilocanos, Biag ni Lam-Ang (life of Lam-Ang)
originated even before the arrival of the Spaniards.
The Bicolanos have their epic called Handion. The Muslims, a very daring,
brave, and courageous people have produced several pics: the Bantugan,
Indarapatra and Sulayman, Bidasari, and Parang Sabil. The other non-
muslims and non-Christian peoples of Mindanao also have their epics, but
these have not yet been written down completely and have not been
translated into English or any of the well-known Philippine languages.
34
Music and Dance
Filipinos are considered born musicians. Many of them play two or more
musical instruments. Pigafetta, already mentioned earlier, that the natives of
Sugbu (Cebu) played such musical instruments are the timbal, the cymbal,
the drum, and other instruments, most of which were made of wood or
bamboo. When an officer to the Spanish explorer Villabos went to Samar in
1543, he saw natives playing a stringed instrument called Kudyapi, among
the Negritos of Zambales and Bataan, the favorite musical instruments were
the kulibaw, which resembled the Jew’s harp made of bamboo; the bansic, a
short of flute made of bamboo; and the gangsa a kind of guitar. To the
accompaniment of these musical instruments, the Negritos performed their
potato dance in which a man was represented as a thief stealing sweet
potatoes in the farm.
They had also the torture dance which commemorated the capture of an
enemy; the duel dance which represented a duel between two warriors; and
the lovers dance in which a man danced around a woman to show his love
for her. The Ilocanos had their musical instrument like the kutibeng, a sort of
guitar with five strings: the flute and the kudyapi. Their favorite dances were
the kinallogong (hat dance) and the konnoton (ant dance). Among the
Visayans favorite dances were the balitaw (exchange of extemporaneous
love verse) and dandansoy (courtship dance).
Both these dances are still popular today. Among the Tagalogs, drama,
dance, and music developed almost at the same time. This was because
drama could not be staged without the accompanying music and dance. So
the music and the dance were classified into balatong, dalit, lulay,
kumintang, tagulaylay, subli, barinbaw, tagayan, and others. Thus, the
ancient Filipinos from all regions had dances and songs for all occasions.
35
The Arts
The earliest Filipino works of art may be seen in their tools and weapons.
These tools and weapons were at first rough, but as time went on, the
Filipinos began to polish them. Later, beads, amulets, bracelets, and other
ornaments were used to improve their appearance. With the introduction of
bronze, certain instrument were manufactured like bronze gongs, bells, and
even drums. This indicates that the social arts such as dance and music
were already developed in ancient times. The early Filipinos also used metal
and glass. Simple weapons, such as daggers, bolos, knives and spears,
were made with artistic designs in their handles. Pottery with beautiful
designs was also made, while images made of wood, ivory and horn were
carved. Muslims art, in particular, deals with plant and geometrical designs,
while ifugao art deals with animal and human representations.
Religious Beliefs
The prehistoric Filipinos believed that the soul was immortal. They also
believed in life after death as evidenced by the manunggul jar, a container for
bones of the dead. They believed in one supreme being they called
bathalang may kapal or simply bathala. Aside from the supreme being, they
also worshipped minor deities whose function were closely related to the
daily life of the people. Thus, the god of agriculture was called Idiyanale; the
god of death, Sidapa; the god of fire, Agni; the god of raindow, Balangaw; the
god of war, Mandarangan; the goddess of harvest, Lalahon; the god of hell;
Siginarungan and other gods of goddesses.
The ancient Filipinos worshipped the sun and venerated the moon, the
animals and birds for they believed in the interconnectedness of the unseen
with the visible. Thus, the object of nature should be respected even every
harmful and dangerous animals, like crocodiles, were venerated. Old trees
36
too, were considered sacred and nobody was allowed to cut down such
trees. Reefs, rocks, and crags were also revered, and dishes and
kitchenwares were left on them as a sign of reverence.
The soul-spirits called anito were venerated. This is called the “cult of the
dead” the memory of dead relatives was kept alive by carving images made
of gold, stone, and ivory. The image was called larawan or likha among the
Tagalogs, diwata among the visayans, and bulol among the Ifugaos. The
people offered prayer and sacrifices to these images or symbols in order to
win their sympathy. Not all anitos were good; some were bad. But whether
an anito was good or bad, the people prayed to it and offered various
sacrifices to win its goodwill if it were good and to placate its anger, if it were
bad the offerings or rituals were laid down by a woman priest called baylana,
babaylan, or katalona, and occasionally by male priests.
Burial
The ancient Filipinos believed in the life hereafter and the relationship
between the living and the dead, which made them respect the memory of
the dead. When a relative died, he/she was placed in a coffin and burial
under his/her blouse. The living relatives placed his/her cloth, and other
valuables in the coffin. This was done because the ancient Filipinos believed
that in this way, the dead relative would be gladly received in the other world.
Upon the death of a person, the neighbors and relatives made fires under
his/her house. Armed sentinels guarded the coffin lest some sorcerers open
it and thus release the foul smell of the dead person. Professional mourners
were hired by the relatives of the dead person in order to show their deep
feeling of loss. Mourning for a woman was distinguished from that of a man
such that the former was called morotal laraw. When his death had been
announced, all quarrels, and even petty wars, were stopped. Spears were
37
carried with the tips pointing downwards; and the wearing of “loud” clothes
was also prohibited.
STUDY GUIDE
38
SUGGESTED ACTIVITIES
1. Form two teams and conduct a debate on the issue whether the trial by
ordeal is a fair process or not. One team should take the affirmative side
and the other, the negative side.
2. Together, with your classmate, prepare an exhibit on the life of the ancient
Filipinos. Divide yourselves into group and prepare a project following
these suggested topics:
a) A miniature ancient Filipino house
b) Handmade or ready-made dolls showing the ancient Filipino clothing
for male and female
c) A miniature barangay (houses, plants, trees, etc.,)
d) A miniature model of warrior fighting each other
e) Miniature boat or boats used by ancestors
3. Write a short letter (in Filipino or in your regional language) using the
ancient, Filipino syllabary or baybayin. You may write on any topic of your
choice. Read your letter in class.
4. Research on ancient harvest rites of early Filipinos. As a class or in
groups, prepare and perform a ritual for a rich rice harvest led by the
babaylan or baylana. Use costumes and props for the presentation.
39
CHAPTER 3
Though less studied due to scarce written sources, the topic on the
Philippines’ early contacts with its neighbors can now be better appreciated
with the recent discovery of material evidences as well as new documentary
sources.
Oral and cultural evidence show that early on, the Philippines already had
trade and cultural exchanges with its Asian and Southeast Asian neighbors.
The seemingly scattered island group of people actively engaged in trade
and commerce with their neighbors; an exposure that further enriched the
economic life and culture of the early Filipinos, long before the coming of the
West.
Ancient Filipinos, just like their Southeast neighbors, were expert seafarers
and boat builders. They made all sizes and types of boats- big or small,
single-hulled or outrigged. Because they had mastered the wind and sea
currents, they could travel far and wide to trade with nearby Southeast and
East Asian neighbors. Some scholars suggested they reached even as far as
Champa (present-day Vietnam) and India. Thus, long before the coming of
the Portuguese and Spaniards in the region, the Philippines had outside
trade contacts and along with these, varied cultural exchanges took place.
Scholars have yet to agree as to when and with whom these contacts began.
O.W. Wolters said such a trade may have been there as early as the 3rd
Century, based on the pearls and gold excavated in Funan. Sulu was rich in
40
pearls and gold was abundant in the country. Filipino historians and
archeologists believe the Filipino-Chinese trade contacts began around the
ninth century during the Tang dynasty (618-906 A.D.). They cite as evidence
Tang stonewares that were found in the Babuyan Islands, along the coasts
of Ilocos, Pangasinan, Mindoro (Puerto Galara), Batangas (Calatagan),
Manila (Santa Ana), Bohol, Cebu, Jolo and Cagayan de Oro. If the Chinese
did not bring these items directly to the Philippines, Chinese goods probably
found their way to the islands by the way of the Borneo through Arab traders
who had earlier direct trade contacts with the Chinese.
Between 900 and 1200 A.D., a group of people called Orang Dampuan from
Southern Annam (Vietnam Today), established trading posts in Sulu. A
flourishing trade developed between Champa (Annamese Kingdom) and the
people of Sulu who were called Buranun. This trade proved favorable to the
Orang Dampuans whose prosperity drew the ire of the Buranuns. In a fit of
jealousy, the Buranuns massacred some Orang Dampuans causing the
others to flee and return to Champa. It was not until the 13th century that they
would return to Sulu to trade peacefully once more.
The famous pearl trade of Sulu also attracted another group of people known
as the Banjar of nearby Borneo. Regular Trade relations ensued between
Sulu and Banjarmassin. The Buranuns who had not yet forgotten their tragic
experience with the Orang Dampuans, were also suspicious of the Banjars.
But the traders of Banarmassin, aware of the fate of the Orang Dampuans
were more diplomatic. Instead of antagonizing the Buranuns, they brought
their beautiful princess to Sulu and offered her as a bride to the Buranun
prince, who eventually married her. Sulu thus became a tribute-state of the
empire of Sri-Vijaya, along with the Banjarmassin and Brunei. Sulu
developed into an emporium to which trading ships of java, Sumatra,
41
Cambodia, Siam, and China would anchor to savor Sulu’s prosperous trade
and splendor.
Arab traders, who up to this point dominated this Southeast Asian trading,
were later bared from the central Chinese coast. They relocated to the Malay
Peninsula where they sought an alternative route starting from Malacca and
passing through Borneo and the Philippines to reach Taiwan. They continued
to carry Southeast Asian goods to the Western world using this southern
route. They also carried Philippine goods on board Arab ships to the Chinese
mainland through Canton. So keen was the competition that the Arab ships
carried non-Chinese goods amounting to 20-40% of the total cargo. This
lasted up to the Javanese or Madjapahit period (1377-1478).
The Chinese trade in the Philippines greatly improved during the Ming
dynasty (1368-1478). During this time Emperor Yung-lo sent a fleet of
vessels to the Philippines, under the command of Admiral Cheng Ho, to visit
Lingayen, Manila Bay, Mindoro, and Sulu in 1405-1406, 1408-1410 and
1417. The Chinese Emperor even tried to impose its suzerainty over Luzon,
however, put an end to this ambitious plan.
Using the compass on sea voyages, Chinese traders competed with the
Arabs from the eleventh to the twelfth century. Sung porcelain unearthed in
Sta. Ana, Manila and Around the Laguna de Bai, attested to the success of
this trade. By the thirteenth century, the Chinese had overtaken the Arabs in
the region. Description of the lucrative trade between China and the
Philippine archipelago can be found in Chao Jukua’s Chu fan-chi (1225)
where the Chinese mentioned the following places: Ma-I (Mindoro or Baé in
Laguna), Min-to-lang (Mindanao), Ma-li-lu (Manila), Su-lu (Sulu), and Pi-sho-
ye (Visayas). The Philippine trade goods included bulak (raw cotton), abaca,
42
cloth of various patterns, hardwoods, gums, resins, betel nuts, pear shell,
pink and blue coral trees, large conch shells, tortoise shells, sponges, rattan,
beeswax, musk, sandalwood, leather, mats, and pepper.
In exchange, China brought: iron bars, porcelain and pottery, silk chintz,
black damask, java cloths, red taffeta, blue cloth, bronze gongs, small bells,
mirror, scales, coins, jade, projectiles, gold, silver, censers, lead, colored
glass beads, iron needles, tin, lead sinkers for fishing nets, lacquered ware,
copper cauldrons, wine, ivory, and “tint” (a kind of Chinese silver money).
Although trade was conducted in general through the barter system, by the
eighth century, a type of currency began to be used in the form of barter
rings.
43
There are hundreds of Tagalog words which have their origin in Chinese.
Most of these words have economic meanings.
The Filipinos also learned from the Chinese the use of umbrellas, porcelain,
gongs, the manufacture of gunpowder, metallurgy, and mining methods.
Perhaps the Filipinos also borrowed the Chinese custom of having parents
arrange the marriage of their children. Wearing white clothing, instead of
black, for mourning of death of family and relatives, is also of Chinese origin,
especially among the Visayans.
Quite apart from the Chinese, the ancient Filipinos were also influenced by
the Indians of India. The ancient Indians may not have settled in huge
numbers in the Philippines, but their influence on Filipino culture may have
come through the ancestors of the present Indonesians. The Malays who
came to the Philippines were possibly Hinduized Malays, that is, Malays who
professed the Hindu religion of India. This Indian influence is clearly seen in
some of the words in the different languages of the Philippines, including
Tagalog, which were derived from Sanskrit, the ancient language of India.
Some of the Tagalog words of Sanskrit origin are the following:
44
Sanskrit words or their variations are also found in Visayan and
Maguindanaoan languages. Such words as agama (religion), pandita (priest
or scholar), tumbaga (copper), baginda (emperor), sutra (silk), are of Sanskrit
origin. Several deities in the myths of ancient Filipinos show traces of Indian
influences: Indra Batara, Lord of the Universe; Idiyanale, god of agriculture;
Agni, god of fire. A figurine of the Hindu goddess Padmapani was found in
Butuan and was dated to 300AD. This could attest to that ancient contact
between the Philippines and the Indian sub-continent.
The Philippine Catholic wedding ceremony has Indian influences. The use of
the cord and the veil during the Catholic marriage ceremony in the
Philippines is Indian in origin. It is not originally Western or Spanish Catholic,
because the non-Philippine Catholic marriage has no veil and cord
ceremonies.
After Mohammad’s death in 632 A.D., Islam spread outside of Arabia in two
stages. In the first stage, Islam was brought to the rest of the Middle East,
Northern Africa, Spain and Central Asia. In the second stage, Muslim
missionaries travelled with Arab merchants to India, China, and to Southeast
Asia where a number of them (traders and also missionaries) settled and
45
intermarried with members of the royalty. They also set up mosques and
madrasahs (schools).
Ten years later (1480), Rajah Baginda arrived from Sumatra. He further
deepened Islamic consciousness among the Muslims in Sulu by building
more madrasahs in the area. He later rose to a position of power tin Sulu.
But it was Abu Bakr (who married Rajah Baginda’s daughter, Paramisuli),
who succeeded in establishing a government similar to the sultanate of
Arabia.
TEACHINGS OF ISLAM
The basic tenets of Islam are found in the Qur’an (Koran), the holy book of
the Muslims. Written in Arabic, the Koran is considered the word of the
46
Supreme Creator, Allah, as directly communicated by the angel to the
prophet Mohammad. Among the teachings of the Koran are the following:
There is only one Supreme Being, Allah, the creator of the Universe
and all of humankind.
Allah is just and merciful God and it is Allah’s desire that all should
repent of their sins, purify themselves so they could enter Paradise
after death.
Life In this world is only temporary and one’s good deeds, as well as
the bad deeds, are listed by an angel for final judgement on the last day
on the last day of the entire humanity. Each one will be judged
according to what one has done in his lifetime.
The Korean forbids any human or animal representation in their art.
Only geometric patterns are allowed.
Eating pork, drinking wine, gambling and other vices are forbidden in
Orthodox Islam.
Islam forbids loans and usury.
Muslims are duty-bound to help the poor, the orphans and widows.
Telling lies, stealing, adultery and murder are all grave sins that
deserve serious punishment.
Every Muslim must have goodness expressed in faith in God and such
virtues as patience, faithfulness, honesty, industry, honor and courage.
A follower of Allah has to observe the following rituals or obligations: a
declaration of faith in the oneness of God (Shahada); prayer facing the
east (Mecca) five times a day (salah); fasting (sawm); giving the alms
(zakat), and a one-time pilgrimage to Mecca (hadji).
Fasting is observed during the Ramadan, which is held at the ninth month of
the Muslim calendar. No solid food are taken from early dawn until the sun
47
sets. They purify themselves by praying and practicing good deeds and self-
restraint.
The Sultanate
Unlike the barangays of the non-Muslim ancient Filipinos which were smaller
in size and very much decentralized, the Sultanate governed a much larger
territory through a centralized network of officials with the Sultan at the top.
STUDY GUIDE
1. What factors encouraged the ancient Filipinos to trade with China and
its Southeast Asian neighbors?
48
2. In the absence of written records, what evidences can you cite to show
that a lucrative trade connected the Philippines with China, India and
the rest of Southeast Asia long before the west came to colonize the
region?
3. Among the early trade contacts of the Philippines during the ancient
period, which country do you think had the most influence on the early
Filipinos? Explain your answer.
4. Which among the early contacts of the Filipinos had the least or
minimal influence? Explain your answer.
5. Compare and contrast the way the Orang Dampuans and the Banjars
conducted or carried out their trade relations with the early settlements
in the Philippines.
6. Describe the competition between the Arabs and the Chinese for
dominance in trade. Who eventually won and why do you think this is
so?
7. List as many words in our language which are of Chinese or Indian
origin. Present the list in a chart.
8. Identify the following in relation to the early trade contacts of the
Philippines in ancient times:
a. Buranun i. Buansa
b. Banjars j. Madrasah
c. Orang Dampuans k. Hadjj
d. Admiral Cheng Ho l. Ruma bichara
e. Chu fan-chi m. Imam
f. Piloncitos n. Paramisuli
g. Padmapani o. Ramadan
h. Laguna copperplate
49
SUGGESTED ACTIVITIES
50
CHAPTER 4
To the West, for quite a long time, the Philippines and the rest of the
world was Tierra Incognita (Unknown Lands). Coming into the region
for purposes of trade and other reasons (Christianization and civilizing
the “uncivilized”), these lands were new and exciting “discoveries” for
the Europeans. But this is certainly not true of the Filipinos, of the
“Indians” of America and the “Blacks” of Africa. These peoples,
unknown to the West, have long inhabited these lands and evolved
their own civilizations that are unique to their given environment and
history.
The West, led by Portugal and Spain, rival each other for the
possession of rich colonies in America, Asia and Africa. With her naval
supremacy, daring and imaginative explorers, and a Spanish Pope who
drew up treaties defining territorial rights to her, Spain won over his
rivals. Using both the “sword and the cross” Spanish conquistadores
and missionaries succeeded in establishing colonies in the Americas
without much resistance.
Until the fatal battle in Mactan, Cebu, an island in the Philippines, when
Spain’s famed explorer, Ferdinand Magellan, was killed by the local
chieftain Lapulapu. It took almost fifty years before another attempt to
colonize the islands succeeded under Miguel Lopez de Legazpi. After
meeting stiff resistance in Cebu Legaspi later established the first
European settlement in the archipelago. Then he moved to the island of
51
Luzon where he founded a permanent Spanish colony in the kingdom
of Maynila.
How and why the Spaniards and the Portuguese came to the “Orient”
(the European’s term for Asia or the East) is a long story. In the
sixteenth century, Europe was experiencing some changes because of
the growth of industry and commerce, the advances in science, the
improvement in the science of navigation, and the invention of
machines and marine instruments.
Added to this was the desire of the Europeans to know more about the
countries of the “Orient” because of the stories told by the Christian
crusaders of Europe, who went to the Holy Land to reclaim it from the
Muslims. The stories led many Europeans to admire the wonders of the
East. Also, some Europeans were already trading with Asian countries.
Oriental spices, silk, fruits, attar of roses, Persian rugs, perfumes and
precious stones were easily sold in Europeans markets at big profits.
This stimulated more trade with the countries of Asia.
52
The Trade Routes
At the time the Europeans were developing their trade with Asia, there
existed three trade routes connecting Europe to Asia. The first was the
Northern Route which passed through Central Asia by land, then to
the cities of Samarkand and Bokhara, then around the Caspian Sea
and the Black Sea, and finally to Constantinople in the Mediterranean.
The second was the Central Route which started from Malacca in the
Malay Peninsula, then to the Indian Ocean and the Indian ports, then to
the Persian Gulf to Baghdad and Constantinople, and finally to Cairo in
the Mediterranean. The third was the Southern Route which also
started from Malacca, then to the Indian Ocean and to the ports of
India, then to the Red Sea, and finally to Cairo in the Mediterranean.
This expedition “discovered” the islands of Madeira and the Azores and
soon they were developed into Portuguese colonies. Later, Prince
Henry himself led expeditions to Western Africa, using the instruments
for navigation he developed, like the astrolabe, the windrose
compass, and the caravel, which was a kind of ship.
The fact that Portugal was the first country to sail to the East and
establish colonies earned her the prestige as the first sea power to
chart an alternate passage to India. On the other hand, Spain, which
sent explorers to Americas, began to lay claim to these areas. Thus, a
sea sea rivalry resulted from the “discoveries” made by Spain and
Portugal.
To avoid possible war between the two great nations, Pope Alexander
VI, a Spaniard, whose family name Borja was Italianized into Borgia,
issued a bull in 1493 dividing the world into two. All lands south and
west of the Azores and Cape Verde Islands were to belong to Spain.
Portugal, on the other hand, was to take possession of the continent of
Africa. In order to make this provision clear, the Pope issued another
bull on the same day (May 3) by which an imaginary line was drawn
from north to south at 100 degrees west of the Azores.
Magellan, with the help of visual aids like maps and illustrations,
explained to the young King that he could reach the Moluccas, then
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known as the Spice Islands, by sailing west. Moreover, he told the King
that the Moluccas belonged to the Spanish side of the demarcation line,
drawn according to the Treaty of Tordesillas. So impressed was the
youthful King that he agreed to send an expedition to the Spice Islands
under the command of Magellan.
After two months of difficult voyage, hardship and hunger, the Magellan
expedition reach what is now Pernambuco in Brazil. From here,
Magellan continued his voyage to Rio de Janeiro and reached the Rio
de la Plata in February 1520. In March, he reached Port St. Julian at
the southern tip of South America, where mutiny of his captains took
place. Magellan suppressed the mutiny and punished the rebels
severely.
Magellan’s voyage across the Atlantic and the Pacific was the greatest
single voyage ever known to man in early modern times. The hardship,
especially the hunger and the cold weather that the crew of the
Magellan expedition experienced, remains unsurpassed to this day.
The route that Magellan took in reaching the Philippines was a new
“discovery” then, which put an end to the Venetian monopoly of the
Southern Route. From this time on, Spain became supreme in the
building of colonial empire that only Great Britain in later modern times
was able to equal. More importantly, insofar as geography was
concerned, Magellan’s voyage proved conclusively that the earth was
round.
The return of the Victoria to Spain won the admiration of the King and
the Spanish people. Encouraged by the result of the Magellan
expedition, King Charles sent other expeditions which, however, failed.
These were the Loaysa expedition of 1525-1526, commanded by
Father Juan Garcia Jofre de Loaysa; the Cabot expedition of 1526-
1530 commanded by Sebastian Cabot; and the Sayavedra expedition
of 1527-1528, commanded by Alvaro de Sayavedra, which reached
Mindanao but did not succeeded in settling in any of the islands.
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For many years after the conclusion of the Treaty of Zaragoza, Spain
respected its provisions. However, from 1538-1541, King Charles of
Spain agreed with his viceroys in Mexico and Guatemala that
expeditions should be sent to the East, particularly to the Spice or
Moluccas Islands. The Viceroy of Mexico chose his brother-in-law, Ruy
Lopez de Villalobos, to command the expedition. With six ships,
Villalobos left Mexico on November 1, 1542, crossed the vast Pacific,
and reached Mindanao in February 1543.
One of the ships go lost on its way but was found later and ordered to
head back to Mexico after reaching Mindanao. The expedition reached
Cebu in February 1565. Later, Legazpi sailed to Cibabao (Leyte) then
to Samar. Here, he concluded a blood compact with some of the
chieftains, one of whom was Bankaw, Datu of Limasawa. Early in
March, he sailed to Camuigin Island, then to Butuan in Mindanao, and
then to Bohol where he enetered into a blood compact with Datu Si
Katuna and Si Gala. The scarcity of food in Bohol led Legazpi to order
his men to sail for Cebu.
Having settled in Cebu, Legazpi ordered the return of the ship San
Pedro to Mexico. It was to be piloted by Father Urdaneta and
accompanied by Legazpi’s grandson, Felipe de Salcedo. Sailing from
the port of Cebu on June 1, 1565, Father Urdaneta steered the Ship
northeastward from the Philippines in wide arc through the Pacific and
ended in Santa Catalina, in California. After overcoming many
difficulties, the ship sailed down the California coast to Mexico, arriving
at the port of Navidad on October 1. From Navidad, the ship sailed to
Acapulco. With this return voyage, Father Urdaneta discovered a new
route, which the Manila galleons would follow in later years.
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FIRST SETTLMENT IN CEBU
Legazpi and his men entered Cebu harbor on April 27. The Cebuanos
were hostile to him probably because in the past, some white men who
look like Spaniards maltreated them. Legazpi explained to the
Cebuanos that the white men who maltreated them were not Spanish
but Portuguese. He also told them that he wanted the Filipinos and the
Spaniards to be friends. The Cebuano chieftain, Tupas, did not believe
him and the Cebuanos and the Spaniards found themselves in
skirmishes. Tupas fled to the mountains after setting all the houses on
fire in what is now Cebu City. The day after the skirmish, a Spaniard
found the image of the Infant Jesus which Magellan gave to Juana,
Rajah Humabon’s wife, forty-four years earlier. The image was not
burnt.
Legazpi was beset with many problems in Cebu. One was the bad
feeling of some of his own men who refused to work. Some of them
robbed the graves of the Filipinos. Legazpi acted justly and punished all
to those who refused to cooperate with him. There was also a
conspiracy among the Spanish soldiers to seize the ship San Pablo.
The captain of the boat informed the Master of Camp, Mateo del Saz,
about it and the conspirators were arrested. The leader of the
conspiracy was beheaded, and the rest was pardoned.
Legazpi also faced the hostility of the Portuguese. The latter realized
that the Philippines lay on the Portuguese side of the demarcation line.
The Portuguese captain, Gonzalo de Pereira, harassed Legazpi by
blockading Cebu in order to starve the Spaniards. With the help of
Cebuanos, Legazpi succeeded in forcing Pereira to leave the
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Philippines. Faced with these problems, Legazpi decided to move to
Panay. Upon learning that there was a plenty of food there, he and
some of his men sailed for Panay in 1569. On the banks of the Panay
River, Legazpi founded the second Spanish settlement in the
Philippines. He won over the people of Panay by convincing them of his
peaceful intentions. The Spanish missionaries, the Augustinian friars,
converted some natives to Christianity. The friendliness of the Filipinos
was shown when they brought food to Legazpi. Consequently, the
Spaniards were saved from starvation.
With Panay as his home base, Legazpi decided to spread Spanish rule
to other islands of the archipelago. He sent small expeditions to the
other islands of the Visayas. Masbate, Burias, and Ticao were claimed
in the name of the King of Spain. Then the same expedition, headed by
Captain Enriquez de Guzman sailed for southern Luzon reached Albay.
At almost the same time, Juan de Salcedo, Legazpi’s younger
grandson, led a small expedition to the north. With a few Spanish
soldiers and about 500 Visayans, Salcedo sailed to Talim Island and
claimed it for Spain.
Legazpi was happy to hear from Goiti. He informed his men that the
King of Spain appointed him as governor and captain-general of the
islands, which was equivalent to governor-general. He was, therefore,
the first governor-general of the Philippines. Legazpi also informed
them that the King ordered them to colonize the rest of the archipelago.
At this time, however, food became scarce in Panay. Father Diego de
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Herrera, an Augustinian friar, suggested that they settle in Luzon
instead. So Legazpi decided to leave for Luzon on April 20, with Manila
as the object of his expedition. In Manila, Rajah Sulayman, realizing the
firepower of the enemy, ordered his people to burn their houses and to
retreat in the interior. At the same time, he gathered a force of fierce
warriors from the barangays of Pampanga and Bulacan, and fought the
enemy in the Battle of Bangkusay in Tondo. He and the warriors were
defeated. What happened to Sulayman was not clear. Some say he
died in the battle. Others say that he escaped to the interior. At any
rate, the Filipinos were defeated and Legazpi took over Manila in1571.
Legazpi began laying the foundation of a new city.
STUDY GUIDE
SUGGESTED ACTIVITIES
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CHAPTER 5
Unlike the country’s early contact with its Asian neighbors, which was
limited to trade and commerce, the encounter with the West,
particularly with Spain, led to direct rule or colonization. What did it
mean to be a colony, specifically, a crown ‘’colony’’ in those times?
Spain governed the Philippines through the Union of Church and State,
introducing in the process new beliefs, institutions, and practices in the
political, economic, and religious aspects of people’s lives. The results,
though effective and positive for Spain, caused hardships for the
majority of the inhabitants, except for the few members of the maharlika
class. The Maharlika, who later emerged as the new class called
principalia, benefitted under the regime and was integrated into the new
colonial order for good or ill as shown in the succeeding events.
POLITICAL CHANGES
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Some Spanish laws were likewise adopted, like La Novisima
Recopilacion, Leyes de Toro, and the Siete Partidas. These laws, as
well as the Laws of the Indies, were humane, however most of them
were not even enforced In the Philippines. The Spanish colonizers
organized a highly centralized form of government. By this, it meant
that the central or national government was so powerful that almost
everything had to be done with its knowledge and consent. The central
government was headed by the governor and captain general or
governor–general, who was appointed by the King of Spain. As
governor-general, he was the Kings official representative in the colony.
He possessed vast executive, legislative, and judicial powers. There
were, however, only two branches of government: ht executive and the
judicial. There was no legislature or congress because the laws for the
Philippines were made by the Spaniards in Spain and, to a certain
extent, by the governor–general himself. He issued orders with the
force of law, which were called superior decrees. On the other hand,
decrees or orders coming from the King of Spain were called Royal
decrees or orders.
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beneficial to the administration of the country. The usual formula n
exercising the right of cumplase was ‘’I obey but do not comply’’.
The Audiencia
This being the case, the Audiencia was a financial burden to the King of
the Spain. Because of this opposition, the Audiencia was abolished in
1589. In its place, a council composed of 400 members headed by the
governor general was created. This council, however, was
unsatisfactory to many because of its many members. So the King
ordered the re-establishment of the Audiencia in 1595. However, it
actually carried out its function in 1598 when it was inaugurated.
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LOCAL GOVERNMENT
It was later abolished in 1844 because the alcalde mayor abused his
power to the extent of scandalizing the Spaniards. Another anomalous
practice was the provincial governor role as judge of the province.
Since many abuses were committed by the governors-judge, in 1886,
the King ordered that the provincial governor should remain as judge
only. Another man was appointed as provincial governor whose main
duty was to administer the province.
During the first century of Spanish rule, there were only two cities;
Cebu and Manila. As conquest and settlement continued, the Spanish
officials created one city after another. By the seventeenth century, the
Philippines had six cities: Cebu, Manila, Vigan Nueva Segovia (now
Lal-lo, Cagayan), Arevalo (now a part of Iloilo City), and Nueva
Caceres (now Naga).
The city, then and now, was the center of social, commercial, religious,
and cultural life. Its government was different from that of the town. It
was called ayuntamiento, equivalent to today’s city hall, and consisted
of two alcaldes, twelve regidores (now called councilors), a chief of
police, a city secretary, and few other lesser officials.
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Propagating the Catholic Faith
79
In some cases, a high Church official was also eligible to become
governor-general during the latter’s absence or illness. Example of
church officials who became acting governors-general were
Archbishop Francisco de la Cuesta (1719-1721); Bishop Juan
Arrechederra (1745-1750); Bishop Miguel Lino de Ezpeleta (1759-
1761); and Archbishop Manuel Rojo (1761-1762).
Serving under him were the bishop who administered the parishes
under their jurisdiction. The church, like the civil government, had a
court of their justice called Eccesiastical Court or Archbishop’s Court
and was composed of the archbishop, the vicar-general, a notary, and
other officials. Cases dealing with the laws of the Church and those
involving priest were tried y this court.
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The Inquisition
Most religious works used by the missionaries during the early years of
Spanish rule were handwritten. There was no printing press during
those early years. Because it took much time to copy religious books,
the Dominicans introduced in the Philippines the art of printing.
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Printing by woodblock was cumbersome, so the Dominicans improved
printing by introducing the use of movable types. In this kind of printing,
a letter is joined to a small piece of wood or iron or any similar material.
Father Francisco de San Jose, popularly called Blancas de San Jose,
introduced the movable type of printing (also called typography) in
1602, he became an expert in this kind of printing and wrote a grammar
book in Tagalog and printed it in the Dominican press. In 1606, the
Franciscans put up a printing press in Lengua Tagala by
Father Domingo de los Santos was printed in 1703 in Tayabas.
ECONOMIC CHANGES
The Encomienda
In order to reward the Spaniards who helped in the conquest and the
establishment of settlements in the Philippines, the King of Spain, as
early as 1558, ordered that lands be distributed to his loyal subjects. In
accordance with this order, Legazpi gave lands to those who had
helped in the conquest of the Philippines. The encomienda, in
principle, was not actually a piece o land, but a favor from the King,
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under which the Spaniard receiving the favor was given the right to
collect tributes or taxes from the inhabitants of an area assigned to him.
The man who received this favor was called encomiendero. The
encomienda was, therefore, a public office.
In theory, Spain’s colonial system was the best of all colonial systems
followed by other European countries like England, France, and
Holland. The Laws of the Indies, for example, described how to prevent
the exploration of natives in their employment. While Filipinos were
required to render services to the State and the Church, the same Laws
of the Indies provided that the natives, who were ordered to work either
for the State or the Church, should be paid their wages. The Spaniards
officials in the Philippines ordered the Filipinos to work in the
construction of churches, roads, bridges, ships, and in the industries of
hauling cutting timber. However, some conditions were set for forced
labor, called polo y servicios, which included the following:
1. That the Filipinos to be drafted for work must be paid for their
work;
2. That the Filipinos laborer should not be made to work in distant
places where they could not return to their families;
3. That the drafting of laborer should not coincide with the
planting and harvest seasons;
4. That men who are physically incapable should not be
overworked;
5. That forced labor should be resorted to only in cases of
absolute necessity; and
6. That the number of laborers drafted should be diminished as
soon as laborers from other countries had volunteered to work.
The Tribute
Those who paid tribute were persons above sixteen years and those
who below sixty. In 1589, the tribute was raised, of which a small
portion went to the Church. This was called sanctorum. Because of the
opposition to the tribute and to the abuses connected with its collection,
the King abolished in 1884 and the cedula personal was introduced.
This is the present equivalent of the residence certificate class A.
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Taxes
Aside from the tribute, the Filipinos also paid other taxes. They included
the diezmos prediales, the donativo de Zamboanga, and the vinta. The
diezmos prediales was a tax consisted of one-tenth of the produce of
the land. The donativo de Zamboanga, which was introduced in 1635,
was a tax specifically used for conquest of Jolo. The vinta, on the other
hand, was a tax paid by the people of some provinces along the coast
of western Luzon to for the defense of the coasts from Muslim pirates,
who raided the Visayas and Luzon for ‘’slaves’’ that they needed in
their overseas trading.
Even before the arrival of the Spaniards, the Philippines had already
been trading with her neighbors. Jolo and Manila were trading centers
of the archipelago. After the Spanish conquest the settlement of a large
part of the Philippines, Manila became a leading commercial center in
the region. The early Spanish colonial officials encouraged trade
between Manila and other countries of the East because it was so
lucrative that it could make them wealthy within a short period of time.
Not all could engage in the galleon trade because it was a government
monopoly. Only privileged persons, such as high-ranking officials of the
State, the Church, and the crew of the galleons, were allowed to
engage in trade. The galleon trade was so restrictive that the prosperity
of the Spaniards in Manila depended solely on the success of the
voyage to and from Mexico. In some cases, the galleons were captured
by English Buccaneers. Others, however, sank in the southern coast of
Luzon near Samar. In the nineteenth century when commercial liberty
was adopted as a European policy, the monopolistic galleon trade
declined. In 1811, the last galleon from Manila sailed from Acapulco,
Mexico and the government’s monopoly of the galleon trade came to
an end. Other ports in the Americas, like in Peru and Ecuador, were
open to the Philippine trade and thus, the Manila-Acapulco trade further
declined.
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increased production; and advanced agricultural methods were also
introduced.
The following were the provisions of the decree: (1) the cultivation of
the tobacco was probihited exept for the provinces selected to grow it;
(2) contrabands sale of tobacco was forbidden; (3) the government had
the exclusive right to purchase all tobacco products, to inspect and
classify the tobacco plant, and to prepare and manufacture cigar and
cigarettes; and (4) the government had the right to prohibit the
exportation and importation of tobacco by any agency not connected
with the government. In other words, the government had the monopoly
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of the planting, inspection, sale and purchase of tobacco, and its
manufacture into cigar and cigarette.
The payment for the tobacco found its way into their pockets. What was
worse was that the tobacco farmers themselves could not smoke the
tobacco they produced. They could not afford to buy cigar
manufactured by the government because of its steep price. Thus,
because of the anomalies connected with the tobacco monopoly,
opposition to it grew. Consequently, the King, in 1881 ordered its
abolition, but it was actually abolished in 1882 in the Philippines.
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The government also had other monopolies, such as those on wine and
liquor, gun powder, playing cards, and buyo or anise while it was true
that these monopolies gave the government a big income, at the same
time, they were a burden to the Filipinos. Many farmers from the Ilocos
and the Cagayan Valley left their homes in disgust and went to Manila.
As a result, the population of the tobacco provinces decreased which
lead to the neglect of agriculture and, consequently, to the low income
of those provinces.
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Because of this privilege, commercial relations between the Philippines
and Europe were promoted and, consequently, led to increased
revenues. The encouragement of the cultivation of indigo, sugar cane,
pepper, and other spices by the Company, led to increased agricultural
production. Moreover, foreign capital was encouraged to enter Manila
thus improving the trade and commercial relations between other
countries and Philippines.
The first one hundred and fifty years of the Spanish rule was
characterized by a slow economic development. Population decreased
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and uprisings and revolts became problems to the colonial government.
Several factors accounted for the slow development of the Philippine
economy. First, most Spanish officials were lazy, incompetent, and
inefficient. Instead of developing the natural resources of the colony,
the Spanish officials and minor employees were interested in enriching
themselves in office.
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a populous province without any counselor but his rude
understanding, or any guide but his passions.
STUDY GUIDE
95
7. Name and define some of the taxes imposed on the Filipinos by
the Spanish government. Discuss with your classmates wether
these were necessary or not.
8. What was the effect of the galleon trade on the Philippines? Why
did it decline despite its prosperous start?
9. How did the Economic Society help to improve the economy of
the Philippines?
10. Why were monopolies established during the Spanish period?
What were the bad effects of the established monopolies? What
were their advantages?
SUGGESTED ACTIVITIES
96
3. Make an outline map showing the route of the galleon trade
Superimpose the pre-colonial trade routes in the region before the
Spaniards came into the picture. Make comparisons.
4. Hold a class exhibit on the barangay system of governance and the
pueblo or municipal government under Spanish colonial system.
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CHAPTER 6
Ruins of old Spanish forts, a moro watchtower along the coast, statues
of Spanish conquistadores and missionaries, and occasionally, images
of Filipino heroes like Lapulapu, Rajah Sulayman, Sultan Kudarat, mark
many Philippine towns. Though seemingly cold and mute, these
markers have great stories to tell and lessons to teach.
Why? First, the revolts lacked coordination. Second, the Filipinos had
no leader of great ability. Third, the Filipino rebels had insufficient arms
with which to fight on equal terms the Spaniards and their Filipino
soldiers. Fourth, there was no feeling of unity and nationalism among
the Filipinos. Fifth, many Filipinos were more loyal to the Spaniards,
especially to the friars, than to their countrymen. The Spanish colonial
officials and friar-curates worked hand in hand and adopted the policy
of "divide and rule".
This policy was so successful that the Spaniards could boast that with
only a few Spanish soldiers, they were able to hold the Philippines for
the King of Spain; that in all the revolts, The Spaniards used Filipinos
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against Filipinos. The Spaniards alone never succeeded in quelling the
numerous revolts and uprisings. It was the Filipino soldiers who did the
job for them.
Spanish claim over the Philippines was challenged by a keen rival from
the very start. The Portuguese knowing that the islands belonged to
them under the Treaty of Zaragoza, refused to acknowledge that
Legazpi's presence in Cebu was legal. In 1566 and again in 1568,
Portuguese ships under the command of General Gonzalo Pereira
anchored in Cebu without Legazpi's permission and on both occasions
asked Legazpi to leave.
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Soon after the Thirty Years' War in Europe, in which Spain was deeply
involved, Spain finally recognized Holland's Independence with the
conclusion of the Treaty of Westphalia in 1648. Spain, however, closed
the port of Lisbon to the Dutch to discourage them from trading with the
Portuguese. The need for trading posts forced the Dutch to send their
ships to the East. In the process, Holland colonized Malaya and what is
now Indonesia.
The second Dutch attack occurred in 1610 when they tried to land on
Cuyo Island. The Filipinos were, however, hostile the Dutch and fought
them off. Another expedition was sent later, and upon reaching Manila
Bay, the Dutch fleet blockaded Manila. The Spaniards, aided the
Filipinos, fought them and the second battle of Mariveles took place. In
this battle, the Dutch were badly beaten.
In spite of this, the Dutch were relentless. In 1616, another Dutch fleet
appeared near Manila Bay and began to plunder vessels carrying
foodstuff from the provinces to Manila. The Audiencia, which was then
discharging the duties of the governor-general, sent a fleet against the
Dutch and in a Battle of Playa Honda in 1617, the Dutch were again
defeated.
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There were more Dutch attacks in the succeeding years, but they were
always defeated by the Spaniards with the help of the Filipinos. The
last attack which occurred in 1647, tried to capture Cavite and Bataan,
but this time they were finally driven off. The Dutch never again made
any serious attempt to contest Spanish sovereignty in the Philippines.
The early uprisings against the Spaniards were from Luzon. These
were attempts to regain lost freedom and authority over their kingdom
and territory. Manila was probably the earliest Spanish stronghold to
stage an uprising. Lakan Dula was friendly to Legazpi and his men and
cooperated with them in many ways. For instance, he and his men
helped Legazpi rebuild Manila.
The old rajah resented this treatment. In 1574, during the attack on
Manila by the Chinese adventurer Limahong, Lakan Dula led a revolt
against the Spaniards. Having put to death some Spanish soldiers, he
retreated to what is now Navotas, Rizal Province, and gathered his
warriors.
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Legazpi's grandson, Juan de Salcedo, and Father Geronimo Marin
persuaded Lakan Dula to lay down his arms. In return, they promised to
exempt him and his descendants from the payment of tribute and
forced labor. Lakan Dula believed them and ordered his men to return
to their homes in peace. The governor pardoned him and gave him gifts
of silk and gold.
The plot spread throughout Central Luzon and as far as Cuyo Island
and Borneo. The society's plan was to have a Christian-Japanese ally
bring Japanese weapons and soldiers to the Philippines and with these
weapons drive away the Spaniards. After which Agustin de Legazpi
would be proclaimed King of the Philippines. The plan seemed good,
but it was aborted due to spies who reported it to Spanish authorities.
Immediately, the leaders were arrested and executed, while those
implicated were banished to Mexico.
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The Revolt of Magalat
Ladia's "Conspiracy"
103
The Revolt of Maniago
But aside from this purpose, the revolt was also caused by the abuses
of the Spanish officials who refused to pay for the food they had taken
from the Filipinos. The angry Kapampangans set fire to their houses
and swore they would continue to fight until they regained their
freedom. Attempts of the friar-curates of the province to persuade the
rebels to lay down their arms failed. Instead, the Kapampangans tried
to stop commerce between Manila and the Central Luzon towns by
setting up stakes along the rivers. At the same time, they issued an
appeal to the people of Pangasinan and the Ilocos provinces to join
them in their battle for freedom. The governor-general deployed
Filipinos troops under the Spanish officers to the affected areas to
prevent the further spread of the revolt.
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Consequently, Maniago sent an emissary to the governor-general in
order to make peace and make the following demands: (1) for the
governor-general to pardon all those who participated in the revolt; (2)
the Kapampangans to receive the sum of P200,000 as payment for the
rice which the Spaniards seized from their barangays, of this amount,
P14,000 was actually paid as down payment, and the remainder of the
total amount to be paid in installment; and (3) for the Kapampangans to
continue to cut timber, as required by the law on forced labor, but they
would be given sufficient time to perform their duties at home. The
governor-general accepted these demands and Maniago, satisfied, laid
down his arms. The revolt was a success in the sense that Maniago
was able to air his people's grievances and get what they wanted.
It soon became apparent that these struggles for freedom were due to
Spanish oppressive imposition, for instance, one of the causes of the
disillusionment of the people of Pangasinan was maltreatment of the
people by Spanish officials of the province with regard to the polo y
servicio (forced labor). The Spaniards needed labor to cut down trees
for timber.
Revolt of Bancao
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The natives stopped going to church, which led the friar-curate to seek
help from the governor of Cebu to help restore Spanish influence on
the Warays in Visayas. This uprising spread from Carigara to other
parts of Leyte and endangered the friar-curate and the Catholic faith in
the province. The provincial governor of Cebu sent troops consisting of
hundreds of Filipino soldiers under Spanish officers and defeated
Bancao, who died fighting. As in other instances, the Filipinos, not the
Spaniards, defeated their fellow-Filipinos.
Rich in gold, forest products and trees for logs or lumber the interior
and mountainous areas of the country were hard to penetrate yet much
coveted by the Spaniards. In the Cordillera region, for instance, people
lived in separate and distant tribal communities led by a mingel, a
warrior-leader and expert in headhunting. Trade and commerce with
the lowlanders existed but on a limited basis among the locals.
Attempts by the Spaniards to send expeditions to the region between
1591 and 1608 failed due to the fierce resistance by the taong bundok,
which literally meant, ‘people of the mountains.”
Their ancient beliefs and way of life that were less exposed to the
outside world, made them more resistant to colonization whether
Spanish or any of the later incursions by the Americans and Japanese.
The process did not only prove expensive and frustrating for the
Spaniards, but also dangerous as confrontations were practically
reduced to pangangayao or headhunting expeditions for the lumads,
another term for those who remained non-Christians and non-Muslim
long after the colonization. This situation would also be true of the
Lumads in the Visayas, as well as in Mindanao.
Certainly the longest and the bloodiest attempt by the Spaniards was
the colonization and Christianization of the Muslim in the southern
islands of Mindanao. In fact, the process did not only take the longest,
but also the most frustrating for the Spaniards. The Muslims in the
country remained unconquered and unconverted until the end of
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Spanish rule. The first encounter between the Spaniards and the Moros
(the term used by the Spaniards for the Muslims, who also ruled their
country for more than 400 years), took place in Cebu between Martin
De Goiti and the group of the Bornean traders in 1569. Manila, even in
1571 to 1572 could hardly be called a Muslim kingdom. The connection
between Islamized Brunei and Manila was more by ties in marriage and
economic or commercial transaction, rather than religious. Thus, no
sultanate ever evolved in Manila (Luzon) or in the Visayas. However,
Islam penetrated the south early and spread throughout Mindanao.
Two sultanates were eventually set up, one in Sulu and another in the
Maguindanao-Cotabato area. It was logical, therefore, that ties between
Brunei and the sultanates would continue despite the Spanish conquest
of Manila. In fact, the new government in Manila had to send troops to
Borneo three times (in 1576, 1578 and 1588) to put an end to their
trading activities and military aid to manila.
During this time, the Muslims carried out raids in the Visayas and
Luzon for labor force (slaves or bihag) that they needed in the
procurement of products and in trading between Sulu and Maguidanao
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on one hand, and Borneo, the Moluccas, Malaya, and Indonesia on the
other. After Sultan Kudarat’s death in 1671, these raiding activities
slacked. The two sultanates, are lacking an expert leader like Kudarat,
again engaged each other in battles over the issue of trade and
supremacy in the area.
How were the Muslims able to do this? Historians offer the following
reasons: (1) the Spanish force lacked the number and the military
capacity to break through the Moro Kuta (defense forts); (2) Mindanao
is far from Manila, the center of power and governance; (3) the
Spaniard were more preoccupied in several fronts with wars or
resistances by the Portuguese, the Dutch, and the various provinces of
Luzon and the Visayas; and (4) Islam provided the Spaniards an
Identifiable enemy called “Moros;” thus forcing all followers of Islam to
resist as one, despite ethnic differences among them. Of these four
factors, the last one is considered the most plausible explanation to
their successful resistance to Spanish colonization and Christianization.
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Their common identity as Muslims, sworn-enemies of the Spaniards,
helped to unite them.
There were several reasons why these uprisings failed. First, the
Spaniards possessed superior weapons and were able to employ
native volunteers or mercenary soldiers. Second, the people remained
divided and lacked unity, although a centralized form of government
and a geographic identity had been established in the country. This
was due to the zeal and clever use by the Spaniards, particularly the
friars, of the “divide and rule” tactic, which kept the strong, if not intact,
regionalistic tendencies of the people.
It was the factor, the lack of a concept of a nation that was most
significant and the hardest one to come by. The people were not only
separated into many ethnolinguistic groups, but also geographically into
more than 7,000 islands. Evolving the idea of belonging to one
homeland, having one soul, and one destiny as a nation, would take
longer and require more elements than what were present at this time.
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THE CHINESE PRESENCE
Among the early foreign contacts of the ancient Filipinos, the Chinese
appeared to be the most constant and steady visitors, most of them
coming in from Canton.They readily interacted with the Filipinos,
adapted to the local ways, and eventually married native women. There
had been economic and cultural contacts with the Chinese for centuries
before the Spaniards came. The Chinese came to Manila annually,
bringing with them fruits, ceramics, bowls and plates, silk and other
items to exchange with Philippine gold and silver.
Again, the combined forces of the Spaniards and their Filipino soldiers
stopped these rebellions in 1639, 1662, and in 1762 at the cost of some
23,000 Chinese lives and great loss to their properties and businesses.
Several decrees were passed for their expulsion in 1744, 1758, and
1759, but these too failed because by this time, the Chinese had
controlled the source of livelihood and even the daily needs of both
Spaniards and Filipinos. Their presence had become a necessity for
everyone’s comfort and convenience. Thus, from 150 Chinese living
around Manila upon the arrival of Legazpi in 1571, the Chinese
reached 100,000 during the Revolution of 1896.
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STUDY GUIDE
SUGGESTED ACTIVITIES
115
2. Discuss in groups one of the following topics, ideas, and analysis.
116
CHAPTER 7
Efforts to quell the early uprisings and revolts by force and imposition of
the principle of "divide-and-rule" (i.e., by exploiting the fragmented
geographic features of the country, its multicultural characteristics, and
regionalistic tendencies), were certainly not enough to keep the people
peaceful and loyal to spain.culture and the many changes in this area
played a crucial role in maintaining Spanish rule in the Philippines and
in keeping the inhabitants subjugated for centuries.
SPANISH INFLUENCE
The coming of the Spaniards brought the Filipinos into contact with
western culture. In particular, the spanish way of life was introduced:
their clothing, cooking, eating habits, forms of amusement, Spanish
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words, and Christianity - all these resulted in the mixing of Spanish and
Filipino cultural elements. It was inevitable that such mixture should
result in each group of people borrowing some aspect of culture from
the other so that the thing borrowed merged with what was indigenous.
The combination of the two, so to speak, which was neither native nor
Spanish, in the course of time, became the dominant culture. This
happened to the Filipinos. They borrowed so many of the things that
the Spaniards introduced in the Philippines. In time, the things that
were borrowed were no longer Spanish but something having the
characteristics of both cultures. This new culture, which was Spanish
and Filipino in origin, has now become recognizably Filipino yet colonial
in impact and function.
Thus, a boy was named after a saint, such as: Santo Tomas, San
Gregorio, or San Andres, and so forth. Many Filipinos did not change
their names. They used such names as Magiting, Magtanggol, Bayani,
Dimagiba, Dimalanta, Gatbonton, Gatmaitan, and others. Because
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many Filipinos had no surnames, confusion arose. Two or more men
with the same brought confusion to Spanish authorities. To put an end
to this confusion, Governor-General Narciso Claveria issued a
decree in 1849 allowing the Filipinos to change their names. A very
long list Spanish name was prepared so that Filipinos could choose the
names they wanted to use. Thus, Spanish names such as Juan, Pedro,
Sixto, Teofilo, and surnames such as Cruz, Reyes, Santos, Rivera,
Santiago, San Jose, and many more, were adopted by most Christian
Filipinos. A few Filipinos, however, continued to use their Filipino
names although they adopted Christian names such as Francisco,
Jose, Jovito, and others. Today, one finds such names as Francisco
Dimagiba, Juan Gatbonton, Jose Gatmaitan, Pedro Lacanilao, Calixto
Lakandula, and similar names, which are a combination of Spanish
Christian names and Filipino surnames.
INTERMARRIAGE
The Spaniards as a rule did not intermarry with Filipinos. There were, of
course, exceptions and these exceptions led to limited intermarriages
between Spanish men and Filipino women. There were very few
recorded marriages between a Filipino male and a Spanish female. The
child of the marriage of a Filipino and a Spaniard was called Spanish
mestizo (mestizo espanol).
Toward the end of the Spanish period, the qualifying word, "mestizo,"
was also used to refer to children of a male Chinese and a native
woman, as in mestiza de Sangley. Today, a child of Spanish and
Filipino parents is simply called "mestizo” referred to Spanish mestizo
or mestiza. The intermarriages between Spaniards and Filipinos
119
resulted in an interesting addition to the racial stock. The same thing
happened to the blending of Spanish with Chinese mestiza. Those who
belonged to the pure indigenous stock were called "indios" or "Indians."
SOCIAL LIFE
The social life in any Christian community during the Spanish times
revolved around the church because the friar-curate was the all-
powerful person in the whole community. What he wanted was always
followed. The church was usually located in the best part of the town.
Beside the church was the municipal building called tribunal where
the gobernadorcillo or capitan held office. The proximity of the church
and the tribunal to each other symbolized the union of church and
state.
The capitan could not do anything important without the knowledge and
consent of the friar-curate. If a fiesta was to be held, the capitan had to
consult the friar-curate. The letter also determined the amount to be
spent for the mass, the fireworks, the perticipants in the play to be
staged before and during the fiestas, and a thousand other things
connected with the occasion and other religious events. The pista or
fiesta gave the Filipinos a day or so of relaxation from their toils in the
farms. To make the festivities lively, committees created by the capitan
with the consent of the friar-curate, were charged with preparing the
program of activities.
It was during fiesta time that even the poorest Filipino family prepared
plenty of good foods for their guests. Oftentimes, poor families
borrowed money in order to feed their guests. As a result, the poor
families became heavily indebted. This practice was passed on from
father to children, through generations.
AMUSEMENT
Cockfighting was a regular event during fiestas and even to this day.
Gambling in other forms were introduced by Spain. These games
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included panggingge, monte, tres siete, and others. Lottery, horse race,
and bullfighiting were all Spanish origin. Bullfights were held in what is
now Claro M. Recto Avenue near the Cinerama Theatre, then in Paco,
and finally, in Pasay.
Wakes were held with mourners playing cards (with or without stakes),
or with juego de prenda, the ninth day after the death of a person was
celebrated by staging the duplo. This was a kind of debate in verse
between two men or between a man, called bellaco, and a woman,
called bellaca. The loser was "punished" by making him/her sing,
dance, or simply let his/her palm be hit lightly by an object or a piece of
wood.
CHANGES IN CLOTHING
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THE MESTIZA DRESS
Today, in many parts of the Philipines, one can still see this kind of
architecture. On the other hand, the houses of poor Filipinos remained
almost the same as in pre-Spanish times. A few changes had been
made, however, the ordinary Filipino hose during the Spanish period
had a banggera (probably from the Spanish bangquera or frame), on
which clean plates, cups, and other things were placed. Then the
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ladder was improved and the stairs were, in some cases, made of
wood. Of course, bamboo ladder continued to be in used. Another
improvement was the addition of the balcon, which was a sort of
gallery where members of the family could sit and look at the people
passing by.
Men and women were treated equally, before the Spanish conquest.
However, during Spanish times, the women existed as dependents of
men. Their rights over property which they enjoyed during pre-Spanish
times were curtailed. They could not sell the property they inherited
from their husbands. But their husbands could sell the same property
even without their knowledge. The friar-curates taught the Filipino
women to be very obedient to their husbands, even if their husbands
were cruel and immoral. The friars taught them to prepare themselves
for marriage, which was thought to be the only function of women. They
were taught prayers and how to behave in public.
There were taught how to use the fork, the spoon, and the knife in
formal dinners. They were not, however, taught how to be independent,
how to help the husbands in earning more for the family, how to work in
order to earn when their husbands were sick or away and they were not
taught to think for themselves. During the Spanish period, the women
lived to raise children. Despite these changes, however, the Filipino
women continued, and still continue, to be the treasurer of the home.
The husbands dutifully handed over their earnings to their wives, who
kept the money for the family.
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A COMMON RELIGION
Only then did Catholicism win the hearts and minds of millions of
Filipinos, who to this day, remain in the majority. For instance, the
mass, sacrament of baptism, marriage, prayers for the dying, among
others, were similar to their ancient rituals. The intercession through the
saints were no different from the ancient way of asking deities for
favors and guidance. The colorful cenaculo and processions were just
as festive and unifying as the ancient rituals and chanting of epics.
While Catholicism did not unify the Filipinos in the real sense of the
word, it nevertheless sutained their faith in the creator or bathala amidst
adversities and sufferings as a people.
GEOGRAPHICAL IDENTITY
In the course of time, Spanish words like silla, mesa, cama, and many
more, were incorporated into the Philipphine languages like Hiligaynon,
Sugbuhanon, Bicolano, Tagalog, Ilocano, and others. Tagalog was
especially influenced by the Spanish language because the Tagalog
region was and still is, in the center of the social, political, cultural, and
economic setup of the country. Such Tagalog words as Sibuyas,
Kabayo, Bintana, Balkon, Kusina, and others, were Spanish words
pronounced and spelled the Tagalog way. These words came from the
Spanish words Cebolla, Caballo, Vintana, Balcon, and Cocina. Thus,
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native languages were enriched by the incorporation of Spanish words,
which have become part of everyday language or communication.
EDUCATION
During the early peiod of Spanish rule, education was not available to
the majority of Filipinos. However, in the second half of the nineteenth
127
century, primary and secondary schools were opened to Filipino
school-age children. Despite this move, many can children were still
afraid to go to school because the teachers were oftentimes brutal.
With the rise of the middle class, many Filipinos were able to go to
colleges like San Juan de Letran, San Jose, and the Ateneo Municipal.
When one compares the educational system under the spaniards in the
Philippines with the educational system under the Spaniards in the
Philippines with the educational system of other European countries in
their colonies during the same period, one will readilly see the stark
difference. The motive for imperialism of other European countries was
based solely on the economic exploitation of their colonies.
The colonizing countries did not educate the people of their colonies.
Only the children of the ruling class were educated up to a ceartain
level, just like in India, Malaya, and in what is now Indonesia. However,
they were not allowed to study to become lawyers, physicians,
chemists, pharmacists, and the like. They were given little education
and were only allowed to serve as clerks in the civil service. On the
128
other hand, the Filipinos, at least those who had the money and the
talent, were given a chance to become lawyers, physicians, teachers,
and so on.
The use of the vernaculars by the priests in the both sermons and
printed materials, such as novenas, stories on the lives of the saints,
and the like, served as a medium of spreading the religion among the
masses. These riligious traditions and activities kept the people,
women in particular, long-suffering and obedient to the friar-curates.
None of the printed religious materials and readings developed a
consciousness of political or social connectedness of any significance.
Clothes, shoes, houses, among the others, may have advanced in style
and comfort, and may have been a delight in sight, especially as the
Spanish and the Filipino styles produced a beautiful mix. However, this
was true only among the well-to-do Filipinos, while the poor became
noticeably different in their drab and ordinary attire, and poorly built and
insufficiently lighted nipa huts or houses.
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the Filipinos, who would later be asking for reforms and rights equal to
the Spaniards, regardless of race and social status.
STUDY GUIDE
SUGGESTED ACTIVITIES
132
5. Go out and look for houses in your localitybwhich are of the antillean
type. Draw it on a sheet of bond paper. What landmarks in your town
have Spanish influenced? Draw them on a sheet of bond paper.
Discuss with your classmates the architectural features of these
houses and landmarks. Identify which features are Spanish and
which are Filipino.
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CHAPTER 8
Up to the 1700s, Filipino revolts were fragmented and local with various
and oftentimes unrelated purposes among which are (1) to retake one’s
lost kingdom or chiefdom; (2) to resist forced labor that separated the
men for long periods from their families; (3) to get rid of the oppressive
tribute; and (4) to return to their ancient religion, the worship of Bathala
and the anitos. Though violent, their attacks against the Spanish
colonial government did not acquire a racial tone or an awareness of a
united people against colonial rule. How different in character would the
succeeding revolts in the 1800s to 1900s be?
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The movement was opposed by the Spanish religious orders on the
ground that the “native” clergy or secular were ill-prepared for the
position. What started as a religious issue, regulars versus seculars,
later acquired a racial undertone, “Filipinos” versus “Spaniards.” The
controversy ended with the execution of the three leaders of the
movement, Fathers Gomez, Burgos, and Zamora, despite the failure of
the government to prove their alleged involvement in the Cavite Mutiny.
Unprepared for such a decisive attack, the Spaniards with their Filipino
soldiers tried desperately to defend Intramuros, particularly the
ramparts of San Diego and San Andres. Their cannons were no match
to the superior cannons and weapons of the English. Archbishop Rojo
surrended Manila and Cavite while Simon Anda, a magistrate of the
Audiencia, escaped to Pampanga to continue the resistance. The
British took over the reins of government and guaranteed the safety of
Spanish officials, the community, and property.
135
THE SILANG AND PALARIS REVOLTS
The Spaniards defeat in the hands of the British opened the eyes of the
Filipinos to the impermanence of Spanish rule in the country and to the
fact that if could be challenged by force of arms. In the same year,
1762, Diego Silang, an Ilocano from Ilocos Province rose in revolt. He
demanded the expulsion of Spaniards and Spanish mestizos from
Ilocos. He was successful at first and was able to expel the Spanish
provincial governor and may Spaniard from Vigan. He then declared
himself “King of the Ilocos.” The British, impressed by Silang;s victories,
tried to win him over to their side by sending him gifts and promising to
make him governor of the province if he conspired with the British
against the Spaniards. Silang accepted their offer but the alliance
ended when he was killed by an assassin. His wife, Gabriela, took over
the leadership and carried on the fight courageously but she was later
captured and hanged, along with 100 followers.
That same year, 1762, Juan de la Cruz Palaris led a widespread revolt
in Pangasinan, demanding for the end to the payment of tributes and
countless abuses by the Spanish officials, The revolt, which started in
Binalatongan, spread to the towns of Bayambang, Paniqui (then a part
of Pangasinan), Dagupan, Calasiao, Santa Barbara, Mangaldan, San
Jacinto, and Malasiki. Palaris, having been inspired by the recent
success of the British invasion of Manila, succeeded in inciting the
people to revolt. He ignored the friar-curates province. Upon the
conclusion of the war with France and Spain, the British left in 1764.
Spain, now rid of Gabriela Silang, sent 3,000 Ilocano troops to
Pangasinan to quell the revolt. Palaris was defeated and died in battle.
136
BASCO’S ECONOMIC PLANS
137
For the effective implementation of the economic plans, Governor
Basco founded the Economic Society of Friends of the Country in 1781
and established the Royal Company in 1785. The Royal Company
failed in its purposes to improve foreign trade between the colony and
Spain because of mismanagement and lack of cooperation of the
manila merchants who preferred to engage in the galleon trade.
His efforts would have brought about economic progress at that time,
but Basco’s establishment of government monopolies in 1782
apparently negated most of his positive economic projects. The
monopolies for tobacco and wine particular, while turning out to be
profitable for the government. Had devastating effects on the
manufacture of wine outside the provinces selected for these products
were prohibited as well as their contraband sale. Only the government
had the exclusive right to purchase, classify, and sell these products
locally and export them abroad. In 1807, some 10,000 rebels in Ilocos
revolted against the government monopoly of a locally-produced wine
from sugarcane called basi. The Basi revolt as it was called was among
the bloodiest uprisings ever recorded during this time.
The term, up to this period in late 19th century, actually applied only to
Spaniards born in the Philippines or the Insulares. Spaniards born in
Spain, working or residing in the country, were called Españoles or
peninsulares. The rest were either mestizos or Indios. Belonging to the
middle class also meant changing their former lifestyle, clothing,
houses, forms of amusement, and cultural activities to those that were
similar or closer to what Spaniards and Europeans did and maintained,
which were comfortable and expensive. By contrast, Indios in the lower
class lived in poverty and ignorance, and suffered more discrimination.
The Spaniards in the Philippines founded many colleges for men and
women. But these colleges and universities were exclusively for the
Spaniards and the Spanish mestizos. These included San Juan De
Letran, San Jose, San Felipe, and others. The Schools for women
included the College of Santa Potenciana, Santa Isabela College, and
the Santa Rosa College, among others. It was not until the second half
of the nineteenth century that these colleges, including the University of
Santo Tomas, admitted natives. Owing to the opening of the doors of
Spanish colleges and universities to Filipinos, the well-to-do Filipino
parents were able to send their children to these schools.
The changes that took place in the second half of the nineteenth
century had far-reaching effects on the Filipinos. One of these
important changes was the opening of the Suez Canal in 1869. This
resulted in the shorter route and travel time between Spain and the
Philippines. Many Spaniards with progressive ideas migrated to the
Philippines. Among them were exiled creoles from Mexico like Varela
and Novales, whose subversive ideas and activities advocated freedom
and liberties. Later on, they influence some educated Filipinos and
soon both were asking the government to introduce changes in the
administration of the colony. Another effect of the shorter distance
between Spanish and the Philippines was the influx of progressive
books and periodicals to the country. Books on American
independence and the French Revolution circulated in the country.
Sending these materials from Spain to the Philippines became easy
and inexpensive. These books and periodicals were read by the
educated Filipinos who learned about democratic practices in Europe,
such as freedom of the press, freedom of speech, and the free
exchange of ideas among people.
142
Printed literature and magazines, plus the introduction of modern
technology such as the mail (1854), the telegraph (1873), the
telephone, ideas and awareness of the happenings between the cities
and countryside. Likewise, shorter travel time and distance between the
Mother Country and the colony encouraged many educated Filipinos to
go to Europe to continue their studies and to prove that they were the
equal of the Spaniards. Before the opening of the Suez Canal, the
voyage from Spain to the Philippines and vice versa took time and was
often dangerous that many Filipinos who could afford to go to Europe
did not bother to travel.
143
The educated Indios, mestizos, and Spaniards born in the Philippines
who sympathized with liberalism and Governor de la Torre, serenaded
him to show their appreciation of the governor’s kind attention and
democratic ways. The governor welcomes the serenaders, while a
Spanish woman recited a patriotic poem. The Spaniards who were for
the monarchy were scandalized, but they remained quiet. They were
waiting for the time when a governor to their liking would again assume
office in Manila.
Unfortunately for the Filipinos and their allies among the mestizos and
the progressive Spaniards, the administration of Governor de la Torre
was brief. The Republic of Spain ended in 1870 when the monarchy
was restored and a new king assumed the Spanish throne. With this
change from republic back to monarchy, the monarchist officials in
Spain sent to the Philippines some like-minded Spaniards to take over
the political leadership of the country. One of these was Rafael de
Izquierdo, an autocrat; he boasted that he would rule the Philippines
“with a cross in one hand and a sword in the other.”
144
This boast was not an empty promise. Immediately, he reversed the
reforms of de la Torre. He disapproved the establishment of a school of
arts and trades in Manila because he was afraid that it might be used
as a political club. Censorship of the press and restrictions on freedom
of speech were restored. Those who were known to have favored the
administration of de la Torre were considered suspects and were spied
upon. Naturally, the friars and the monarchists among the Spaniards
became his staunch supporters and were happy over his reactionary
attitude.
The government even went as far as giving the parishes, run by the
Filipino seculars, to Spanish regulars. This led to the campaign called
secularization. The movement would later be called “Filipinization”
because of its racial overtone. The secular priests felt that the position
as parish head was being denied to them because they were not
Spaniards and thus, inferior to the regulars.
The relations between the Filipino seculars and the Spanish regulars
grew from bad to worse. The Spanish regulars who continued to
occupy the parishes blamed the Filipino priests by saying that the latter
146
were not prepared to administer parishes. This caused greater enmity
between them. On the other hand, the Filipino seculars continued their
campaign relentlessly.
147
THE EXECUTION OF GOMBURZA
The priests, Gomez, Burgos, and Zamora were jailed in Fort Santiago
before they were tried for rebellion. Priests, both regular and secular,
were allowed to see them. Each one of them had a confessor. During
the trial, the government failed to prove convincingly with the January
mutiny. The governor-general promised to present documents to prove
that the three priests were guilty of “rebellion,” which too many was
actually a mutiny, But he never presented any document had been
found to show that Gomez, Burgos, and Zamora were, in any way,
connected with the mutiny. Nevertheless, they were sentenced to death
by garrote.
On February 17, 1872, the three priests marched from Fort Santiago to
Bagumbayan Field (now Luneta). It is said that Zamora lost his mind
and silently accepted to be garroted. He, together with Burgos, and
Gomez maintained their innocence until the end. While they were being
executed one by one — first, Zamora, then Gomez, and lastly Burgos—
the witnesses of the event took off their hats and knelt to pray for the
souls of the innocent priests. The Spaniards who were present, thinking
that the Filipinos were preparing to rise in revolt, fled toward the city.
The importance of the execution of the three priests rested on the fact
that the Filipinos who witnessed the execution began to think and feel
as Filipinos, not as Ilocanos, Tagalogs, Visayans, Bicolanos and the
Spaniards, who had always felt superior over the Filipinos, took them
for beasts of burden. From this time forward, they began to feel the
necessity for unity. Rizal, who was eleven years old at that time, would
148
later dedicate his second novel El Filibusterismo (The Rebel), to the
memory of the three martyred priests. He wrote:
The execution of Gomez, Burgos, and Zamora may have halted the
secularization movement but not its advocacy for “Filipinization” of the
parishes. The Spanish government with its cruel measures, continued
to frighten the Filipinos into submission. Nevertheless, the seeds of
Filipino nationalism had been planted on fertile ground.
STUDY GUIDE
1. Explain how the British occupation of the country opened the eyes of
the people in certain regions to the idea of freedom and expulsion of
the Spaniards.
2. Why did the economic plans of Governor-General Basco fail?
3. Why were the Spanish authorities in the Philippines opposed to the
education of the Filipinos?
4. Explain how the Filipino middle class arose. Who composed the
middle class?
5. Explain how the opening of the Suez Canal affected the educated
Filipinos.
149
6. What was the effect of the migration of liberal Spaniards on the
educated Filipinos and mestizos?
7. How did the Spanish Revolution of 1868 affect the events in the
Philippines?
8. What were the reforms of Governor-General Carlos Maria de la
Torre that endeared him to educated Filipinos?
9. Why was liberalism in the Philippines short-lived? Why was a
reactionary governor-general sent to the Philippines?
10. Explain what is meant by secularization. How did this lead to
Filipinization?
11. Why do you think the Spanish authorities called the Cavite mutiny
a rebellion?
12. Explain the importance of significance of the execution of Fathers
Gomez, Burgos, and Zamora.
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CHAPTER 9
Ten peaceful years elapsed after the execution of Gomez, Burgos, and
Zamora. It was a peaceful period on the surface because the Filipinos
were cowed into silence by the Spanish authorities. There were threats
of persecution for those who would oppose or criticize the Spanish rule.
Underneath, there was discontent, not only among the poor, but also
among the educated and the well-to-do Filipinos. The masses were
discontented because the remained poor and burdened with heavy
taxes. The educated and the wealthy were discontented because of the
abuses of the Spaniards and because they were not free to air their
complaints or even allowed to participate in the administration of the
government .
As a result, the educated and wealthy left for Spain where there was
freedom. There, they studied and worked for the introduction of reforms
in the Philippines. The reform movement, also called Propaganda
Movement, began in 1882. It lasted up to the early months of 1892
when the important Filipino reformists returned to the Philippines, like
Rizal, who founded the La Liga Filipina. The reform movement which
they started included the idea to assimilate the Philippines as a
province of Spain.
Graciano Lopez Jaena was born in Jaro, now a part of Iloilo City, On
December 18, 1856. His parents were Placido Lopez and Maria Jacobo
Jaena. He studied at the seminary of Jaro to become a priest, but later
on, he changed his mind to become a physician instead. He was
observant and saw the injustices, immorality, and greed of the friars
and civil officials. He wrote a long story about a certain friar he named
Fray Botod, who was greedy, immoral, and cruel. The story was
circulated in Iloilo and soon, the friars hated him for it. He went to
Manila to escape persecution and to continue his studies. But the
Spanish authorities harassed him, which compelled him to secretly sail
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for Europe in 1880. In Spain, he studied medicine but later on gave it
up and devoted his time and energy to writing articles.
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Jose Rizal
The most brilliant of the Filipinos during his time, Rizal was born in
Calamba, Laguna on June 19, 1861. He studied at the Ateneo
Municipal and later at University of Santo Tomas. He went to Europe to
continue his medical studies. He observed early in life how the
Spaniards maltreated the Filipinos. He saw, how the Spanish
authorities ordered his aging mother to walk from Calamba to the town
of Santa Cruz, the capital of the province, because of a false charge
made against he by Spanish provincial officials. He saw all the
Injustices being committed against the Filipinos and thus, his young
mind and heart rebelled against them. He swore to work for freedom of
his country.
In 1882, he went to Spain with the help of his uncle and elder brother,
Paciano. He studied medicine and several languages such as French
and German. He spent his time wisely. He never gambled. He never
spent his money aimlessly. He bought many books which he read and
kept. At the age of twenty-six, he wrote his first novel, Noli Me Tangere
or Touch Me Not. In this novel, he exposed the defects of the Spanish
administration of the Philippines, the greed and immorality of the friars,
and the superstition of the Filipinos.
Rizal wrote poems, essays and many articles- all showing his love of
country, his patriotism, his love of parents, his happiness and sorrows
Because of his attacks on the civil and ecclesiastical authorities in the
Philippines, they hated him and worked for his arrest. They found a
concrete basis and opportunity when he returned to the Philippines and
founded La Liga Filipina, a patriotic society which was suspected of
uniting and preparing the people for revolution. He was first banished to
Dapitan, Zamboanga, and later tried by a military court that sentenced
him to be shot to death. He was executed in Bagumbayan Field (now
Luneta/Rizal Park) on December 30 1896.
Marcelo H. Del Pilar, whom even his Spanish enemies called the
"greatest journalist produced by the purely Filipino race," was born in
the barrio of Cupang, Bulacan, Bulacan. On August 30, 1850. He
studied at the collage of San Jose and later at the University of Santo
Tomas, whre he finished his law studies in 1880. In this same year he
began his campaign againts the abuses of the friars and Spanish civil
officials. He spoke in meetings, especially in the crowded cockpit where
the common people heard him criticize the friars.
Due to his heavy work and lack of proper food, Del Pilar contracted
tuberculosis. During winter when it was very cold in Spain, he would
pick up a cigarette butts on the streets of Barcelona and smoke them to
keep him warm. He wanted to return to the Philippines because he
believed that the campaign for the reforms was a failure and that it was
time to shift to revolutionary action. Unfortunately, he died on July 4,
1896.
The Filipino who went to Spain believed that it was wise for them to
seek the help of Spaniards with liberal ideas. In order to cultivate the
friendship and sympathy of these Spaniards, the Filipinos organized
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societies with members that were sympathetic to the cause of
introducing reforms in the Philippines, whether they were Spaniards or
Filipinos. In 1882, they organized the Circulo Hispano-Filipino (The
Spanish-Filipino Circle).
But this newspaper and the society did not last long. It died a natural
death because of lack of financial support and most of all, lack
leadership. Another society was founded with patriotic aims, the
Asociacion Hispano-Filipina, which was inaugurated in 1889. Like
the Circulo, it was composed of Filipinos and Spaniards who
sympathized with the Filipinos cause. The association's aspiration was
"to work for the material and moral improvement of the Philippines."
Some of its aims were as follows: (1) the abolition of the diezmos
prediales and the sanctorum; (2) the compulsory teaching of Spanish in
all schools in the Philippines; (3) radical reforms in the University of
Santo Tomas; (4) abolition of flogging as a form of punishment; (5) the
establishments of agricultural banks; and (6) tax and other reforms. All
of these aims were to benefit the Filipinos. This society lived longer
than the Circulo, but it never realize its goals because the Spanish high
officials in Spain were too busy with state problems to even mind and
solve the problems of the colony.
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Freemasonry and its Role
The Filipino reformists in Spain did not spare any effort to win friends
for the sake of the country. During the last two decades of nineteenth
century, Freemasonry (Masonry) was popular in Europe, even in Spain.
Many Spaniards with liberal ideas are Masons. The Filipino reformists,
including Rizal, Lopez Jaena, Del Pilar, Antonio Luna, and others,
decided to join Masonry not only because they wanted to win friends
among the Spanish Masons, but also because of its anti-friars
character.
Early in 1891, some Filipinos who had been to Spain met and decided
to establish the Maonic lodge Nilad in Manila. The Masons in the
Philippines, mostly coming from Manila and surrounding areas,
expressed the following aims of organization: (1) to work for freedom
and prosperity of the Philippines: (2) to work for the government; (3) to
ask for representation in the Spanish Cortes; and (4) to establish the
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Philippines as a province of Spain. All these were also the aims of the
Filipino reformists in Spain. The Filipino Masons, therefore, merely
expressed their program in the Philippines in accordance with the
official stand of the reformists in Spain.
La Liga Filipina
159
a) to unite the whole archipelago into one strong body;
b) to give mutual protection of all members in case of necessity;
c) to encourage agricultural, commerce and education;
d) to depend members against any kind of violence and injustice;
and
e) to study and apply reforms
The Society was civic in nature, but even then, the Spanish authorities
considered it dangerous. They saw in La Liga Filipina an organization
capable of uniting the Filipinos for self-sufficiency and defense. On the
night of July 6, the governor-general ordered the arrest of Rizal. He
was detained in Fort Santiago pending deportation to Dapitan,
Zamboanga.
The unity of the Filipinos in Spain once endangered by the tivalry for
leadership between Rizal and Del Pilar. There were other quarrels
which were not good for the cause of the Filipinos. Lastly, the friars in
the Philippines had influential friends and supporters in Spain. These
supporters opposed the introduction of the reforms in the Philippines.
Against the rich and powerful friars, the Filipino reformists could not do
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much to obtain the goals that would make the colony a province of
Spain, with equal rights as the enjoyed by the Spanish
Study guide
1. Explain the nature of the reform movement. What did it stand for?
2. Name the foremost reformists who went to Spain describe each of
them.
3. What did the reformists wants?
4. What is meant by "assimilation?" In what way or ways would it
benefit the Filipinos? Explain your answer
5. What were the aims of La Solidaridad? Why was it founded
6. In what was was Marcelo H. Del Pilar different from Rizal? As
propagandists of the Filipino cause, who between the two was
more effective? Explain your answer
7. What role did the pro-Filipino societies play? Why did they failed?
8. Explain how masonry helped in the campaign for reforms. Name
at least two Masonic Lodge in the Philippines during Spanish
period which helped propagate the cause of the Filipinos. How
significant was masonry for the Filipino women?
9. Why did Rizal founded the La Liga Filipina? What were its aim?
Why was not successfully? In your opinion, was the La Liga
reformist or a revolutionary? Explain why?
10. Explain why the reform movement failed
Suggested Activities
1. Read the short biographies of Rizal, Lopez Jaena, and Del Pilar.
Make a list of their important works and discuss with your
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classmates why most of their works were against the friars but not
against the Spaniards as a people.
2. Discuss in class why the reformists failed in their mission. Explain
your answer to the Following question;
3. If the reformists had enough financial, could they have succeeded
in the aims?
4. Go to the school library and read works about the writings of the
reformists make a list of their pen names. Why did they use pen
names instead of their real names?
5. Research on Juan Luna and Felix Resurrection hidalgo. Who
were they and what works did they contribute to help the
Propaganda movement
6. Search for materials on Dasalan at Toksohan by Marcelo H. Del
Pilar. Dramatize it in class.
7. Choose experts from Noli and Fili that contain Rizal's ideas for
reforms in Noli and on revolution in Fili. From these passages,
how would you consider Rizal, was he a reformist or already
separatist? Explain your answer.
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CHAPTER 10
The failure of the reform movement led even a reformist like Marcelo H.
Del Pilar to think of revolution. Insurrection, wrote in La Solidaridad, is
the last remedy, especially when the people have acquired the belief
that peaceful means to secure the remedies for evils prove futile. With
Rizal’s La Liga Filipina nipped in the bud, Del Pilar’s warning of
Insurrection no longer seemed a far-fetched idea. By 1892, the struggle
changed its course from reform to revolution.
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THE FOUNDING OF THE KATIPUNAN
The members at first agreed that they would recruit the Filipinos to
become members through a method called triangle system. For
example, member Jose would Recruit Pedro and Juan to become
members. This new members knew Jose but they did not know each
other. This method was used to minimize the danger of discovery by
the Spanish authorities. Later, a new system of recruiting members
similar to Masonry was adopted to speed up the process of enlisting
members. It was also agreed that each member would pay a
membership fee and monthly dues.
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THE AIMS AND STRUCTURE OF THE KATIPUNAN
Bonifacio had seen and attended the only meeting of the La Liga
Filipina. He took note of this society’s structure and when he founded
the katipunan he borrowed the structure of the Liga. The katipunan had
three governing bodies: the Kataastaasang Sanggunian or Supreme
Council, the Sangguniang Bayan or Provincial Council, and the
Sangguniang Balangay or Popular Council. The supreme council was
the highest of these governing bodies, followed by the Provincial
Council and the Popular Council. Respectively, they were the
equivalent of the central government, the provincial government, and
the municipal government.
The triangle method of getting new member was slow and ineffective.
As a result, there were only about 100 new members taken into the
Society by the end of 1892. It was, therefore agreed that all members
should be allowed to get as many new members as circumstances
permitted. Consequently, the membership of the society increased in a
few months. It was then thought that because the katipunan had
enough members, a set of officers would be elected. The elected
officers of the first supreme council were the following: Deodato
Arellano, president or supremo; Andres Bonifacio, comptroller, Ladislao
Diwa, fiscal; Teodoro Plata, secretary; and Valentin Diaz, treasurer.
MEMBERSHIP
The Katipunan members were of three kinds: the first grade was called
Katipon; the second grade as Kawal; and the third was Bayani. The
password of the katipon was Anak ng Bayan, that of the Bayani as
Rizal. In order to recognize each other in the streets, a member upon
meeting another member would place the palm of his right hand on his
breast, and as he passed the other member he would close his hand
and bring his index finger and his thumb together.
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J L V M
K K w W
L J X U
LL N Y Y
Aside from the secret codes, Bonifacio also wanted a flag to be used by
the members as a symbol of their unity. Consequently, he requested
Benita Rodriguez, to make a flag for the Katipunan. With the help of
Bonifacio’s wife, Gregoria De Jesus, a flag as made. It consisted of a
rectangular piece of red cloth with three letters K arranged horizontally
in the middle. This was declared the official flag of the katipunan.
However, it was changed a few weeks after the revolution broke out in
August 1896. The new official flag consisted of a red rectangular piece
of cloth with a white sun and eight white rays in the middle. Inside the
circle representing the sun as the letter K in the ancient Tagalog script.
Bonifacio had his own personal flag. It consisted of a red rectangular
piece of cloth with a white sun with an indefinite number of white rays in
the center. Below the sun were the three K’s arranged horizontally.
1. Life which is not consecrated to a lofty and sacred cause is like a tree without a shadow, if not a
poisonous weed.
2. A good deed that springs from a desire for personal profit and not from a desire to do good is not
kindness
3. True greatness consists in being charitable, in loving ones fellowmen and in adjusting every
movement, deed and word to true reason.
4. All men are equal, be the color of their skin black or white. One may be superior to another in
knowledge, wealth, beauty, but cannot be superior in being.
5. He who is noble prefers honor to personal gains; he who is mean prefers personal profit to honor.
6. To a man with a sense of shame, his word is inviolate.
7. Dont fritter away time; lost riches may be recovered, but time lost will never come again
8. Defend the oppressed and fight the oppressor.
9. An intelligent man is he who cautious in speech and knows who to keep the secrets that must be
guarded.
10. In the thorny path of life, man is the guide of his life and children; if he who guides moves toward
evil, they who are guided likewise move toward evil.
11. Think not of woman as a thing merely to while away time with, but as a helper and partner in the
hardship of life. Respect her in her weakness, and remember the mother who brought you into this
world and who cared for you in your childhood.
12. What you do not want done to your wife, daughter and sister, do not do to the wife, daughter and
sister of another.
13. The nobility of a man does not consist in being a king, nor in the highness of the nose and the
whiteness of the skin, nor in being a priest representing God, nor in the exalted position on this
earth, but pure and truly noble is he who though born in the woods, is posses of an upright
character, who is true to his words; ho has dignity and honor; ho does not oppress and does not
help those ho oppress; who knows ho to look after and loves the land of his birth.
14.
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1. Love God with all your heart
2. Bear always in mind that the love of God is also love of Country, and this, too, is love of
ones fellowmen.
3. Engrave in your heart that the true measure of honor and happiness is to die for the
freedom of your country.
4. All your good wishes will be crowned with success if you have serenity, constancy,
reason, and faith in your acts and endeavour.
5. Guard the mandates and aims of the K.K.K. as you guard your honor
6. It is the duty of all to defend, at the risk of their own lives and wealth, anyone who runs
great risks on the performance of his duty.
7. Our responsibility to ourselves and the performance of our duties will be example set for
our fellowmen to follow.
8. Insofar as it is within your power, share your means with the poor and the unfortunate.
9. Diligence in the work that gives sustenance to you is the true basis of love, love of your
own self, for your wife and children, and for your brothers and countrymen.
10. Punish any scoundrel and traitor and praise all good work. Believe, likewise that the
aims of the K.K.K. Are god given, for the will of the people is also the will of god.
THE KALAYAAN
Bonifacio and Jacinto believed that they could easily propagate their
revolutionary ideas by having a printing press. However, the
organization had no money to purchase a printing press. Two
experienced printers, Ulpiano Fernandez and Faustino Duque, both
Katipuneros managed the press. Dr. Pio Valenzuela suggested the
name of the newspaper, kalayaan. After weeks of preparation the
newspaper, written in Tagalog, came out in the middle of March 1896.
The Kalayaan contained articles written by Bonifacio, Jacinto and
Valenzuela.
Bonifacio and Jacinto both believed that the time had come to change
strategy and tactics. The Katipunan with revolutionary aims, was a
totally different society from the La Liga which worked for radical
reforms using evolutionary or peaceful means. The Katipunan aimed to
make the Philippines a free country by force of arms.
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It’s founder, Andres Bonifacio, was born on November 30, 1863 in a
small nipa house on what is now Azcarraga Street near the present
Manila Railroad Station. His parents, Santiago Bonifacio and Catalina
de Castro, belonged to the lower middle class. His mother, Catalina
was Spanish-Chinese of Filipino origin from Zambales, and worked at a
cigarette factory. His father, Santiago was a tailor, a boatman, and a
former municipal official of tondo. Bonifacio’s parents died while he was
in his teens. As such he had to support the family which consisted of
himself, his brother, Ciriacio, Procopio, and Troadio, and his sister,
Espiridiona and Maxima. He sold canes and paper pans in his early
years. Because of his poverty, he was not able to finish the equivalent
of grade four today. He worked as a messenger of J.M Fleming and
Co., an English trading firm; and later, as an agent of the German
trading firm, Fressel and Co.
Unlike Rizal and other reformist who were anti-friar and anti-Spanish.
He hated all Spaniards, whether they were friars, civil employees, or
officials. To him, they were all the same: greedy, immortal, cruel and
lazy. His poems in Tagalog, especially Tapunan ng Lingap and Ang
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mga Cazadores, attacked the Spaniards furiously. He called the
Spaniards “white castle”. His poem “Huling Hibik ng Pilipinas” openly
called for independence from colonial rule.
STUDY GUIDE
177
CHAPTER 11
What were the economic, social, and political conditions in 1896 that
justified a nationwide revolt against Spanish colonial rule in favor of
separation or independence? Were the people ready and united to act?
Was the Katipunan, as the leading organization in that time, ready for
its role?
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Conditions before the Revolution
Late in 1895, when Bonifacio was busy propagating the political ideals
of the Katipunan in many towns around Manila, some Spanish
authorities were already suspecting a brewing unrest related to an
underground society whose purpose was to end Spanish rule.
However, they had no clear proof of its existence. The friars informed
the governor-general about their suspicions but the governor did not
believe them.
The friars suspicions were correct all along. Undoubtedly, there was a
general dissatisfaction among the Filipinos. Money was difficult to get.
Very few Filipinos were gainfully employed. While there was no
starvation, the life of the people was far from prosperous. The common
people were suffering from heavy taxation, from abusive friars and civil
authorities, and from lack of economic opportunities. While the
government was spending millions of pesos for the army and navy, the
amount being spent for public improvement was pitifully small. For
example, the budget for the fiscal year 1894-95, the eve of the
revolution, the expenditure for the Department of War and Navy totaled
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more than six million and a half peso, while the expenditure for public
works was only Php 628,752. 46. This showed that very little was spent
for improvements in public works which would benefit the people.
Of all the causes of the people’s dissatisfaction, the most serious were
the abuses of the Spanish-friars and civil authorities alike. The personal
honor and dignity of the Filipinos were taken for granted. They were
physically maltreated in public places and unjustly ordered to be
executed or banished to faraway places like Guam, Jolo, and Palawan,
on suspicions of committing crimes, even pretty ones. The institution of
forced labor provided opportunities for rampant abuse of Filipinos by
the Spaniards. For three hundred years, the Filipinos suffered these
abuses in silence. However, the seed of hatred had been planted in
their hearts, even when outwardly they were smiling and saying, “Si,
Senor,” to every command of a Spaniard.
Father Mariano Gil was the Parish curate of Tondo, Province of Manila.
He was one of the friars who had earlier warned the Spanish civil
authorities that this society, with the aim to kill all Spaniards in the
country, had been recruiting members. But the Spanish civil authorities
did not listen to him until a Katipunero by the name of Teodoro Patiño
came to see him one afternoon. Patiño had visited his sister in an
orphanage in Mandaluyong which was then a suburb of the province of
Manila. Having quarreled with another Katipunero, Patiño told his sister
about the Katipunan and its aims. The sister cried when she heard
about the aims of the society. She told the Madre Portera of the
orphanage about it. The latter advised Teodoro Patiño to tell Father
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Mariano Gil all about the Katipunan. Acting on this advice, Patiño went
to see Father Gil that afternoon of August 19, 1896; and revealed to
him what he knew about the plans of the Katipunan.
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In spite of the refusal by the wealthy Filipinos to help the Katipunan,
Bonifacio and his men did not lose hope. When the Katipunan was
discovered in August 19, Bonifacio was in Caloocan with his wife,
Gregoria de Jesus. Fearing that he might be arrested if he remained in
Caloocan, Bonifacio decided to move to Balintawak, He ordered his
“runners” to inform all Katipuneros that there would be a meeting in
Balintawak on August 24. Accompanied by four men, Bonifacio
reached Balintawak at midnight of the 21st, in the afternoon, about 500
Katipuneros left Sitio Kangkong, a part of Balintawak, and arrived at the
next sitio called Pugadlawin the following day.
A huge meeting was held at the yard of Juan A. Ramos, the son of
Melchora Aquino or Tandang Sora, known as the “Mother of
Katipunan.” Bonifacio asked his men whether they were prepared to
fight for freedom and independence. Everyone shouted they were
prepared to die. “In that case,” Bonifacio told them, “bring out your
cedulas and tear them to pieces to show that we are prepared to take
up arms!” All the men brought out their cedulas and tore them to
pieces. The ground was littered with those pieces of paper, which to the
Katipuneros, symbolized their slavery. Then they shouted in one voice,
“Long live the Philippines! Long live the Katipunan!” This event, which
happened on August 23, is known as the “Cry of the Pugadlawin.” It
symbolized the determination of the Filipinos to fight for independence
even unto death.
The Spaniards and their hired Filipino soldiers, thinking that the rebels
were strong, retreated. The rebels, believing their weapons were
inferior to those of the civil guards, also retreated to Balara. From here,
they proceeded to Marikina and on to Hagdang Bato. On August 28,
Bonifacio issued a manifesto telling the people to take up the Filipino
cause. He also set the attack on the City of Manila for August 29, 1896.
He ended his manifesto by saying that, “”Anybody who obstructs this
secret ideal of the people will be considered a traitor and an enemy.”
The proposed attack on Manila did not take place because Bonifacio
and his men lacked reinforcements and necessary supply of arms and
ammunition to carry out the plan. Instead, Bonifacio ordered his men to
attack the arsenal located at San Juan del Monte. A fighting broke out
between the attacking Filipino forces and the defending Spanish
soldiers on August 30, 1896. The latter, knowing that it would be foolish
to fight the numerically superior Filipino head-on, fought a delaying
battle while waiting for reinforcements. When they arrived, the
Spaniards drove back Bonifacio and his men, who suffered heavy
losses.
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Martial Law
Persecution continues
The reign of terror did not stop with the proclamation of martial law in
the first eight provinces that rebelled against Spain. The colonial
government continued its policy of repression to cow the people into
silence. The suspects and Manila and the provinces were punished
without trial. Heads of families were shipped to the Carolines in the
Pacific and to the Spanish penal colony in Africa. Fort Santiago was
packed with hundreds of prisoners, most of whom were innocent. Many
died when the waters of the Pasig River entered the lower portion of
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the cells, while others died of suffocation. Some wealthy Filipinos, like
Luis R. Yangco, were arrested for allegedly having connections with the
Katipunan.
Rizal’s execution
The height of the Spanish brutality in the Philippines came when the
government ordered Rizal’s trial and execution. Rizal had been in
Dapitan, Zamboanga Del Norte since 1892. He had lived there
peacefully, helping the people in their work. In 1896, he asked the
government to allow him to go to Cuba to serve as a military surgeon.
The Cubans then were fighting for their independence from their
Spanish masters. Rizal’s request was granted; so from Dapitan, he was
brought to Manila Bay where he waited for a streamer that would take
him to Cuba by way of Spain. He was in a Spanish cruiser in Manila
185
Bay when the revolution broke out. He refused to be rescued when
revolutionaries offered to save him. He was transferred to the streamer
when it arrived in Manila.
Sailing for Spain on the way to Cuba, Rizal was ordered to return to
Manila. The ship was near Spain at that time. Upon reaching Spain, he
was detained and then shipped back to Manila. He was imprisoned in
Fort Santiago and later, was tried as a traitor to Spain. Rizal defended
himself with the help of a Spanish military lawyer. He strongly denied
any connection with the Katipunan and the plan to topple the
government. He explained that since his exile in Dapitan, he had
stopped any political involvement with groups.
But the military court did not listen to his arguments. He was sentenced
to be shot to death. His parents, brother, and sisters appealed to the
governor-general for pardon, but the governor refused to grant their
request. Another appeal was made to the Minister of War in Spain, but
he also did not grant the appeal. Rizal was executed early in the
morning of December 30, 1896. His execution did not dishearten the
revolutionists; in the contrary, they resolved to fight to the bitter end.
Rizal’s execution, in fact, emboldened the Filipinos to fight for their
country and its independence.
The Spanish army was trying to its best to subjugate Cavite, which was
now a major battleground of the revolution. Town after town fell into the
hands of the Spaniards. Faced with this bitter fact, the rebels decided
to meet at Tejeros, San Francisco de Malabon, (now General Trias).
On March 22, 1897, a convention was held at the estate house of
Tejeros, which the rebels had captured from the friars. During the
second part of the convention, this was presided over by Bonifacio with
Artemio Ricarte as secretary, the member who were present agreed to
form a new government. Officials of this government were to be elected
by those present in the convention. It was also agreed unanimously
that whoever would be elected would be respected by everyone,
187
regardless of economic status and education. The result of the election
placed the following Katipuneros into office:
The following day, March 23, Bonifacio, Ricarte and many others met at
the same place. They agreed to issue a document which would put on
record what happened in the election that was held the previous day.
This document was called Acta de Tejeros (Minutes of Tejeros).
However, the report on the proceedings of the convention contained a
resolution. Hence, it should rightly be called Tejeros Resolution. In this
document, Bonifacio and those present, numbering about forty-five in
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all, gave their reasons for rejecting the results of the previous day’s
election and fraud committed by the Magdalo people. After signing the
resolution, the men followed Bonifacio to Naik.
Still angry with Daniel Tirona, who insulted him, Bonifacio, now in the
town of Naik, Cavite, persuaded his men to draw up another document.
It was a military agreement in which another government would be
established. General Pio Del Pilar was to become the commander of
this army. Obviously, the head of the government to be established was
Bonifacio himself. Among those who signed the document, aside from
Bonifacio and his brothers were Artemio Ricarte, Pio Del Pilar, and
Severino de las Alas.
After signing the Naik military agreement, Bonifacio, his wife, and his
two brothers, and some followers, left for the town of Indang and settled
in the barrio of Limbon. Meanwhile, Aguinaldo, who claimed he was
sick at that time, heard about the Naik agreement, for which he sent an
emissary with some soldiers to persuade Bonifacio to recognize the
Tejeros election results, and thus present a unified stand against the
enemy. Colonel Agapito Bonzon, who headed the party to contact
Bonofacio, used force on Bonifacio and his brothers. As a result
Bonifacio and his brothers, fought back. His brother, Ciriaco, was killed
in the skirmish, and Bonifacio himself was wounded on the neck and on
the left arm. He was captured and brought to the municipal building of
Indang. Later he was transferred to Maragondon, where he was tried
189
for treason. The military court that tried Bonifacio was composed of
men who were hostile to him. Without strong evidence, the military
court pronounced Bonifacio and his brother Procopio, guilty f treason.
They were sentenced to be shot to death. According to Aguinaldo, he
commuted the death penalty to banishment. But when General Pio Del
Pilar, who was formerly a follower of Bonifacio, and General Mariano
Noriel received Aguinaldo’s commutation order, they rushed to his
headquarters in Maragondon and persuaded him to withdraw the
commutation of the death sentence.
They reasoned that they could not afford to be divided at the time when
the enemy was capturing one town after another. Because of this
argument, Aguinaldo recalled, he withdrew his commutation order. In
other words, the original death sentence was carried out. On May 10,
1897, Major Lazaro Macapagal, who received the sealed order of
General Noriel, took the risoners from their prison cells and brought
them to Mount Tala, where the Bonifacio brothers were executed.
During this period, the Filipino rebels suffered one defeat after another.
The Spanish forces, on the other hand, suffered from tropical diseases
and lack of experience. At this stage, the Spanish army was composed
of many Spanish recruits to replace the Filipino soldiers who had
defected to the revolutionary force. Governor-general Camilio de
Polavieja, who succeeded General Ramon Blanco in December 1896,
grew tired of fighting the Filipinos who refused to surrender. His health
failed him so he asked to be relieved. His successor was Governor
General Fernando Primo de Vera, who had served previously as
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governor of the country. Primo de Vera took personal charge of the
military campaign against the rebels. By May, almost the whole
province of Cavite was in the hands of the Spaniards. Aguinaldo, in
order to escape captivity, retreated to Batangas. The Spanish army
followed him and tried to trap him. Aguinaldo, however, succeeded in
eluding the enemy and, with some faithful followers, headed for the hilly
parts of Morong (now Rizal province).
With 500 faithful armed men, Aguinaldo walked the distance to San
Juan del Monte and Montalban, and on to Mount Puray. From here, he
and his men walked all the way to Biak-na-bato, in San Miguel de
Mayumo, Bulacan, where he established his headquarters. Meanwhile,
news of Aguinaldo’s arrival in Biak-na-bato reached the people in
Central Luzon.
Primo de Vera failed to win over the Filipinos back to Spain. The
Filipinos were tired of Spanish promises. For more than three hundred
years, they heard nothing but promises and now they wanted to live an
independent life. Before July or early in July, Aguinaldo established a
republican government at Biak-na-bato called Bato Republic. He
ordered the preparation of a constitution for this Republic. Felix Ferrer
and Isabelo Artacho copied, word for word the Cuban Constitution of
Jimaguayu, except for one article. The Constitution, in its Preamble,
declared the aim of the Revolution as the separation of Article VIII
provided that “Tagalog shall be the official language of the Republic.”
The Constitution was approved on November 1. The following day,
these officers were elected:
Because of the difficulties that confronted both the Filipinos and the
Spanish army, some sort of understanding between the combatants
was made. Pedro A. Paterno, a Filipino of Chinese ancestry,
approached Governor Primo de Rivera and offered himself as
mediator. The governor agreed, and soon Paterno was negotiating with
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the two camps on how to end the bloody struggle. On November 18,
1897, the first document was signed by Paterno on behalf of the
Filipino rebels, and by Primo de Rivera, on behalf of the colonial
government. Other matters were clarified and a second document was
signed by Paterno and Primo de Rivera on December 14, 1897. On
December 15, a third document was signed. These three documents
together constitute what maybe called the Truce of Biak-na-bato.
Among other things, the agreement provided the following:
The month of January 1898 was a happy one for the Spaniards. Peace
reigned once more and the Spanish community enjoyed their usual
activities like attending horse and boat races, fireworks, and going to
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theaters. The Te Deum was sung at the Manila Cathedral on January
23 to celebrate the publication of a peace treaty. Meanwhile, the
Filipino military officers, who were left at Biak-na-bato to attend the
surrender of firearms, kept themselves busy. Others, however, were
suspicious of Spanish motives and held on their weapons. Likewise,
the Spanish authorities did not trust the Filipinos. This mutual suspicion
resulted to armed clashes that started in February.
STUDY GUIDE
194
6. What was the colonial government’s reaction to the outbreak of
the revolution? Was it justified? Why?
7. What was the effect of Rizal’s execution on the Filipino
revolutionaries?
8. Explain why Bonifacio went to Cavite. Was he right in going to
Cavite? Why? What kind of character did he show in going to
Cavite?
9. Why was the Tejeros convention called? Did it succeed in unifying
the Katipunan? Explain your answer.
10. Why did Bonifacio and his companions refuse to recognize the
results of the elections at Tejeros? Were they justified in doing so?
Explain your answer.
11. Why was Bonifacio tried and executed? Was his execution just?
Why?
12. Describe how Aguinaldo eluded the Spanish army sent to destroy
him. How would you describe Aguinaldo regarding his success in
the fight against the Spaniards?
13. Why did Aguinaldo retreat to Biak-na-bato? Why did he choose
Biak-na-bato?
14. Discuss the Truce of Biak-na-bato and its important provisions.
15. Why was the truce a failure?
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196
CHAPTER 12
Even before the Filipinos could recover from the battles of 1896,
General Emilio Aguinaldo, as the recognized leader of the Filipinos in
exile in Hongkong and at home, negotiated the situation with the
Americans to delay confrontation with an obviously more powerful
country. But the United States misled Aguinaldo to believe that the
Americans came as an ally of the Filipinos in their fight to end Spanish
rule in the country. But in the end, the Filipinos’ fears and suspicions
proved to be true. The Americans came to stay and eventually took
over as the new colonial master.
The relationship between Spain and the United States was becoming
sour. The Cuban Revolution had won the sympathy of the Americans
because the latter had big investments in Cuba which they did not want
198
to be destroyed. Some influential Americans, like Theodore
Roosevelt, wanted war with Spain so that the American Navy could
expand. In 1897, he became Assistant Secretary of the Navy. It was he
who conceived the idea of taking Manila in case war with Spain would
be declared. To carry out his plan, Roosevelt work for the appointment
of Commodore George Dewey as commander of the American Asiatic
Squadron. On February 25, 1898, Roosevelt told Dewey to make
Hongkong, which was very near Manila, as his base of operations.
Roosevelt later admitted that Dewey was appointed commander of the
Asiatic Squadron because “it was deemed wise to have there a man
who could go to Manila if necessary” Spain did not imagine a war with
the United States, because the U.S was starting to develop into a rich
and powerful country.
Spain on the other hand, was preoccupied with two revolutions: one in
Cuba and the other in the Philippines. These conflicts were very
expensive for Spain and were draining its resources. On February 15,
1898, the American battleship, USS Maine exploded at Havana Harbor
in Cuba. Spain was blamed for the mishap. More than two hundred
American sailor and officers died. The American people were outraged
and demanded that war be declared on Spain. So on April 25, 1898,
the Congress of the United States formally declared war on Spain.
However, a later investigation of the incident failed to connect the
explosion to the Spaniards.
On the same day the war with Spain was declared, Dewey received a
message by cable from the Secretary of War. It said “War has
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commenced between the United States and Spain. Proceed particularly
against the Spanish fleet. You must capture vessels or destroy, use
“utmost endeavor.” Dewey ordered his fleet to sail for Manila Bay.
Quietly his fleet entered the bay in the early morning hours of May 1,
1898. The Spanish batteries in Corregidor were too late in detecting the
passage of the fleet. The Spanish squadron, commanded by Admiral
Patricio Montojo, was waiting near Sangley Point, Cavite. Montojo
was watching Dewey’s course as he entered Manila Bay. At dawn,
Dewey spotted the Spanish ships and ordered his fleet turn back and
sail toward Cavite.
The heavier and better-armed American ships out gunned the Spanish
fleet, and by 12:30 in the afternoon, Admiral Montojo’s fleet was
already destroyed. The Spaniards hoisted a white flag in Cavite as a
sign of surrender. The news of Dewey’s victory was flashed around the
world. The American people were delirious with joy. But they did not
know where the Philippines was. Most Americans thought it was a part
of China. It was said that the whole American nation was heard
opening geography book to locate the Philippines on the map.
200
AGUINALDO GOES TO SINGAPORE
It was early April of 1898 when rumors had already reached Manila that
war between Spain and the United States was to be declared any time.
In Hongkong, Aguinaldo and his companions in exile were following the
events on the other side of the world. They felt that in case of war, it
would be a good opportunity for the Filipinos to oust the Spaniards from
the Philippines. However, Aguinaldo was in trouble. Isabelo Artacho,
one of the plagiarists of the Cuban Constitution, went to Hongkong and
demanded Aguinaldo to divide the P400,000 indemnity that was given
by the colonial government to the rebels.
The Philippines was very far from the Philippines? Moreover, the
Americans would leave Cuba as soon as the Spaniards had been
driven away. In other words, Pratt assured Aguinaldo that the United
States had no intention of making the Philippines a colony. Aguinaldo
then agreed to return to the Philippines to renew the hostilities against
the Spaniards. Pratt made all the arrangements for Aguinaldo’s return
to Hongkong.
On April 26, 1893, Aguinaldo and his companions sailed for Hongkong.
Dewey had already left for Manila when Aguinaldo arrived in the British
colony. He was disapointed. However, the American consul at
Hongkong, Rounseville Wildman, told him that Dewey had left
instruction for the return of Aguinaldo to the Philippines. Wildman later
told Aguinaldo to establish a dictatorial government in the Philippines
so that he could easily take steps to continue the revolution against
Spain. But after the hostilities, Aguinaldo should establish a
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government like that of the United States. Having been won over by
Wildman’s frankness, Aguinaldo entrusted him to purchase rifles and
ammunition to be used by the Filipino army. For this purpose, he gave
Wildman the sum of ₱50,000. Later, he gave Wildman ₱67,000 for the
purchase of more arms and ammunition. The first shipment of arms
and ammunition costing ₱50,000 was consummated but the second
transaction, which costed ₱67,000, was never realized. There was no
record that Wildman returned the money
When Dewey won the Battle of Manila Bay and news about it reached
all parts of the world, the Filipino patriots in Hongkong met to discuss
the steps to be taken to take over the Philippines. These Filipino
patriots composed the Hongkong Junta. Those present in the meeting
were informed that Aguinaldo had returned to Hongkong and thus, they
decided to adjourn temporarily to greet Aguinaldo. When Aguinaldo
arrived at the meeting place, everybody embraced him. He told the
Hongkong Junta about his interview with Pratt and Wildman. Aguinaldo
told the Junta that the situation the Philippines was very serious and
sought their opinions over the matter. There was an exchange of points
of view and the Junta unanimously decided that Aguinaldo should
return to the Philippines. He would lead the Filipinos once more against
the Spaniards.
AGUINALDO RETURNS
Many nations are on our side.” By the end of May, Aguinaldo’s armed
forces had captured about 5,000 prisoners. Town after town, in Cavite
and Morong, fell into the hands of the Filipino rebels. In Pampanga,
Laguna, Batangas, Bulacan, Nueva Ecija, Tayabas, Bataan, and
Camarines, the people were up in arms against Spain. By June 1898,
practically the whole of Luzon, with the exception of the Port of Cavite,
which was in American hands, and the City of Manila, which was under
the Spaniards, was in the hands of the Filipino rebels. On June 12
1898, Aguinaldo signed the Proclamation of the Philippine
Independence in Kawit, Cavite.
The defeat of the Spanish fleet discouraged the Spanish officials in the
city. What demoralized them was Aguinaldo’s return. It meant that the
Filipinos would renew the struggle against the Spaniards. Added to this
was the further desertion of many Filipino soldiers from the Spanish
armed forces. They joined the cause of the revolutionaries and
transferred under Aguinaldo’s banner.
On the other hand, Aguinaldo ordered his forces to lay siege to the city
to starve its Spanish population and make them helpless. Tondo, Santa
Cruz, San Juan, and even as far as Caloocan were filled with Filipino
rebels that surrounded the city. Aguinaldo also ordered that the city’s
food and water supply be cut off. Then he demanded the surrender of
the Spanish forces inside the city, but Governor Augustin, thinking of
Spanish honor, refused to surrender
Dewey did not besiege the city because he did not have enough forces
to do it. In June and July, however, American troops arrived in Manila
Bay. They landed in Paraňaque and encamped south of Pasay. With
this force, the American military commanders, among them General
Arthur MacArthur believed that they could fight the Spaniards. But
Dewey thought that he could make the Spaniards surrender without a
fight. He sent the Belgian consul to governor Augustin to negotiate with
206
him. The Government of Spain did not like this. He was relieved of his
duty and was succeeded by General Fermin Jaudenes. Jaudenes
believed that the Spanish position was very weak, but he could not
surrender without losing face. So he entered into a secret agreement
with Dewey and General Wesley Merritt. As agreed, both sides would
stage a mock battle to lead to Spanish surrender. It was also agreed
upon that the Filipino rebels should not be allowed by their American
allies to enter the city. This secret agreement was known only to
Jaudenes, Merritt, and Dewey.
It was August 13, 1898. The day was dreary; there was a downpour
because the rainy season has arrived. The American soldiers walked
quietly toward the walls of the city in preparation for the “battle.” On the
other hand, Aguinaldo’s generals suspected that the Americans were
not being faithful to them. Questions lingered in their minds about the
true intentions of the Americans. Why were American soldiers
positioned to enter the battle? It was just a matter of time, perhaps a
day or two, for the Spaniards to surrender to the Filipino forces. Why
were they staying? Didn’t they promise that they would not colonize the
Philippines?
STUDY GUIDE
SUGGESTED ACTIVITES
211
CHAPTER 13
When Mabini was brought before Aguinaldo in his office, the General
looked at the man before him. He was thin and obviously sick. He was
paralyzed from the waist down to his lower limbs, a sickness which he
must have contracted since birth. Despite this sickly appearance,
Aguinaldo noted that there was a strange light in Mabini’s eyes that he
could not explain. There was something in those eyes that captivated
Aguinaldo. No one spoke.
214
The Declaration of Independence
Hence, Mabini prepared the decree of June 18 which provided for the
reorganization of the government in provinces that were already taken
from the Spaniards. The right to vote was given to men of high moral
character and good standing in his community. They were the ones
who would elect the town head, cabeza of each barrio, and the
delegate for police and internal order, the delegate for justice and civil
registry, and the delegate for taxes and property. All these and the town
and barrio chiefs constituted the Popular Assembly. The town chief
acted as president of the Assembly; the cabeza of the poblacion or
town proper as the vice president; and the delegate for justice and the
216
civil registry as the secretary. On the other hand, the provincial chief or
governor and three councilors were elected by the town chiefs, in
consultation with the Popular Assembly. The provincial chief, the chief
of the capital of the province, and the three councilors constituted the
Provincial Council. Mabini thought that there should be a Revolutionary
Congress. To prepare for this, he included in the June 18 decree a
provision stating that each province should elect its delegates to
Congress was “to propose…measures concerning the preservation of
internal order and external security of these islands…”
They were the Department of Foreign Affairs, Navy and Commerce; the
Department of War and Public Works; the Department of Police and
Internal Order, Justice, Education, and Hygiene; and the Department of
Finance, Agriculture, and Manufacturing industry. The June 23 decree
also provided for the creation of Congress. Provinces which could not
hold any election for delegates to Congress, because they were still
under Spaniards, would be represented by appointive delegates to
Congress. The Congress was not a lawmaking body but an advisory
one. It would advise the President on matters pertaining to the
organizationof the Revolutionary army and the raising of funds to
support it – not just the vague statement: “the welfare of the country.”
218
The Basilica of Barasoain was filled with people on the morning of
September 15, 1898. The Banda Pasig played the “Marcha Filipina,” at
the churchyard. The marcha is now known as the National Anthem.
Cries of “Viva!” reverberated when Aguinaldo arrived with his aides. He
entered the church and sat in one of the chairs designated for him. He
acknowledged the applause and then stood up. He read his message
in Tagalog and later in Spanish. He announced that the ceremonies
were over and that the Congress should elect its officers.
The Malolos Constitution was the first important state document that
the Filipino people, speaking through their representatives, had ever
produced. Republican in orientation, the Congress worked hard to have
220
a constitution for the people, which was democratic in its aspects.
According to this Constitution, the government that was established
was “popular, representative, and responsible.” It was divided into
three branches: the executive, the legislative, and the judicial.
The Constitution also provided for national and individual rights not only
of Filipinos, but also of foreigners. Safeguards against abuses were
provided for so that the people would not experience what they had
experienced under Spain. The Assembly had only one house. In other
words, it was unicameral. The President was elected by the Assembly,
which took the place of Congress. The department secretaries – the
secretaries of foreign affairs, secretary of justice, among others – were
responsible not to the President, but to the Asssembly.
Calderon explained later that the reason behind the superior rank of the
legislative branch over the executive or the judicial branches of
government was that he was afraid that if the executive branch, (i.e,
Aguinaldo) became powerful, then the ignorant soldiers who were for
Aguinaldo would dominate the government. He said he preferred the
oligarchy of the intellect over the oligarchy of ignorance. But since
education was accessible only to the few rich, this exluded the many
who were poor and uneducated. This also included many veterans of
221
the 1896 Revolution, the soldiers and leaders of the Katipunan in the
provinces.
Education
The armed struggle between the Spaniards and the Filipinos resulted in
the destruction of schools and buildings. Consequently, all schools
were closed. However, in the interest of Filipino children and adults, the
Revolutionary Government ordered the provincial governors to reopen
schools that had been abandoned during the revolution. For the budget
of 1899, Aguinaldo included an item for education amounting to
P35,000. Then a decree provided for the improved curriculum of the
Burgos Institute. The curriculum included subjects such as Latin
grammar, universal geography, English, French, history, mathematics,
physics, chemistry, philosophy, and natural laws.
In order to convince the foreign powers that the Filipino were civilized
and capable of maintaining a stable government, Aguinaldo sent out
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diplomatic agents abroad. These Filipino diplomats were Felipe
Agoncillo for the United States; Mariano Ponce and Faustino Lichauco
for Japan; Antonio Ma. Regidor for England; Juan Luna and Pedro
Roxas for France; and Eriberto Zarcal for Australia. In France and
Spain, propaganda committees were stablished for the purpose of
working for the recognition of Philippine independence by foreign
powers.
Many Americans were also against the treaty and even established the
Anti-Imperialist League which was very vocal against the move of the
Unites States to colonize the Philippines. When the Philippine
American War started on February 4, 1899, the American newspapers
said it was the Filipinos who started the war. This turned the tide for the
approval of the treaty. On February 6, the Senate voted to pass the
Treaty of Paris. The American imperialists, who propagated the
falsehood that the Filipinos started the hostilities, won the day.
STUDY GUIDE
226
change when he heard Mabini speak? What can you say about
Mabini’s personality?
3. Tell the story of how the independence of the Philippines was
proclaimed. Why was the proclamation important to the Filipinos?
4. Why, in your opinion, did Mabini want the local government
reorganized? What was his motive?
5. Was Mabini’s decree of reorganizing the towns and the provinces
democratic? Explain your answer.
6. How was justice administered under the Filipino government?
Was it an improvement over the administration of justice during
the Spanish period? Why?
7. What was the Revolutionary Government? Why was the
Dictatorial Government replaced? How long did it last?
8. Why was the Malolos Congress called in session? According to
the June decrees, did it have any right to frame a constitution?
Why?
9. Why did Mabini object to the framing of the constitution? Was he
right in doing so? Explain your answer.
10. What was the Malolos Constitution? Explain how it was passed
to Congress.
11. What is meant by a unicameral assembly? Why do you think
Calderon preferred a unicameral assembly against a bicameral
assembly?
12. In what way is the Malolos Constitution important? Write as
many reasons as you can think of.
13. Why did Calderon prefer an oligarchy of the intellectuals over an
oligarchy of the ignorant? Which do you prefer and why?
14. What was the Revolutionary Government’s attitude toward
education? Discuss the government’s educational policy.
227
15. Discuss the principal provisions of the Teatry of Paris. What
were Agoncillo’s arguments why Spain had no right to give the
Philippines to the United States? Do you agree with him? Explain
your answer.
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CHAPTER 14
The colonial motives of the United States over the Philippines were
economic, politico-military, and religious. Aguinaldo and the
Revolutionary Army in Malolos, who by then were convinced of
American take-over, prepared for war. The Filipinos, facing a fully-
equipped and trained army for conventional warfare, were badly
beaten. But the Filipinos ably substained the resistance through guerilla
warfare. The U.S. responded with repressive and violent measure to
230
end the war – using water cure, reconcentration and scorched-earth
tactics. The people, threatened by starvation and diseases that were
related to the war, opted for peace.
After the signing of the Treaty of Paris, President McKinley issued the
so-called “Benevolent Assimilation” Proclamation. For the first time,
McKinley officially announced the American policy regarding the
Philippines. It clearly indicated the intention of the United States to
exercise sovereignty over the entire Philippines, making it a United
States colony. At the same time, the proclamation ordered the
American military commanders in the Phippines to extend American
sovereignty over the entire archipelago by force. General Elwell Otis,
231
who succeeded General Meritt, did not publish the full text of
McKinley’s proclamation for fear of arousing the anger of the Filipinos.
Instead, he changed some word to soften the language of the
proclamation so as not to antagonize the people.
Aguinaldo knew very well that a war with the United States would bring
hardship and suffering to the people. He tried to relax the tension by
suggesting to Otis that their representative should meet to discuss
ways and means of avoiding a conflict. Consequently, Otis appointed
his representatives which were composed of three military officers.
Aguinaldo also appointed his three representatives. The six
representatives met for almost a month in January but nothing came
232
out of the meetings because the American representatives were
stalling, which heightened the tension of the two panels. The Filipino
military officers believed that the Americans were only fooling the
Filipinos and that they were not interested in keeping the Filipino-
American diplomatic relations.
Mabini is the next most powerful man in the country, after Aguinaldo.
He was president of the cabinet and, as such, he was Prime Minister.
He was also a Secretary of Foreign Affairs. Aguinaldo depended on
him because he was honest, hardworking and incorruptible. He never
used his position to enrich himself in office. He was poor when he
entered the government service. He was very poor when he died.
When the Americans tried to win over the Filipinos by promising them
freedom and autonomy, Mabini said this was the trick of the enemy. He
was for the independence of the Philippines. He would not accept
anything less than independence. However, his enemies like Pedro A.
Paterno, Ambrosio Rianzaress Bautista, Felipe Buencamino and many
others who belonged to the wealthy and the powerful, opposed him.
They believe that autonomy would be good to Filipinos. So they
accepted the American offer of autonomy. Since the group knew that
Mabini was opposed to their view, they persuaded Aguinaldo to remove
Mabini from office. On May 7, Aguinaldo informed Mabini that Paterno
was forming a new cabinet. Mabini knew what it meant. So he sent in
the resignation of the entire cabinet he was heading. Mabini spent his
236
last years in his armchair writing articles against the Americans, and his
memoirs of the Philippine struggle for independence.
General Antonio Luna was the most brilliant among the military officers.
Belonging to an educated and wealthy family of Ilocos Norte, Luna
however was born in Manila, in the district now known as San Nicolas.
He studied pharmacy in Manila and in Spain, where he identified
himself with the propagandists. He was also a good writer in Spanish.
He had one defect, which the members of the Luna family have in
common; he was short-tempered. He was exiled to Spain by the
colonial government; and on his way back to the Philippines in 1898, he
passed by HongKong. He asked Felipe Agoncillo, a family friend, to
give him a letter of recommendation for General Aguinaldo. Agoncillo
gave him the necessary recommendation and a revolver.
With the death of General Luna, many Filipino field commanders were
demoralized. A number of Aguinaldo’s generals surrendered to the
enemy. This development led Otis to make plans to entrap Aguinaldo,
the recognized leader of the Filipino people and his army. Aguinaldo,
on the other hand, seeing the collapse of his regular army, ordered his
troops and the people to conduct guerilla warfare against the enemy,
which was expected to be more effective than conventional warfare
during that time. The Americans who were not familiar with the local
terrain and not used to the tropical climate would be put to a great
disadvantage with this tactic.
Meanwhile, Aguinaldo together with some selected men, his son, wife,
mother, and sister, fled to Pangasinan. The Americans followed him
and tried to catch him. But they failed, because the people warned him
about the approaching Americans. People were cooperative.. They
contributed money, food, and other supplies to Revolutionary Army.
Determined not to be captured, Aguinaldo walked from town to town
with very little rest. Later, he left his family behind in order to spare
them from the hardships of travelling on foot over rivers, valleys,
240
mountains, and streams. Aguinaldo and a handful of faithful followers
walked to Tierra Virgen, Cagayan. On September 6, 1900, he and his
men reached Palanan, Isabela where he established his headquarters.
241
the body there and for two days remained unburied. On the third day,
the Igorots buried his remains in a shallow grave.
For example they used the “water cure” on many Filipinos to punish of
extract information to them. This form of torture was done by forcing
water into the stomach of a person until it gets filled. Then the person
would be made to lie on his back and an American soldier would jump
on his stomach. Another torture was placing a rope around a person’s
neck and twisting it to choke him. Still, another form of torture was
beating the victim until he became blue to his face. In Samar, the
Americans also resorted to massacre to avenge the death of their
comrades who were killed by the Filipino guerillas under the command
of General Vicente Lukban. The Americans also burned the whole
town of Balangiga and killed all men and even boys over ten years old.
The Americans burned houses, blockaded food from getting to
guerillas, re-concentrated pueblos where diseases like cholera and
242
malaria reached epidemic proportions. Many surrendered because they
could not take any more of these brutalities.
With the help of a Spaniard, Lazaro Segovia, who joined the Filipino
forces against the Americans, Colonel Frederick Funston planned the
capture of Aguinaldo. The Spaniard led some men from Macabebe and
pretended to have captured some American soldiers. They walked to
Palanan and informed Aguinaldo through a courier that they were
bringing in the American captives. Aguinaldo was happy to hear the
news and made preparations for the soldiers who had captured the
enemy. When Segovia arrived in the house where Aguinaldo was
staying, he and his men signaled to their comrades to start firing. When
Aguinaldo rushed to the window to see what was happening, Funston
and his men told Aguinaldo to surrender. It was useless, he said, the
whole house was surrounded.
At this time, too, rinderpest killed over 90% of carabaos, thus rice
planting was greatly affected causing severe shortage of food. The
Americans continued their relentless campaign against the guerillas.
On February 27, 1902, they captured General Vicente Lukban in
Samar. This was the end of the guerilla warfare in that province. Two
months later, on April 16, General Malvar surrendered in order to save
his people from the brutality of the enemy and from hunger. With the
surrender of General Malvar, systematic opposition to American
sovereignty ceased. It is true that here and there, as in the case of
Macario Sakay, patriots refused to surrender, but at this point, their
effect on the Americans was negligible. The guerilla warfare was
crushed.
The non-Christian Filipinos like those in the Cordillera of Luzon and the
Muslims in the Sulu archipelago on the south, were “pacified” through
the creation of two special provinces; the Moro Province in 1903 and
the Mountain Province in 1908. In the Moro Province, however, warfare
would continue for a decade up to 1916. The brutal military campaigns
of the U.S. against them was revealed in the massacre at Bud Dajo in
1906 in Sulu, where after four days of fighting, the U.S. forces suffered
20 casualties and 70 men wounded. All the Tausugs – men, women,
and children, about a thousand of them, were all killed.
STUDY GUIDE
246
15. Describe the capture of Aguinaldo. What was the significance of
his capture?
16. List the causes or reasons that led to the collapse of the guerilla
warfare. Why did General Malvar finally surrender?
Suggested Activities
247
CHAPTER 15
“..Let us cease that the people may rest; that it may work to
recover from its recent proprietary losses. Let us conform to the
opinion of the majority although we may recognize that by this
method we do not obtain our desires.”
Historians find it difficult to give the exact figures of Filipinos who were
killed in the battlefields and the number of casualties from the
epidemics and in the reconcentration camps. Records of these deaths
were not kept; or if they exist, access is difficult. Most accounts of the
war, however, estimate that some 250,000 Filipinos died. General
248
Franklin Bell, who took charge of the bloody campaigns in Batangas
admitted in an interview that over 600, 000 people in Luzon had been
killed and had die of diseases as a result of the war. If the numbers of
those killed in the Visayas and Mindano were to be added, the figure
could rise to a million. The same degree of loss could be said on the
economic side. The fact that some 90% of the carabaos died due to
rinderpest which was also war-related as recent studies suggest, rice
production went down to one-fourth of its normal production. Certainly,
this level was not enough to feed a population of nearly eight million.
Formerly productive industries and agricultural activities could not have
thrived under conditions of war. What used to be cultivated haciendas
or fields of sugarcane, coffee, tobacco, and abaca had been turned into
jungles, devastated and uncultivated.
Since the great majority of the priests were Spaniards, it was natural
that they sided with the government during the Katipunan Revolution. It
was for this reason that Apolinario Mabini, in a letter to General Otis in
1898, accused the Spanish friars of helping the colonial government to
oppress the Filipinos. Moreover, Mabini pointed out that the friars were
arming themselves and fighting the Filipinos, something which was
250
foreign to their spiritual calling. Consequently, Mabini refused to release
the friars that were captured by the Filipino rebels.
Mabini, who was a Mason, felt happy over the new development. At his
instance, the Revolutionary Government, late in 1898 recognized the
251
validity of civil marriage. Mabini reasoned that since the Revolution had
separated the Church and the State, it was logical to recognize civil
marriage as valid. During the Spanish rule, civil marriage was not
recognized either by the Church or the State. Going one step farther,
the Revolutionary Government, again at the instance of Mabini, refused
to recognized the authority of the Archbishop. It prohibited Filipino
priests from accepting any position from the Catholic Church without
first securing the approval of the Revolutionary Government. Mabini’s
intention was to persuade the Filipino priests to join the revolutionary
cause. On October 20, 1898, Aguinaldo appointed Aglipay Military
Vicar General. As such, Aglipay was the religious leader of the
Revolutionary Government.
Let the Filipino clergy show their zeal and love for the Church; let
them show their capacity to govern not only the parishes but also
the diocese; let them show that the regular orders not needed in
the Philippines to maintain alive the faith in the Cartholic religion,
and the Pope who cannot separate from justice as a Vicar of
Christ who is God has to recognize the rights and merits of the
Filipino priests. This is the most oopportune occasion which
Divine Providence offers them to obtain the reparation of their
253
grievances: those who aspire to be something more than mere
coadjustors and pages must not let this occasion pass.
Opposition of Filipinization
De los Reyes was disappointed, for he thought that those men he listed
as sympathizers of the new Church would join it. However, the masses
showed their sympathy with the Iglesia Filipina Independiente and
joined in. Affiliation papers were distributed and by the end of 1902,
fourteen Filipino priests affiliated with the new Church. Other Filipino
priests followed suit, especially, in Ilocos Norte. More followers came
later to swell the ranks of the Philippine Independent Church.
Another attempt to win back Aglipay to the Catholic fold was made
around 1910. This time, Aglipay, now the Supreme Bishop of the new
church, was invited by the Jesuits to the house of F. Theo Rogers,
publisher of the Philippines Free Press. Father Joaquin Villalonga, a
kind and energetic missionary, had a heart-to-heart talk with Aglipay. In
spite of Villalonga’s kind words and assurances of good faith, Aglipay,
who was at the same time accompanied by a young Aglipayan priest,
258
the Rev. Fr. Santiago Fonacier, refused to return to the Roman Catholic
fold. “The Philippine Indepent Church,” he said, “will live on, and neither
the Pope nor the Jesuits will be able to impede it. Aglipay will live and
die as poor as when he was born, but he will never betray the interests
of his people!”
Aglipay left. The attempts to win him back to the Roman Catholic
Church religion failed.
Study Guide
What were the goals of the Filipinos in the war against U.S.? Which
among these goals greatly suffered? Why? Explain your answer.
Explain how Aglipay came to join the revolutionary forces of
Aguinaldo. What was Aguinaldo’s purorpose in sending Aglipay to
Northern Luzon? What was Nozaleda’s purpose in sending him to
the same place?
Was Aglipay justified in joining Aguinaldo? Why?
What was Aguinaldo’s motive in appointing Aglipayas Military Vicar
General? Consult an encyclopedia or surf the Internet and see what
it says about Military Vicar General.
Why did Nozaleda excommunicate Aglipay? Was he right in doing
so? Explain your answer.
What was Mabini’s role in the formation of the National Church?
Explain in simple language why Mabini urged the Filipino priests to
establish a National Church.
What was the National Church? In what way was it different from the
Spanish Catholic Church?
Explain Chapelle’s opposition to the Filipinization of the Catholic
Church in the Philippines. What do you think was his reason for this
opposition? What was the effect of his attitude on the Filipino
priests?
Recount how the separation from Rome was affected. Who was the
real founder of the Philippine Independent Church? Why did he
establish it?
260
Who was the first Supreme Bishop of the new Church? Explain why
he was elected as such.
Why did the Jesuits try to win back Aglipay to the Roman Catholic
fold? Why did Fr. Foradada fail to persuade Aglipay to remain with
the Roman Catholic Church? What trait did Aglipay show in refusing
to accept Foradada’s offer?
Discuss the importance of the Philippine Independent Church. Why
was it a child of revolution?
Suggested Activities
261
CHAPTER 16
Winning the war did not guarantee that the Filipinos were willing to
accept American colonial rule. From the very start, American
policymakers and authorities realized that winning the hearts and minds
of a conquered people was more important and certainly not easy to
accomplish. The United States intended to occupy the Philippines with
the least violence and to govern the country with much regard for the
interest and welfare of the Filipinos. Their plan was to set up a civil
government immediately. However, this was prevented by the war. It
took them almost a decade to completely pacify the Filipinos after
resorting to repressive measures, like the passage of Martial Law and
Brigandage Act, and the use of reconcentration tactics. All of these
measures stopped guerrilla warfare at the cost of hundreds of
thousands of deaths that weighed heavily on the Filipino side. After the
war, the United States initiated benevolent efforts and programs such
as public education and elections. An all-Filipino Lower House was
created, two resident commissioners were appointed to the U.S.
Congress and U.S. government scholarships were initiated to stabilize
American rule in the country.
After Manila fell into the hands of the Americans, the country was
administered by the President of the United States through the military.
Thus, President McKinley ordered the military commander, General
262
Wesley Merritt, to establish a military government in the Philippines
with Merritt as the first military governor. In August 1898, he was
ordered to go to Paris to testify before the peace commissioners
regarding the conditions in the Philippines. Merritt was succeeded by
General Elwell Otis as military governor. Otis remained in his post up
to May 1900, and was succeeded by General Arthur MacArthur who
governed until May 1901. As representative of the President of the
United States in the Philippines, the military governor exercised wide
powers which included the executive, legislative, and judicial. In 1899,
the military governor was divested of his judicial powers, which were
transferred to the judiciary.
Slowly, his other powers were taken away from him. In 1900, his
legislative powers were transferred to the Philippine Commission,
and by 1901 his executive power was finally given to the civil governor,
when the local government was established. The military governor’s
duties included the pacification of the provinces which had not yet
recognized the authority of the United States and the maintenance of
peace and order in areas already pacified. In the latter case, the
military governor ordered the organization of town and provincial
governments. Baliwag, Bulacan, was the first town under the American
colonial rule to hold local elections on May 7, 1898. It was also the
military government that introduced the public school system in the
Philippines with some soldiers acting as teachers.
Toward the end of 1898, even before the conclusion of the Treaty of
Paris, American policy regarding the Philippines was already clear.
263
There was no mistaking the fact that McKinley wanted the entire
Philippines for the United States. In order to help him formulate this
policy, McKinley created what is now known as the first Philippine
Commission. This was called the Schurman Commission, named
after its chairman, Dr. Jacob Gould Schurman, President of Cornell
University in New York.
Early in March 1901, the Congress of the United States passed the
Army Appropriations Act. Senator John Spooner of Wisconsin inserted
an amendment in the appropriations act which authorized the President
of the United States to establish a civil government in the Philippines.
This amendment, known as the Spooner Amendment, became the
basis of the civil government in the Philippines. After the passage of the
Army Appropriations Act, the administration of the Philippines was
passed on the U.S. Congress.
The period in fact saw the passage of repressive laws like the
Reconcentration Act which provided for the zoning of the inhabitants
of a town known to have “thieves” and “outlaws.” The purpose of the
law was to discourage the civilian population from supporting the
guerrillas, and to subject them to zoning. According to James Blount
(1913), Section 17 of General Orders 100 authorized the military to
starve unarmed and armed natives in order for them to immediately
recognize American military authority. Moreover, the orders allowed
food supplies to be seized from the unarmed natives and brought to
towns. Those that were seized from the armed and hostile natives were
“lawfully” destroyed.
Thus, the Sedition Law, passed in 1901, provided that any Filipino
advocating independence or separation from the United States would
be punished severely by death or imprisonment. The following year, the
Brigandage Act was passed providing for severe penalty to those
found in the company, or were members, of armed groups who were
stealing carabaos, which were in great shortage due to rinderpest.
Guerrilla warfare under these circumstances was suppressed.
Governor Taft is remembered for his principle, “the Philippines for the
Filipinos.” Taft noted that some Americans were greedy and wanted to
exploit the Filipinos for their own selfish ends; so in February 1903 in
Iloilo City, Taft boldly announced that Americans and foreigners should
leave the Philippines at once if they “found fault with the way the
government was being run.” He also insisted that the government was
being run for the Filipinos. He criticized Americans who were impatient
with his policy of attraction and with his doctrine of the “the Philippines
for the Filipinos.” It seemed his policies and programs were only good
as rhetorics. The Combination of peace and war methods does not
work.
Even before the fall of the Aguinaldo government, many wealthy and
educated Filipinos were already collaborating with the enemy. Filipinos
269
like Trinidad H. Pardo de Tavera, Benito Legarda, Felipe Buencamino,
Cayetano Arellano, and others were telling the Schurman Commission
that the Filipinos were not prepared for self-government. On the other
hand, there were patriots who refused to collaborate with the enemy.
Mabini, the most irreconcilable of all, wrote articles attacking the
Americans.
In 1902 the U.S. Congress passed a law known as the Cooper Law or
the Philippine Act of 1902. The law boosted Governor Taft’s
Administration. This law approved all the acts of the President of the
United States relative to the Philippines. It also provided for a bill of
rights which guaranteed Filipinos the right of free speech, free press,
and freedom to petition for the redress of grievances. Executive
department were provided for, such as the Department of Finance and
Justice, and the Department of Public Instruction.
The Filipino people were also given the right to send two
representatives, known as resident commissioners, to the United
States Congress so they could work for the interest of the Philippines in
270
that body. However, while they could discuss matters pertaining to the
Philippines, they could not vote. One of the most important provisions
of the Cooper Act was the establishment of a Philippine Assembly to be
run by Filipinos two years after peace and order had been proclaimed
throughout the Philippines by the President of the United States.
Political Parties
This party was led by young lawyers like Sergio Osmeña of Cebu and
Manuel L. Quezon of Tayabas. The Nacionalista Party became popular
because of its platform on the immediate granting of independence.
This showed that some Filipino politicians remained pro-independence
despite the collaborationist stand of others such as the Federalistas or
Progresistas.
In accordance with the Cooper Act or the Philippine Bill of 1902, the
Filipinos could elect delegates to the Philippine Assembly two years
after peace and order has been proclaimed in the country. The Filipino
political parties prepared for the coming election to the Assembly. The
issue presented before the people was whether or not they wanted
272
immediate independence, as announced by the Nacionalista Party, or
eventual independence, as proclaimed by the Progresista Party. In the
election of July 30, 1907, the people gave their verdict: they were in
favor of immediate independence. This was attested by an
overwhelming vote for the Nacionalista Party which won fifty-nine
seats. The Progresista Party won only sixteen seats, while the
independents won five seats.
The Philippine Assembly, which was to become the Lower House of the
Legislative body of the country, and the Philippine Commission being
the Upper House, was inaugurated in the old Opera House at Rizal
Avenue on October 16, 1907. William H. Taft, then Secretary of war,
was the guest speaker. In his speech, he sain in part:
The Assembly elected its officers, where, Sergio Osmeña, who was
only twenty-nine years old then, was elected Speaker; while Manuel L.
Quezon was elected Majority Floor Leader. The delegates to the
Assembly, mostly young men, adopted the rules of the American
Congress to guide them in their deliberations. The Philippine Assembly
was the first significant step toward close Filipino-American
cooperation. The Filipinos, for the first time since the Malolos
273
Congress, were given representations in lawmaking. This function was
dominated by its American members. With the inauguration of the
Assembly, the lawmaking body of the Philippines was divided into two:
the Upper House composed mostly of Americans, and the Lower
House or the Assembly, composed exclusively of Filipinos.
Pensionado Program
During the Spanish period, the position of women was relegated to the
status of mere housewives whose duties were to rear children and
serve the husband. Few Filipino women were highly education. Even
these highly-educated women were destined for the home. Under the
Americans, women were allowed to enrol in colleges and universities
established by them. Thus, women studied to become teachers,
pharmacists, dentists, lawyers, physicians, and scientist. Their
liberation from the drudgery of household work gave them the
276
opportunity not only to help their husbands, but also to contribute their
expertise and knowledge to benefit their families and countrymen.
Women would also be granted the right to vote and run for public office
by 1935.
Study Guide
Suggested Activities
1. Go to the library and read about the first American teachers in the
Philippines. You can read a book or article on the so-called
“Thomasites.” Why were they called “Thomasites?”
2. Compare the school systems during the Spanish period and the
American period. Compare the percentage of literacy between the
two period.
3. Read on the life and heroism of Artemio Ricarte, Maximo Hizon,
Julian Gerona, Pablo Ocampo, and Melchora Aquino. Add them
to your list of biographies.
278
CHAPTER 17
With the existence of general peace and order, the Americans had the
opportunity to put into practice what their leaders in Washington, D.C.
had promised (1) to give the Filipinos the benefit of wise and just
administration;(2) to give the Filipinos civil liberties they never enjoyed
under Spanish colonial rule; and (3) to train the Filipinos in self-
government as preparation for independence, a concept that was
unheard of under Spain. But like other colonial pronouncements, such
promises could mean two things. First, the American policy in the
training of Filipinos in self-government meant that the Americans did
not believe that the Filipinos were ready for independence. Second, it
also meant that the Americans were not yet willing to give up the
Philippines as their colony. Thus, the government established by the
Americans, by the large, was a government controlled by the
Americans with the Filipinos in charge of running or operating it;
Filipinos who were wealthy and educated, pro-Americans and
westernized in their lifestyles.
The Americans took several steps to train the Filipinos for self-
government before the grant of independence. First, they passed the
Cooper Law or the Philippine Bill of 1902. This law was responsible for
the establishment of the Philippine Assembly, which gave Filipinos the
right to be represented in the lawmaking body through their elected
delegates to the assembly.
279
Second, the Americans passed the Jones Law in 1916, which handed
over both houses of the lawmaking body exclusively to the Filipinos. It
also promised to grant independence to the Filipinos “as soon as a
stable government be established therein.” Third, the Americans under
Governor-General Francis Burton Harrison gave the Filipinos greater
participation in the government.
This was done by employing trained Filipinos in low and high positions
in the government. This process was called Filipinization. Fourth, the
American Congress passed the Tydings-McDuffie act in 1934 which
provided for the establishment of transition government called the
Commonwelt. At the end of this transition period, the Philippines would
finally be given her independence.
Government Reorganization
280
These officials were to be elected every two years. The qualified voters
were males, twenty-three years old and over, had resided of the
municipality for at least six months, had held a position in the town
government during the Spanish period, or owned property worth
500.00, or paid taxes worth 30.00 a year, and who could speak and
write in English or Spanish. This law was restrictive because it only
granted the highly-educated peoplr were not given the same right. The
effect of such law was to perpetuate the rule of the principalia of elite
groups.
The Americans, known for their efficiency, exerted all efforts to make
the national or central government efficient by establishing the civil
service. In 1900, the Philippine Commission passed the Civil Service
Act. Accordind to this law, all government employees, whether in the
municipal, provincial, or national government, shall be placed under the
281
administrative control of the Bureau of Civil Service. This bureau was
under the control and supervision of the governor-general.
The law required all persons who were interested in joining government
service to trake competitive examinations given by the Bureau of Civil
Service. The purpose of the law was to minimize, if not completely
eliminate, political political pull in government service. This meant that
service in the government was a career and not an adventure. The
introduction of the civil service also set up the merit system in which
individual positive qualities and abilities, and nothing else, counted
when it came to promotions. The influence of politics or the church was
disregarded, hence, making the civil service system efficient and
propessional.
Employment of Filipinos
282
Filipinos were also represented in the Supreme Court. The first chief
Justice was Cayatano arellano. Later, some Filipinos were appointed
as associates justices, like Victorino Mapa, Manuel Araullo, and others.
In the civil service, the number of qualified Filipino employees
increased from year to year. In the provincial and municipal
governments, practicalloy all employees were Filipinos.
Important Provisions
The Legislature
When the Jones Law took effect, the Filipinos began to enjoy self-
government in larger measure, comperd to any time during the Spanish
regime or under the Republican governor-general. Before the passage
of the Jones Law, the all-American Philippine Commission was at first,
the only lawmaking body of the Philippines. With the inauguration of the
Philippine Assembly in 1907, the Filipinos shared with the Americans
the responsibility for making laws.
With the passage of the Jones Law, the entire task of making laws
passed on to the Filipinos. The Philippine Commission was abolished
and in its place the Philippine Senate was created, which became the
Upper house. The Assembly became the House of Representatatives.
Sergio Osmena continued to be Speker of the house, while Manuel L.
Queson who, together with Osmena, worked for the passage of the
Jones Law, was elected Senator and then President of the Senate.
287
of the Progresistas, it decided to merge with the newly-established
Democrata Party.
The Jones law specifically provided that all deparment under the
executive branch were under the direct supervision and control of
Governor-General Harrsion. In his desire to give more experience to
Filipinos in the exercise of their right to make decisions and act on
them, he went beyond the clear intention of the Jones Law. Acting on
the suggestion of Speaker Osmena, he created the Council of State.
This was composed of the governor-general acting as chairman, the
Speaker of the house, the Senate President, and the member of the
Cabinet. The composition of the council, therefore, was predominantly
Filipino, and only the governor-general and the vice governor were
Americans. Speaker Osmena became the vice chairman of the Council.
He, therefore, was recognized as a leader among the Filipinos, was
considered as the number two man in the Philippine government.
By the time Harrison left the Philippines in 1921, the Filipino were
administering their government. However, in the upper bracket of the
government service where final decision were made, the governor-
general and the vice governor, who was also Secretary of Public
Instraction, were Americans. The government, then, may be said to be
run by Filipinos under U.S authority. The significance of the Harrison
administration lay in the fact that he paved the way for larger Filipino
participation in government. Since the majority came from the
propertied and educated class. Filipinization, at the end meet
bureaucracy in the hands of the illustrados or the old pricipalia class.
STUDY GUIDE
289
4. What was the purpose of the American authorities in instituting
civil service in the government? Do you think it was a wise step?
WHY?
5. Why was the government service Filipized? Was it a wise move
on the part of the Americans? Why?
6. Insofar as Filipinos were concerned, what was the significance of
the appointment of Harrisor as governor-general of the
Philippines?
7. Discuss Filipinization under Harrison. Compare Filipinization
during his administration and during the administrations of
Republican governor-general like Governor Taft. Which
Filipinization, in your opinion, was more effective and through?
Why?
8. What is the importance of the Jones Law? What are its most
important provisions with reference to self-government?
9. In what way did the Jones Law affect the lawmaking body of the
Philippines?
10. What was the Council of State? Why was it created? Who
inspired its creation? What was the real motive behind its
creation?
11. Discuss the achievements of Harrison in the Philippines. Of
these achievements, what is the most important inyour opinion?
SUGGESTED ACTIVITIES
290
2. To get a good picture of Filipinization under Harrison, read his
book, the Cornerstone of Philippine Independence. Read the
chapter on Filipinization. This will complete the picture of how the
Filipinos hand been trained in self-government.
3. In your opinion, What do you think were the kinds of law that were
passed by the legislature during the American period considering
that majority of the Filipino leadership came from the elite?
291
CHAPTER 18
The campaign for women’s suffrage was more united and successful.
The report also stated that most of the Christian Filipinos were for
independence, but the non-Christians, who constituted about 10
percent of total population were for continued American occupation.
The mission, therefore, favored the Republican policy of not granting
independence to the Filipinos until such time as they had shown
competence in self-rule. The Filipino Resident Commissioners to the
United States protested the report of the mission.
The Filipino leaders felt that the mission insulted the Filipinos in
doubting their capacity for self-government. Maximo Kalaw
commented that the issue of “the incapacity of the Filipinos to carry on
ant decent form of government” has served the Americans’ political
needs. According to him, without any clear criteria for capacity for self-
rule, the Americans could delay Philippine independence at their own
will or whim.
293
Wood Becomes Governor
In the election of 1922, the issue between Osmena and Quezon was
clarified: unipersonalista leadership against colectivista leadership.
Quezon’s group won more seats than Osmena’s group. A third party,
the Democratic Party, successfully challenged both colectivistas and
unipersonalistas. To prevent a further weakening of their parties,
Quezon and Osmena reconciled and merged for the 1925 elections.
Osmena was elected to the senate and Manuel A. Roxas was elected
to succeed Osmena as speaker of the House of Representatives. In the
Senate, Quezon was reelected president, while Osmena was elected
president protempore. Osmena, to preserve party leadership, was
295
content to let Quezon succeed him as the main political leader of the
Filipinos.
296
court also stated that Conley’s behavior was open to suspicion. Conley
retired and got his retirement pay.
Wood was a very competent and honest man; but he was stiff and very
formal. In his attempts to recapture the powers of the governor-general.
Which the Filipino political leaders tried to exercise in violation of the
provisions of the Jones Law, he antagonized Quezon, Osmena and
other Filipinos in the government. One of the causes of the conflicts
between Wood and the Filipino leaders was the so-called board of
control case. The board of control was composed of the governor-
general, the Senate President, and the speaker of the House.
Independence Missions
300
at the end of a ten-year period, to be named as the Commonwealth
Period, Philippine independence would be granted.
Some Philippine products, like sugar, oil, abaca, and other fibers were
to enter the United States in limited quantities, while U.S. products
were allowed free entry to the Philippines. The bill also authorized the
United States to retain land or other property designated by the
President of the United States for “military and other reservations”
Originally, this Hare-Hawes-Cutting bill was vetoed by President
Herbert Hoover, but the Congress overturned his veto and passed the
bill into law.
301
1. The provisions on trade relations did not ensure economic
security for the Philippines after independence;
2. The immigration quota was offensive and one-sided;
3. The powers of the American high Commissioner were “too
indefinite”; and
4. The retention of military, naval and other reservations was
“inconsistent with true independence “that violate national dignity
or sovereignty.
Late 1933, Quezon realized that the chances of having a better law
passed were nil. Faced with embarrassment, Quezon worked with
Senator Millard Tydings and Representative John McDuffie to have the
Hare-Hawes-Cutting Law reenacted with practically little change. It was
understood that where inequalities’ existed, these could be corrected
later, assured by no less than President Franklin Delano Roosevelt.
The Tyding-McDuffie Act was signed by the President Roosevelt on
March 24, 1934 with one revision: “the retention of naval reservations
and fueling station “instead of “the retention of military and other
reservations.”
302
So why did Quezon object to the Hare-Hawes-Cutting Law only to have
it reenacted as the Tydings-McDuffie Act? The more popular reason
was Quezon’s fear that if he allowed the acceptance of the Hare-
Hawes-Cutting Law, which was the fruit of Osmena’s and Roxas’s
labor, Osmena would have an advantage if he were to run as President
of the Commonwealth. As such, Quezon would then revert to his former
position of “second fiddle” to Osmena.
He did not want this to happen. He wanted to remain the leader of the
Filipino people. And so, he worked for the rejection of the Hare-Hawes-
Cutting Law and its reenactment as the Tydings-McDuffie Act. The
limelight would be his as the one who secured Philippine independence
from the Americans for which the Filipino people would be grateful. But
closer scrutiny would reveal that there was also a serious reason. The
Tydings-Mcduffie Act removed the retention of U.S military bases on
Philippine soil.
The law also provided for the new constitution to include that United
States should have control over the foreign affairs and currency of the
Philippines before it would completely withdraw from the islands.
Delegates of the constitutional convention like Recto could not include
nationalistic provisions in the new constitution because of these
restrictions.
Women Suffrage
A sad note in this vibrant and successful era for women was the
postponement of women suffrage which was a provision in the 1935
Constitution. They had to wait after the establishment of the
Commonwealth government and a plebiscite thereafter before it’s
effectively. The women once again who displayed the vigor and
nationalist spirit of old, garnered more than the required votes in a
plebiscite with nearly half million votes. The women suffrage law was
finally signed by President Quezon on September 15, 1937, after three
decades of steadfast struggle with substantial gains.
305
Study Guide
Suggested Activities
308
CHAPTER 19
At the same time that the Americans, with the help of Filipino
physicians, were fighting the ravages of disease, `they also improve the
Filipino diet. The Americans taught the Filipinos nutrition. Balanced
diet, consisting of large amount of all known vitamins and minerals was
introduced. As a result, the Filipinos became healthier and taller. It is
estimated that the height of an average Filipino in 1900 was five feet
and three or four inches. By 1920, the average height may be
estimated at five feet and six inches.
The free trade relations between the Philippines and the United States
led to artificial prosperity. Free trade relations meant that Filipino
products entering the United States were not taxed, and American
products entering the Philippines were likewise, free of duty. As a result
of this free trade relation, Philippines exports to the United States
increased. In 1909, Philippines exports amounted to 60.9 million pesos.
In 1910-1914, it rose to 94.7 million pesos. In 1914-1918, the amount of
exports further increased to 177.3 million pesos, and in 1925-1930, the
exports amounted to 297.9 million pesos. Except during the World War
I, from 1914 to 1918, Philippines foreign trade enjoyed a favourable
balance of trade. This meant that Philippine exports were bigger than
imports.
The railway line was likewise extended. In 1903, there were less than
200 kilometres of railway. In 1935, it rose to more than 1,000
kilometres. The Manila-Dagupan Railway, founded during the Spanish
period, was acquired by the government and became the Manila
Railroad Company. The railway line was extended to the provinces of
Northern and Southern Luzon, thereby bring them closer than before.
313
DEMOCRACY AND CIVIL LIBERTIES
Political Parties
In time, the good as well as the bad characteristics of the political party
system in the United States were adopted by the Filipinos. The result of
this system of political party was the increase in the knowledge of
government machinery and government affairs by the wealth and
educated Filipinos. This type of politics, ironically was deepened during
the time of Governor-General Harrison, when more Filipinos came to
control the lawmaking body and government bureaucracy.
They wrote poems, essays and stories. With the teaching of the English
language to the Filipinos, American culture will became popular in the
Philippines. Filipino students learned the works of American writers as
315
Longfellow, Bryant, Poe, Whitman, Lanier and many others, more than
Filipino literary works. By 1935, many Filipino writers in English had
distinguished themselves in poetry, short stories, and essays. A few
wrote dramas and novels. Some of the poems and the short stories of
the Filipino writers in English were published in the United States.
The contact between Filipino and the English language resulted in the
adoption of English words and phrases in the major Philippine
languages. In Tagalog, in particular, hundreds of English words and
phrases have been adopted and are now part of the language. Words
like putbol (football), basketbol (basketball), pawl (foul), boksing
(boxing), bistik (beefsteak), kendi (candy), and many others are now
part of the Tagalog vocabulary. Up to this day, many English words and
phrases are still being incorporated into Tagalog. Hence the rise of
what is called “Taglish” or a combination of Tagalog and English, or
“Engalog,” which is a combination of English and Tagalog has been
significant.
STUDY GUIDE
318
8. Enumerate some of the individual freedoms. Which of these
freedoms do you value most? Explain your choice.
9. What American institutions were introduced in the Philippines
which led to political practices and exercises? Name some of the
bad effects of political parties and election practices on the
Filipino voters.
10. In what way did the Americans perpetuate their culture in
the Philippines? Do you think that the inclusion of English words
in the Philippine languages was beneficial or not? Give your
reason.
11. Name some of the bad results of the American occupation
of the Philippines. Which of these results do you consider the
worst? Why?
SUGGESTED ACTIVITIES
320
CHAPTER 20
It was for this reason that when the war broke out in the Pacific and the
Japanese occupied the Philippines for three years, the Filipinos
remained loyal to the Americans as they suffered hunger, atrocities,
and death in the hands of the Japanese.
321
PROBLEMS OF THE COMMONWEALTH
NATIONAL SECURITY
SOCIAL PROBLEMS
The period saw the rise of socialism and communism among the lower
classes: peasant and workers. Through unions and associations, they
worked for reforms beneficial to their class. Just like the Sakdalistas,
they were met with state violence and were outlawed.
324
and supporters resisted these social justice legislations. Thus,
Quezon’s social justice failed.
ECONOMIC PROBLEMS
325
The national Assembly, upon the recommendation of Quezon, created
the National Economic Council whose primary duty was to ‘advise the
government on economic matters’’. In accordance with this policy, the
National Development Company was reorganized to make it more
efficient and responsive to needs of the people. It also established
government companies such as the National Food Products
Corporation, the National Rice and Corn Corporation, and others,
whose main duty was to protect the people from being exploited by
unscrupulous producers or merchants.
The Japanese naval, military, and air forces took the offensive against
the United States, Britain, and Holland. Their colonies in Asia were
attacked – the Philippines, Malaya, and Indonesia. On December 8 and
the succeeding days, the Japanese bombed many places, including
Manila and the suburbs. In order to save Manila from destruction,
General Douglas MacArthur declared it an open city. All guns and other
327
defenses were withdrawn from Manila. But the Japanese did not honor
the declaration of the open city. They continued bombing it, resulting in
the destruction of properties and buildings like the old Santo Domingo
Church, San Juan de Letran College, Santa Catalina College, and the
offices of the newspapers, El Debate, Mabuhay, Philippines Herald,
and Monday Mail. Meanwhile, Japanese forces landed simultaneously
in Northern and Southern Luzon. Both forces knifed through the Filipino
– American defenses, and on January 2 the Japanese forces entered
and occupied Manila.
Quezon was very sick when the war broke out. His illness became
serious when he learned that thousands of Filipinos died as result of
Japanese bombing in Bataan and other places. In order to save him
from the Japanese who were driving toward manila, MacArthur
suggested that Quezon, his family, to together with Vice President
Osmeña and his family, as well as few others, should go to Corregidor.
In Corregidor, on December 30, Quezon took his oath of office to mark
the beginning of his second term as President of the commonwealth.
With Manila and other parts of Luzon in the hands of Japanese, Bataan
and Corregidor, under the command of General MacArthur, began to
take heavy beating from the enemy.
The help that MacArthur and the Filipinos were expecting from the
United States did not come. Food was scare in Bataan and as a result,
Filipino and American soldiers suffered from hunger and diseases.
Realizing that Bataan would soon fall, President Roosevelt ordered
Quezon to be transferred to Australia. In March, he also ordered
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MacArthur to fly Australia, from were he would direct military operations
against Japan.
Having suffered not only from hunger and diseases but also from
enemy bombs and cannon fire, the American commander in Bataan
surrendered on April 9, 1942. Hundreds were killed during the transit of
Filipino and few American prisoners of war to Capas, Tarlac. This
atrocious event was referred to as the “Death March”. The Japanese
were now free to devote their entire offensive against Corregidor. This
tiny island suffered from the almost ceaseless bombing attacks of the
enemy and on May 6, General Jonathan Wainwright surrendered the
Philippines to the Japanese.
GOVERNMENT REORGANIZATION
The advisers were actually spies or agents of the Japanese military. All
appointments to headship of department had to be approved by the
Japanese military authorities. On the provincial and municipal levels,
however, nothing was changed.
329
Educational Policy of the Japanese
Guerrilla Warfare
The Filipinos, with very few exceptions, were anti- Japanese. Many of
the soldiers who escaped Bataan and Corregidor joined or founded
guerrilla organizations. Throughout the entire Philippines, guerrilla
outfits sprang like mushrooms. Patriotism was at its height. The
guerrilla harassed Japanese army units, ambushed, and killed them.
Filipino spies in the employ of the Japanese sent reports to their
guerrilla units. These in turn sent the reports to General MacArthur in
Australia. Among the most famous guerrilla leaders were Governor
Tomas Confesor of Iloilo; Colonel Macario Peralta, of panay; colonel
331
Ruperto Kangleon of leyte; Tomas Cabili, Salipada Pendatun, and
Wendell Fertig of Mindanao; Wenceslao Q. Vinzons of Camarines
norte; Miguel Ver and Eleuterio Adevoso, who headed the hunters
R.O.T.C. Guerrillas; Marcos Agustin or Marking, who headed the
Marking’s Guerrilla; and Luis Taruc, who led the Hukbalahap. Their
guerrilla warfare tactics made the Japanese conquest of the Philippines
very difficult. Because of the Filipino guerrillas, MacArthur’s return to
the Philippines was facilitated. When MacArthur and his forces
returned, the ground was ready for clearing operations.
Quezon and his party left Corregidor in February 1942. They were
brought to Australia and from there they took a boat to San Francisco,
and then by train, reached Washington, D.C. it was in the U.S. that
Quezon reorganized the commonwealth government. His Cabinet
included General Basilio Valdes, Secretary of National Defense;
Manuel Nieto, Secretary of agriculture and Commerce; Joaquin
Elizalde, Resident Commissioner; Dr. Artuto B. Rotor, Executive
Secretary ; and Jaime Hernandez, Secretary of Finance. Because of
war conditions, the Commonwealth government thought it wise to
extend the presidency of Quezon beyond his term of office. However
Quezon was very sick, and on August 1, 1944 he died at Saranac
Lake, New York. He was succeeded by Vice President Sergio Osmeña.
In 1944, the United States began its offensive against Japan. Island
after island in the Pacific, which the Japanese had captured early in the
332
war, fell into the hands of the Americans. In several naval battles, the
American navy won over the Japanese navy. MacArthur, feeling that it
was time to return to the Philippines, ordered all his navy, marine, and
air forces to begin the attack on the Japanese in the Philippines who
had for the most part been defeated by the Filipino Guerrillas. Manila
and other places were heavily bombed by American airplanes. On
October 20, the American air and naval forces bombarded the
Japanese positions in Leyte.
On the same day, the Americans landed on Leyte and the battle for
Philippine liberation began. In several encounters, the Japanese navy
was defeated by elements of the American Navy which guarded Leyte.
As the Japanese military forces weakened, MacArthur landed in
Lingayen, Pangasinan on January 9, 1945. From Lingayen, the
American army sliced through Central Luzon and reached Manila at
twilight of February 3, 1945. The American and allied prisoners of war
at the University of Santo Tomas were freed.
333
The End of the War
STUDY GUIDE
335
17. Recount how MacArthur and the Americans returned to the
Philippines. Was their return vital to the liberation of the
Philippines from the Japanese? Explain your answer.
18. Why did the Japanese surrender unconditionally to the
Allies(united States, Great Britain, and Union of Soviet Socialist
Republics, and other countries)?
SUGGESTED ACTIVITIES
336
CHAPTER 21
The First Republic (the Malolos Republic) and the Second Republic
(during the Japanese period) were both born amidst the turmoil’s of a
revolution and harsh enemy occupation. The birth of the Third Republic
in 1946 was no less turbulent. Established right after a world war that
left behind a physically-devastated country and a deeply-wounded
people-psychologically and emotionally-the young Republic was weak
and vulnerable to undue pressures from the United States, its former
colonizer and wartime ally.
The end of World War II left the Philippines devastated. The Japanese
had fought savagely, inch by inch, and this led to bitter fighting and the
destruction of farms, work animals, machinery, buildings, roads,
bridges, and more importantly, thousands upon thousands of Filipino
lives. The heavy bombing of Manila by the Americans to clear the city
of Japanese hideouts destroyed infrastructures needed for economic
recovery. For many months there was no production. There was
widespread unemployment. Food was scarce and thousands died of
various disease. The total picture was discouraging and desperate. The
problems that confronted the Commonwealth were a challenge to the
statesmanship of President Sergio Osmeña who took over after
Quezon’s death. The courage and spirit of cooperation among the
people were again put to the test.
American Aid
The recently concluded war was an American was, but the Filipinos
suffered much more that Americans. As such, the American
Government decided to extend financial aid to the Philippines. After
conducting Survey of the damage done by the Japanese and by the
Americans themselves, the Congress of the United States appropriated
one hundred million dollars to be used by the Philippine Government
for its operating expenses and for the redemption of guerrilla notes
issued during the war. Moreover, American Army surplus materials with
a sale value of one hundred million pesos were given to the Philippine
Government. The Philippines was given loan of sixty million dollars for
purposes of construction.
Roxas took his oath of the office as first president of the Third Republic
of the Philippines. But Roxas stayed in office for only two years. He
died on April 15, 1948 after delivering a speech at Clark Air Base,
Pampanga, in which he promised Filipino cooperation with the United
States in case of another war. He was referring to the looming Korean
War. Conscious of the problem of national security, President Roxas
granted the U.S. control of the military and naval bases at Clark Air
Base and Subic Bay Naval Base, in exchange for military aid. The
country at this time was also faced with a Communist unrest in the rural
areas.
These weapons were used against the Japanese. After the war, they
refused to surrender their arms because they feared that their landlords
might hire armed men to kill them. Roxas failed to win over the Huks to
his side. He, therefore, declare the Huks a band of outlaws. In March
1948, he declared the Hukbalahap and its peasant organization, the
Pambansang Kaisahan ng mga Magbubukid (PKM) as illegal. Violent
encounters between the government forces and the Huks took place
and Central Luzon became no man’s land. As the second President of
a young and shaky Republic, Elpidio Quirino, an economist, believed
that a country could not be truly independent unless it had achieved
economic stability.
343
As president, he tried to win over the Huks to the Government side by
sending his younger brother, a former judge, Antonio Quirino, to meet
with the Huk supremo, Luis Taruc. In the talks, asked for the following:
Because of the peace and the order problem, the high prices of
commodities, and graft and corruption in and outside the government,
the people became disillusioned with the administration of president
Quirino. Ramon Magsaysay, who was Quirino’s Secretary of National
Defense, worked hard to solve the Huk problem. Magsaysay adopted
strict measures which included organized and simultaneous raids by
344
the Armed Forces and the police to arrest Huk leaders and supporters.
On October 18, 1950, the Huk Politburo fell into the hands of the
military and police authorities. In the court, members of the Politburo
were charged with rebellion, complexed with murder and arson and
were sentenced to life imprisonment, that was later reduced to ten
years.
Garcia also proclaimed the “Filipino first” policy. It means that the
Filipinos would masters in their own land. This policy was adopted
because Garcia realized that the Philippines had been the paradise of
foreigners who had been in control of the Philippine business, trade,
and commerce. Henceforth, according to Garcia, the Filipinos would be
given all the chances to improve the economy of the country. While not
anti-alien, the “Filipino first” policy was pro –Filipino first and above all.
His national policies included, for the first time, the revival of the
Philippine culture through the arts and historical researches.
Because the Garcia administration could not solve the problem of rising
prices and graft and corruption, Diosdado P. Macapagal, candidate of
the Liberal Party for president, won the election of 1961. President
Macapagal promised to solve the problem of unemployment and
promote self-sufficiency in food production. He promised to set an
346
example of honesty, uprightness, and simple living. All these were good
on paper, for while Macapagal was honest, many men around him were
not.
Macapagal’s presidency was known for two things; the land reform
code and the change of Independence Day celebration from July 4 to
June 12. It was said that Macapagal came from very poor family; as
such he understood their plight, as well as the need to improve the
status of the peasants.
STUDY GUIDE
SUGGESTED ACTIVITIES
351
b. In your discussion don’t forget to touch on the point whether
the Filipinos owe the Americans a debt of gratitude for the
aid and why.
3. Invite two prominent people who can speak on the subject of
Filipino nationalism and American aid. After the talks, hold an
open forum and ask them questions regarding the topic they
discussed.
4. List down and assess the “preconditions” for the grant of the
Philippine Independence or dependency?
352
CHAPTER 22
These were the causes behind the violent and chaotic situation called
“The first quarter storm” and the grim and bloody events that followed.
Crisis in Society
What were the conditions in the country that caused so much cynicism
and hopelessness that forced primarily, the youth, to march to the
streets in violent protest? Makibaka, huwag matakot, (Dare to fight, do
not fear) went the famous student battle cry. Students protested the
353
unprecedented government overspending during Marcos’s reelection
campaign. The infusion of so much money into an unproductive
electoral activity caused inflation. Prices of commodities, including the
cost of tuition fees, rose way beyond the ordinary people’s means.
Because of slow industrialization characterized mainly by packaging
factories and low wages received by workers, unemployment reached
to millions in the late 60s and early 70s. The overseas employment
phenomenon was not yet institutionalized during this period.
The term “First Quarter Storm” refers to the first three months of 1970,
which was a tumultuous tear in the country. Waves of massive student
protests occurred in Metro Manila and nearby provinces. On January
26, 1970, hundreds of students gathered before the Legislative building
to protest President Marcos’s plan to convene a Constitutional
Convention that would extend his term beyond what was allowed by
the 1935 constitution.
While on his way out of the building after delivering his address to
Congress, Marcos was suddenly blocked in his path by an object
hurled at him. Confusion ensued like a bolt of lightning. Gun shots
reverberated in the air. Hundreds were hurt in the melee. Liza
Balando, the young labor leader, was hit by a stray bullet and fell dead.
355
Groups of students were arrested and hurled into the waiting police
vans like pigs. People who witnessed the incident could not recall what
object was thrown at the President. Was it a cardboard coffin,
symbolizing the death of democracy; or a papier mache crocodile,
representing the corrupt and power-hungry bureaucrats and politicians
of the time? In any case, what stunned the nation was the overkill, the
brutal response to the incident by the platoons of police and Metrocom
soldiers. Four days after, on January 30, a more militant demonstration
took place, joined in by people from all walks of life. The rally ended
violently in front of the malacañang gates, following a furious
confrontation called the “Battle of Mendiola.”
Since then the march to Mendiola would mean the people’s demand for
serious reforms and disillusionment over the government capacity to
deal with the vital issues of the day. The rest of the year would witness
more protests. Teachers who were frustrated over delayed salary
increases went on mass leave. Students at the militant University of the
Philippines took control of the campus in a siege lasting twelve days,
known as the “Diliman Commune.” Violence escalated into the regions
and provinces, from Baguio, Davao, and Cagayan de Oro to the
Mindanao State University in Lanao del Sur. Students demanded
educational reforms and jobs upon graduation.
They clamored for honest officials and pro-people laws and policies,
since they awakened daily to rampant graft and corruption, criminality,
and repressive measures to control their right to dissent. Critics of the
protest movement, however, wrote that the naked force that was used
against them was provoked by the students lobbing Molotov cocktails
at the police, “a clear case of misuse of freedom.” Sympathetic and
356
oppositionist officials like Sen. Eva Estrada Kalaw, on the other hand,
denounced the unwarranted use of police force as “this breach of
human freedom” that belied the President’s fine words “not to
slaughter, the innocents for the students’ demands were legitimate and
timely”
The rest were won by Marcos allies and sympathizers. In June 1971,
the constitutional Convention opened, electing former President Carlos
Garcia as its President. Garcia who died several days later was
succeeded by Diosdado Macapagal, President Marcos’s Predecessor.
The debated in the Convention focused mainly on the issue of shifting
the form of government from presidential to a semi-parliamentary or
parliamentary system. In the debate, it became evident that the pro-
Marcos delegates mandated a parliamentary form.
Under the 1935 Constitution, the tenure of the President was limited to
two terms or a maximum of eight years. Marcos who was on his second
term was barred from running for a third term. As newspaper accounts
of the day wrote: “There were signs that Marcos was trying to influence
357
the shape of the new constitution favoring a change in government”
and that Marcos intended to run as congressman in his district in Ilocos
Norte, under a parliamentary form of government, to become the Prime
Minister.
This would extend his stay in power after his second term in office.
While the debates were going on, student demonstrations near the
convention area continued. As historian Rosario Mendoza Cortes put it:
“demonstrations fitted well into the secret plans of Ferdinand Marcos.”
Citing Primitivo Mijares, a Marcos confidant who later defected, as her
source, Mendoza Cortes Wrote: “Marcos closely monitored the
revolutionary drama of the early seventies. Secret agents in fact egged
on the demonstrators. Military psywar (psychological warfare) experts
staged or instigated demonstrators with slight variations in time. A
pattern of early demonstrations in the downtown area alternating
between five o’clock in the afternoon and nine o’clock in the evening
was established. Marcos issued statements on a supposed
contingency plan to deal with a supposedly deteriorating situation.”
On August 21, 1971, the Liberal Party’s miting de avance was held in
Plaza Miranda in Quiapo, Manila. Being in the opposition, the audience
expected to hear from them exposes about the excesses of the Marcos
government such as overpricing of the government purchases; millions
of pesos worth of reparations; goods just rotting away; millions of funds
unaccounted for from the Philippine Charity Sweepstakes; diversion of
calamity funds to the Armed Forces and the Navy; the unexplained
delay of a quarter of a million pesos for the teachers’ salary increase.
Added to these were the golden Buddha incident, the administration’s
plan to cheat in the upcoming election candidates delivered speeches.
358
Eva Estrada Kalaw, a senatorial candidate, eyewitness, and victim of
the horrifying carnage narrated:
Marcos quickly blamed the communists for the plaza Miranda bombing.
He suspended the Writ of habeas corpus “to enable the government to
frustrate communist design to wage destructive guerrilla warfare in the
greater Manila area and in other areas of the countryside. The
bombing, according to him, was part of the Communist July-August
Plan to topple the government.
At the same time, Marcos accused Ninoy Aquino of the Liberal Party
who was late for the miting de avance, of being a “Huk coddler” and
provider of aid and comfort to some of the subversives. The President
declared that the nation was in crisis. The threat of martial law filled the
airwaves and newspapers. However, General Manuel T. Yan, who was
AFP Chief of Staff, declared that there was no crisis to justify the
declaration of martial law, to which independent observers agreed.
There was nothing in the Philippine situation that would constitute
“invasion, insurrection or rebellion” and thus, justify martial rule
359
Declaration of Martial Law
Proclamation 1081 dated September 21, 1972 was actually signed four
days earlier. Prior to its signing a series of mysterious bombing
incidents took place. All of these were blamed on the activist
organizations in the urban centers with links to the countryside rebels
such as the communists. But former allies of Marcos would later say
these incidents were part of Marcos’s plan to sow anarchy, terror, fear,
and despair as preconditions for the imposition of martial law. The fake
ambush of then Secretary of National Defence, Juan Ponce Enrile,
served as the signal for its formal declaration on the 23rd of September.
First on the list of those to be arrested was Sen. Benigno Aquino, Jr.,
who had plans of running for President in the 1973 elections. The rest
included outspoken journalists and writers, oppositionist, politicians,
labor union leaders, student activists, and radical delegates to the
constitutional convention, who were against the extension of Marcos’s
term under a new Constitution and form of government. With P.D.
1081, Marcos assumed all powers of government-executive, legislative
and judicial. Military courts took the place of the regular courts, except
for civil cases. Surprisingly, the nation received the proclamation in
silence and with calmness.
To allay the fears of the people, Marcos went on air to give this
message, I assure you, I am utilizing the power vested in me by the
Constitution to save the Republic and reform our society.” With the
persisting negative political, economic, and social problems, the
declaration of martial law appeared to be justified for the majority. He
also announced that martial law, which suspended constitutional rights,
360
was only for a limited period. He said he needed time and the force of
arms to crush the communists, as well as the Muslim secessionist
revels in the south. His critics, however, were quick to rebut Marcos’s
justifications. They argued that martial law was declared to save
Marcos and not the republic.
Marcos wasted no time. Within the next few months, he tried to restore
peace and order; cleaned up the government of its corrupt and
inefficient personnel cut down criminality; and set up as a systematic
plan to develop the economy. But to the many activists who were
detained, tortured, and even killed upon the declaration of martial law,
Marcos’s words and plans amounted to nothing but empty premises
and pure rhetorics. On the surface, martial rule, seemed to have
restored order. In time, as the months turned into years, the Marcos’s
regime, backed by the military, would reveall that more than reforming
a society, the intent was to crush dissent and hostility to his plan to stay
in power for an indefinite length of time.
Study Guide:
361
4. Interview people who participated in the events of the 1960s to
the early 1970s. Find out the specific names of the groups that led
the protest movement. List down the famous slogans or chants
they used to mobilize people to action. You may also research in
the library or surf the internet.
5. Visit a museum in your town or city and find out if the First
Quarter Storm, the 1971 Constitutional Convention, and the
declaration of Martial Law are part of their exhibit and historical
narrative. Comment on their display or exhibit.
6. What kinds of people and institutions are referred to as “middle
class” during this time?
7. Why do you think the political and economic crises of the time
were expected to cause so much dissent and violence?
8. Was Marcos justified in declaring Martial Law? Hold a debate on
this issue.
Suggested Activities:
362
4. Search for songs and poems that were famous among the First
Quarter Storm activists and other protest groups. Sing or recite
these in class.
5. ‘Chapter 23
363
CHAPTER 23
The Philippines until 1972, held elections regularly; every four years for
the president. Vice president, and congressmen; every two years for a
third of the senate. The president was allowed to run for second term
and thus, stay in power for maximum of eight years. In 1972, then Pres.
Ferdinand E. Marcos, who was on his second and last term was able to
extend his stay in office in third term. He was able to do this through the
1935 constitution which provided for martial rule, as long as condition
justifying its declaration existed. Such conditions were “invasion,
insurrection or rebellion or imminent danger thereof where the public
safety requires it…”
364
triggered by Ninoy Aquino’s assassination and fueled by many heroic
acts for the restoration of democracy by the broad sectors of society.
Marcos placed the whole country under land reform and issued, at
same time, a complementary proclamation freeing the tenant farmer
from his landlord, and enabling him to own and expand the size of the
land he tilled. Using tax money, and foreign loans, Marcos built more
365
schools, marketplaces, hospitals, roads, bridges, and ports. He also
developed energy sources such as geothermal plants, oil fields,
including a nuclear plant in Bataan. In foreign affairs, the government
entered a diplomatic relations with socialist and communist countries,
particularly the people’s Republic of China and the Soviet Union, while
maintaining friendly relations with the United States and Japan. By
joining the Association of South East Asian Nation or ASEAN in 1976,
the Philippines drew closer to neighbors and the third World countries
as a whole. The one-sided RP-US trade relations ended with the
termination of the Laurel-Langley Agreement in 1974. The U.S naval
base in Subic Bay closed in September 1971, while the U.S military
agreement, which was amended the previous year (1970), reduced the
original 99-year lease to 25 years. For the first time also, security for
the military bases, where the Filipino flag flew alongside the American
flag.
The initial effects of martial law on peace and order and the lowering of
prices for basic goods, kept the general public hopeful and cooperative.
For the common people, the promise of economic prosperity at the
expense of political freedom was better than the chaos and uncertainty
of the 1970s. But Marco’s massive infrastructure projects led to
massive foreign loans, particularly from the International Monetary
Fund and World Bank (IMF-WB). The policy of devaluating the peso by
the IMF-WB resulted in huge foreign debts which forced the
government to raise and collect more taxes that were largely used to
pay off these debts. Land reform proved slow and inadequate due to
lack of funds. Dependence on foreign exports contributed to low
366
productivity, inflation, and budget cuts on education and other social
services. At the same time, more money was being allotted to the
military. And the first Family appeared to have prospered as the
economy began to slide down. As one writer put it:
With polls cancelled, the press censored, congress abolished, and the
courts tamed, restraints on Marco’s accumulation of wealth were
removed. There are no independent newspapers or congressional
committees to expose corruption, or independent courts to punish it.
Without elections, Marcos could allocate patronage as he wished
during campaigns. Marco’s family and friends enjoyed the privillages of
power.
It was also during the period of Martial Law that the poor farmers began
to deprived of their leasehold arrangements to give way to the forest,
mining, and marine reserves arrangements by the rich, as well as
foreign corporations. To prevent the further deterioration of the
Economy, the government sent out 1.3 million overseas contract
workers and domestic helper. But this could not stop the continued rise
in prices of commodities and poor salaries. By the early 1980’s, talks of
Marco’s hidden wealth and those of this associates in the tobacco,
sugar, and coconut industries, had spread. Unemployment ballooned
from 6.73% in 1985. The people’s disillusionment with the “smiling”
Marcos and his “benelovent” martial law had set in.
The opposition, led by Nationalista Party and the Liberal Party, was not
decieved by Marco’s attempt to clothe with ligitimacy his declaration of
martial law rule and its extension. To them, the different referenda to
approve the 1973 Constitution and to amend it on several occasion,
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were all intended to extend Marco’s term and concentrate power in his
hand. Bribed by positions or business projects and harassed by threats
of jail terms for the most resistant and vocal among them, the
opposition was virtually crushed. While incarcerated and being tried by
military court, Ninoy Aquino bitterly and sadly commented.”
In 1978, six years beyond his last term in 1972 and thirteen years in
power since 1965, Marco’s called for the elections to be held under
martial rule. The opposition’s party LABAN (Laban ng bayan) versus
Marco’s KBL (Kilusang Bagong Lipunan) completed for victory. While
Ninoy Aquino campaigned behind bars, his fellow partymates were
divided by favored boycott campaign. As a result, they lost KBL who
dominated the IBP (Interim Batasang Pambansa). The same defeat
happened to the opposition in the 1981 local elections. KBL candidates
won with the support of government funds and machinery.
That same year, President Marcos lifted the media and travel ban and
surprised the nation with the announcement of the lifting of martial law.
However, the writ of habeas corpus continued to be suspended. Also,
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Marco’s power to issue presidential decrees remained. As his staunch
critic, Jose W. Diokno, remarked, “Marcos did not lift martial law, he
merely titled it,” in preparation for the pope’s visit that year. Moreover,
amendments, once again, to the 1973 constitution were proposed and
ratified in the same year.
One amendment excluded those charged with high crimes from running
for president, thus excluding Benigno “Ninoy Aquino” with “trumped-up
charges of murder, illegal possession of fire arms and subversion.”
Another amendment guaranteed immunity from suit for Marcos and his
cabinet officials after he had finished his term. By then, it had become
clear why all these amendments were adopted. Marcos announced the
holding of presidential elections on June 16, 1981. The opposition
decided to participate under united party called UNIDO (United
Nationalist Democratic Organization). They asked for electoral reforms,
such as, purging of voters’ lists, equal media space and time, and a
reorganized COMELEC (Commission on Elections). Marcos refused
the call for reforms and hence, UNIDO boycotted the election Marcos
was left competing with an unknown, former defense secretary, Alejo
Santos, As expected, Marcos won with 88% majority votes. The Fourth
Republic was finally inaugurated on June 30, 1981
With the restriction on rallies and public for a, the opposition discovered
the power of “noise barrage” as a means of mass tin cans, pieces of
wood, or steel to signify their protest against Marcos and the KBL.
Many also wore T-shirt with the word. “No” (to the administration
candidates) printed across the front, which indicated disapproval of
administration. For the first time, the Catholic Church through the
Archbishop of Manila, Jaime Cardinal sin, issued a strongly-worded
Pastoral letter asking parishioner to vote according to their conscience
and guard their votes. Other church leaders followed suit. The church
protest was triggered by the rise in “salvaging” or summary executions
and desaparecidos or disappearances and kidnappings of suspected
“subversives,” which included priest, pastors, nuns, lay church workers,
tribal minorities, and urban poor.
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THE ASSASSINATION OF NINOY
If Marco’s did not declare martial law 1972, former senator Benigno
“Ninoy” Aquino jr. might have become the next president. Instead, he
was imprisoned and later, allowed to go to the U.S for medical
treatment when he got very ill while in detention. In 1973, Marcos,
stricken with lupus, was very sick and lack of vice president to succeed
him posed a big problem in leadership.
What happened to Ninoy Aquino upon his arrival shocked the whole
nation and the rest of the countries that were closely monitoring the
events in the Philippines. Ninoy was gunned down and fell on the
airport tarmac. The assassin, allegedy a lone gunman hired by the
communist, also lay dead after being gunned down by the soldiers
belonging to the airport security command.
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The double-murder at the Manila International Airport was later tried by
a supposedly independent Agrava Commission. The result pointed to
Marco’s chief of staff, general Fabian ver, General proper Olivas,
Brigadier General Luther Custudio, and other commissioned and non-
commissioned officers of the armed forces of the Philippines (AFP).
Later, to the nation’s dismay, they were all acquitted by the
Sandiganbayan, which was presided over by Justice Manuel Pamaran,
for lack of conclusive evidence.
Ninoy Aquino’s funeral procession took eleven hours from Quezon City
to the Memorial park in Paranaque. Hundreds of thousands attended
the procession, which observes described as more of a protest march
than a funeral procession. In the following months, rallies and mass
actions were held, brazenly challenging Marcos to step down.
Demonstrators bravely faced the police who were armed with water
canons, tears gas, and other crowd-dispersal weapons. The opposition
led the mass protest joined by the Catholic Church, the emboldened
middle class elements, the business sector, members of the military,
and eased-out members of the Marcos administration.
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THE 1986 SNAP ELECTIONS
Thus, quite suddenly, Marcos announced that he was ready for “snap”
presidential election on February 7, 1986. His action surprised his
enemies. Corazon “Cory Aquino, widow of Ninoy Aquino was the
opposition’s candidate for president with Salvador H. Laurel as her
vice president. To ensure a clean and fair counting of votes, concerned
businessmen and others cause-oriented groups organized the National
Movement for free Elections (NAMREL). People fiercely and bravely
protected their ballots. Initial count by the COMELEC showed Marcos
leading 1.2 million votes, which was contrary to the overall NAMFREL
tally that gave Cory and Doy a consistent lead. Finally, on the second
day after the election, thirty-eight computer programmers of the
COMELEC walked out in the protest of the COMELEC’s attempt to
manipulate the result shown in the rally board.”
The event on February 22, 1986 triggered the downfall of the Marcos
government in an unsuspected move by Juan Ponce Enrile, then
Secretary of National Defense and Fidel V. Ramos (Vice chief of staff)
who defected and severed their ties with Marcos. As later events
revealed, the planned coup d’ etat by the Reformed Armed Forces
Movement (RAM organized by officers under Secretary Enrile was
discovered.
That day, they were held up inside Camp Aguinaldo ready to fight to
the end. General Ramos, joining them, strengthened their morale.
General Ver’s forces were ready to deal with the “rebel soldiers and
officers “when Cardinal Sin appealed over the radio to help protect the
soldiers at Camp Aguinaldo from sure annihilation. To the people
answered and in the next two days the whole nation: and perhaps the
whole world, was astonished with what they saw: the civilians
protecting the military instead of the other way around. Prayers,
flowers, bread, and drinks offered by the people stopped the attacking
Marcos soldiers who were aboard trucks and tanks. Every inch of
Epifanio de los Santos Avenue (EDSA) was occupied by people from
all walks of life. They could have been dispersed but it would entail
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“tanks and vehicles trampling or running over warm bodies,” which by
then numbered over a million.
The climax of the event came when crowds, and instead, landed the
helicopter to join the people power revolution at EDSA. On the morning
of February 23, 1986, the oath-taking of Marcos as newly-elected
president was hastily stopped. Radio stations were captured by the
rebel soldiers who were on their way to Malacanang. The U.S
government offered to help Marcos and his family, along with the crony,
Danding Cojuangco, to flee to Hawaii “to escape the wrath of the
evenging horde.”
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CHAPTER 24
President Ferdinand E. Marcos was the last president under the Third
Republic and the only president under the Fourth Republic. The
installation of Corazon C. Aquino through People Power as president of
the Revolutionary Government in 1986 was met by a lot of
constitutional questions. How did she clarify the basis of her
ascendancy to power and stabilize the new government? What where
her priorities and program of government? How did her successors,
President Fidel V. Ramos, President Joseph Ejercito Estrada, and
President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo assume the presidency? What
were their respective priorities and development plans for the country,
as heads of the Fight Republic?
The first half of the Aquino government was precarious. There were
several coup attempts by the RAM and high-ranking military officers
loyal to Pres. Marcos. But these attempts failed to get popular support.
Apparently, there were elements in the AFP, like those loyal to Marcos,
who where remove from their military posts and wanted to grab power
for themselves. The rest of Cory Aquino’s term was focused on turning
the economy around and improving the peace and order situation,
especially with regard to human rights and freedom of the citizenry.
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THE RAMOS PRESIDENCY
There were seven presidentiables who were vying for the presidency in
the 1992 elections. They were Miriam Defensor-Santiago, Fidel V.
Ramos, Eduardo Cojuangco Jr., Ramon Mitra Jr., Imelda R. Marcos,
Jovito R. Salonga, and Salvador H. Laurel. It was Fidel V. Ramos who
won. The multi-party system and six rival candidates, however,
fragmented the national votes. For the first time, the country had a
president with less than a quarter of total votes. But this proved no
hindrance to the new President’s skill in running the weak Fifth
Republic, which was only six years old.
The Ramos government supported and signed into law the following;
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In any case, President Ramos proved himself a true democrat and
constitutionalist. He unequivocally declared that he had no intention of
pursuing a charter change and of seeking a second term. Estrada
despite charges of being” a womanizer, drinker, and gambler “won
almost 40% of the votes, with Gloria Macapagal –arroyo as has vice
president. The speedy canvassing and senate proclamation of Estrada
as President-elect and Macapagal Arroyo as vice president attested to
the democratic processes that were restored by the EDSA People
Power and the statesmanship of President Ramos.
In his first Report to the Nation President Estrada laid down his
priorities below:
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1. Provision of opportunities for employment and income
generation;
2. Provision of food, shelter, and basic utilities;
3. Improvement of the economy through the acceleration of
infrastructure programs and privatization; and
4. Promotion of participatory leadership that is free from graft and
corruption and political patronage.
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Enhance relations with the United States whose economic and
military power to continue to make it an important factor in the
affairs of the region and the nation.
And as her second term is about to end in May 2010, with elections
just around the corner, rumors of charter change or a possible
“failure of election” scenario have been floated around. The nation
awaits the coming events with the great hopes for a peaceful
transition to the next presidency, amidst cry for bagong politika
transformative politics.
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