Republic of the Philippines
BICOL STATE COLLEGE OF APPLIED SCIENCES AND TECHNOLOGY
City of Naga
RIZAL’S LIFE AND WORKS
Topic 2: The Philippines during Rizal’s Time
Introduction
It is an open knowledge that Philippines was colonized by different countries and the longest
colonizers the Philippine had are the Spaniards. As a colonized country, we were obviously
dependent to Spain. May it be for administration, education or even just living. Everything is
connected to Spain
This section presents the different social, political, economic and cultural contexts of 19th-
century Philippines in which Rizal was situated. To better understand the different aspects of 19th-
century Philippines, a discussion of the Spanish Colonization is also included in this section.
Objectives
At the end of the lesson, the students will be able to:
Identify the social context where Rizal was situated;
Analyze various social, political, economic and cultural changes that occurred in the 19th century;
and
Explain how these changes affected and influenced Jose Rizal.
Pre-Learning Activity
Enumerate the social political, economic and cultural changes that occurred in your community
during the last five years and choose one of the most significant change and discuss how it affected
you as a student, teenager and citizen of the Philipppines.
Economic Social
Most Significant Change
Cultural
Changes in
your
Community
Political
1|P age
Republic of the Philippines
BICOL STATE COLLEGE OF APPLIED SCIENCES AND TECHNOLOGY
City of Naga
Discussion
11 Evil of Colonial Power
Instability of Colonial Administration
The turbulent reign of King Ferdinand VII (1808-1833), marked the beginning of political chaos in
Spain. Under King Ferdinand’s reign, the government had frequent changes. These frequent
changes caused a lot of party strife, revolutions and other political upheavals. In the span of 28
years, 1834-1862, Spain government:
Adopted 4 Constitutions,
Elected 28 Parliaments, and
Appointed 529 Ministers
Political instability in Spain adversely affected the Philippine affairs. Frequent periodic shift in
colonial policies and periodic rigodon of colonial officials hampered the political and economic
development of the Philippines.
Activity 1:
Instructions: Please answer the questions in a 200 to 500-word-essay. Each answer may get a
maximum of 10 points each.
Question 1: In the Philippine political setup, what can you notice once a new administration takes
over? Does the new administration usually support the economic and nationalistic direction the
former administration up-holded? Please cite an example wherein the new administration
supported OR opposed the former administration; and briefly discuss its effects.
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2|P age
Republic of the Philippines
BICOL STATE COLLEGE OF APPLIED SCIENCES AND TECHNOLOGY
City of Naga
Corrupt Officialdom
Colonial officials sent by Spain in the 18th-19th centuries were either highly corrupt,
incompetent, cruel and venal. Below are several officials and their infamous service to the
Philippines.
General Rafael de Izquierdo Aroused the anger of the
(1871-1873) Filipinos by ordering the
execution of Fr. Mariano
Gomez, Fr. Jose Burgos and Fr.
Jacinto Zamora in 1872
General Fernando Primo de Enriched himself by accepting
Rivera (1880-83; 1897-98) bribes from gambling casinos in
Manila which he permitted to
operate
General Valeriano Weyler Cruel and corrupt governor-
(1888-1891) general of Hispanic-German
ancestry, Arrived in Manila poor
man and returned to Spain a
millionaire. He received huge
briberies from wealthy Chinese
who evaded anti-Chinese laws.
General Camilo de Polavieja Widely detested by Filipinos for
(1896-1897) ordering the execution of Jose
Rizal.
Numerous job-seekers and penniless Spaniards came to the Philippines for greener pasture. These
Spaniards became judges, provincial executives, army officers and government employees. Most of
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Republic of the Philippines
BICOL STATE COLLEGE OF APPLIED SCIENCES AND TECHNOLOGY
City of Naga
them are relatives of potégés of civil officials and friars, became rich by illegal means or by marrying
the heiresses of rich Filipino families.
No Philippine Representation in the Spanish Cortes
CORTES – The most powerful governmental institution of the state. It is made up of lower house, the
Congress of Deputies, and the Senate.
Representation of the overseas colonies of Spanish Cortes was abolished in 1837. This is another
factor why the Philippine condition worsened. Though there were valiant plea of Filipinos to restore
the representation but it was to no avail. The representation was never restored until the end of
Spanish Colonization.
Question 2: What are the roles of your “representatives” in your respective organizations? What is
the importance of your mentioned roles in the advancement of your organization? What are the
possible consequences if your representatives will not be efficient in their roles? Please answer in
200 to 500-word-essay.
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Human Rights denied to Filipinos
Spanish Constitution of 1821 and other constitution bestowed Spaniards with the:
- Freedom of Speech
- Freedom of the Press
- Freedom of Association
- And other human rights (Except for freedom of religion)
*This freedom was denied to Filipinos by Spanish authorities.
No Equality Before the Law
Spanish authorities, who were Christians, did not observe Christ’s percept of brotherhood of all men
under the fatherhood of God. Browned-skinned Filipinos were arrogantly regarded as the inferior
beings, not a Christian to be protected but rather as their majesty’s subject to be exploited.
“Brown Filipinos and white Spaniards may be equal before God, but NOT before the law and
certainly Not in practice“
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Republic of the Philippines
BICOL STATE COLLEGE OF APPLIED SCIENCES AND TECHNOLOGY
City of Naga
Leyes Indias (Law of Indies)
Law to protect the right and promote the welfare of the
natives in Spain’s overseas colonies. However, it was rarely
enforced by Spanish officials in the distant colonies, particularly in
the Philippines.
Though Spanish Penal Code was enforced in the
Philippines, it was highly biased to the White Spaniards. Spanish
officials imposed heavier penalties to native Filipinos and imposed
lighter penalties to white Spaniards.
Maladministration of Justice
Court of justice during Jose’s time were notoriously corrupt. Spanish judges, fiscals and other court
officials were inept, venal and often times ignorant of the law. Justice was costly, partial and slow.
Judicial process was slow and clumsy that it was easy to have justice denied.
Poor Filipinos had no access to courts because they could not afford the heavy expense of litigation.
Criminal cases drag on for many years, during which period, either the delinquents took to fight, or
documents were lost.
Wealth, social prestige and color of the skin were factors in winning the case in court. Irrespective of
the evidence a white Spaniard may easily achieve victory in litigations. The GOMBURZA and Jose
Rizal’s family were victim of Spanish injustice.
Racial Discrimination
Racial prejudice was prevalent everywhere:
- in government offices
- in court of justice
- in the armed forces
- in the social circles
- in the educational institutions
- in the ecclesiastical hierarchy
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Republic of the Philippines
BICOL STATE COLLEGE OF APPLIED SCIENCES AND TECHNOLOGY
City of Naga
Frailocracy
Philippines during Rizal’s time was evidently administered by friars. Friars controlled the religious
and educational life in the Philippines. Friars practically rules the Philippines through a façade of civil
government. Colonial authorities were under the control of friars, except for the unpacified Islamic
Mindanao and Sulu.
Aside from priestly duties, the friars were:
- Super visor of local elections
- inspector of school and taxes
- Arbiter of morals
- Sensor of books and comedias
- Superintendent of public works
- Guardian of peace and order
The political influence of friars were so great that their
recommendations were heeded by the governor-general and the
provincial officials. A friar can:
1. Send a Filipino patriot to jail
2. Accuse a Filipino as a “filibustero” (traitor) to be exiled to a distant place
3. Order the execution of a Filipino patriot as an enemy of the God and Spain.
9. Forced Labor
Implemented POLO, a compulsory labor imposed by the Spanish colonial authorties on adult Filipino
males in the: construction of churches, school and hospitals; building of ships in the shipyard;
building and repairing bridges and roads; and other public work.
Spanish adults are also required to render Polo, but it was never implemented in the
Philippines because of obvious reasons.
Filipino Polistas hated the system because of the abuse connected with it:
-White Spaniards were not recruited by the colonial authorities to perform the forced labor
-Filipino polistas, according to law, shall receive a daily stipend of 2 pesetas (50cents) but actually
received only a part of it and worse, got nothing
-Annual forced labor caused so much inconvenience and suffering because: it disturbed their work in
farms and shops AND they were sometimes compelled to work far away from their homes and
towns.
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Republic of the Philippines
BICOL STATE COLLEGE OF APPLIED SCIENCES AND TECHNOLOGY
City of Naga
10. Haciendas Owned by Friars
Spanish friars were the richest landlords. They were recognized as the legal owners of different land
as they obtained royal titles of ownership from Spanish crown. Rural folk living in these haciendas
became tenants.
11. Guardia Civil
Guardia civil became famous for their rampant abuse:
- maltreating innocent people
- Looting carabaos, chicken and valuable belongings
- raping helpless women
Activity 2:
Choose 1 “evil of colonial power” and create a editorial caricature which will depict how the Filipinos
suffer because of the chosen evil.
*Please see attached link for a brief introduction about editorial caricatures.
https://hti.osu.edu/opper/editorial-cartoons-introduction
Resources:
Zaide F.G. & Zaide M.S. (2014). Jose Rizal: Life, Works and Writings of a Genius, Writer, Scientist and
National Hero. Philippines: Anvil Publishing, Inc.
Ocampo A. (1990). Rizal: Without the Overcoat. Philippines: Anvil Publishing, Inc.
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