Introduction:

The 12th of June of every year since 1898 is a very important event for all Filipinos. On this
particular day, the entire Filipino nation as well as Filipino communities all over the world
gathers to celebrate the Philippines’ Independence Day. 1898 came to be a very significant year
for all of us— it is as equally important as 1896—the year when the Philippine Revolution broke
out owing to the Filipinos’ desire to be free from the abuses of the Spanish colonial regime. But
we should be reminded that another year is as historic as the two—1872.

Two major events happened in 1872, the first was the 1872 Cavite Mutiny and the other was
the martyrdom of the three martyr priests in the persons of Fathers Mariano Gomes, Jose
Burgos, and Jacinto Zamora (GOMBURZA). However, not all of us knew that there were different
accounts in reference to the said event. All Filipinos must know the different sides of the story—
since this event led to another tragic yet meaningful part of our history—the execution of
GOMBURZA which in effect was a major factor in the awakening of nationalism among the
Filipinos.

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HOST: A very cheerful good morning to all. Honorable juries/adjudicators, respected teachers,

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and my fellow classmates welcome to this debate. The motion for the debate today is about the
Cavite Mutiny, which is generally seen as a mutiny of Filipino soldiers and arsenal workers over

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local grievances, often portraying it as instigated by the friars with the intention of eliminating
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the priests and lawyers agitating for reforms. Let us first hear the Affirmative and the Negative
Side’s First statements.
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AFFIRMATIVE: Good day to all. I would like to start with Jose Montero y Vidal's account which
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anchored on the thesis that the fateful event of the 2nd of January 1872 happens due to the
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concerted effort of disgruntled native soldiers and laborers of Cavite arsenal who willfully
revolted to overthrow the Spanish rule, and thus, guilty of rebellion and sedition. We believe
that by such acts, the execution of prominent critics of the Spaniards and friars by the Spanish
officials are justified, and the sentence of life imprisonment and deportation of some natives
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critical of their incongruous rule is unquestionably legit if not morally blurred. We also say that
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the account of Jose Montero y Vidal was even made credibly possible by no less than Rafael de
Izquierdo, the governor-general of the time when the revolt of 1872 happened.
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NEGATIVE: Before I come to my own arguments, let us first have a look at what Trinidad H.
Pardo de Tavera described as the event. Tavera had indicated that the Cavite mutiny was the
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start of the tarnished relationship between the Spanish government and the Filipinos. And that
the peaceful reign of the colony was ruined by that event in which he described as insignificant
yet the origin of the political influence of the rebels against the Spaniards. Contrary to what the
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first proposition speaker has told us, as for Tavera, the so-called Cavite Mutiny is a mere incident
of mutiny orchestrated by native soldiers and laborers who reacted to the harsh policy of the
new governor-general, Rafael de Izquierdo, who whimsically terminated the old-time privileges
such as exempting them from paying annual tribute and from rendering forced labor or polo. As
accounted, it is made clear that the mutiny is blown up by the Spanish officials and friars into a
revolt as a way for Filipinos to gain independence from the Spanish monarchy.

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 On the description of the event on January 20, 1872, Tavera stated in his account that the revolt
started that night with the soldiers and Sergeant La Madrid who took part in it. The mutiny had
resulted to the assassination of the commanding and Spanish officers who were in-charge of
patrolling the fort that night. When word of the mutiny reached Manila, Gen. Izquierdo ordered
the reinforcement of Spanish troops in Cavite right away. The mutiny was proclaimed socially
subdued after two days.

Tavera blamed governor and captain general Rafael Izquierdo because of his Harsh policy,
abolishing their privilege of exemption from paying annual tribute and rendering forced labor
and native army members of the arsenal and the prohibition of the founding of school of arts
and trades for the Filipinos.

AFFIRMATIVE: As to what Gov. Gen. Izguierdo reported to the King of Spain, the “rebels”
wanted to topple the Spanish government in order to place a new “hari” to lead them in the

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likes of Father Burgos and Zamora. Those native clergy even inveigled other participants by

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providing them with a captivating guarantee that God is with them, hence, their flight will not

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fail. They also promised them with enticing rewards such as employment, wealth, and ranks in
the army, just so they could persuade them. That is clear proof that the native soldiers and

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laborers of Cavite are guilty of rebellion against Spanish authority.
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We believe that the event of 1872 was a big conspiracy and was planned ahead by the educated
leaders, mestizos, native lawyers, residents of Manila and Cavite, and the native clergy. It is
completely visible that it was an act of rebellion, sedition, and revolt. Both Izguierdo and
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Montero insinuated that the participants of the conspiracy plotted everything: from liquidating
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the high-ranking Spanish officers to the massacre of the friars. Let me also add that the ring of
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rockets from the walls of Intramuros is said to be the alleged pre-concerted signal among the
conspirators of Manila and Cavite.
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OPPOSITION: The Spanish friars and Izquierdo used the Cavite Mutiny as a powerful lever by
magnifying it as a full-blown conspiracy involving not only the native army but also included
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residents of Cavite and Manila, and more importantly the native clergy to overthrow the
Spanish government in the Philippines. During that time, the Central Government in Madrid
announced its intention to deprive the friars of all the powers of intervention in matters of civil
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government and the direction and management of educational institutions. This, obviously, is in
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the way of the friar’s want of power. They had to do something drastic in order to maintain
power in the Philippines.

The Filipinos desire secularization, yet warmly received the educational decree authored by
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Segismundo Moret which promoted the fusion of sectarian schools run by the friars into a
school called the Philippine Institute. It is to improve the standard of education in the
Philippines by requiring teaching positions in such schools to be led by competitive
examinations. If Filipinos involved in the mutiny solely wanted to overthrow the Spanish

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 government and were not fighting against the abolition of their privileges, surely they would
have protested against the educational decree.

AFFIRMATIVE: The revolution took place not because of the prejudice of the Spaniards against
the Filipinos, but because the Filipinos have planned ahead to rebel against Spain and attack the
Spanish officers. Their plans only backfired when they mistook the fireworks that were lit at the
festival, as a sign to launch an attack. Yet, it was unsuccessful due to Gov. Izquierdo’s immediate
action of ordering more troops to fight the rebels and it also happened that the reinforcement
of the latter did not come, so the misfortune of the rebels has worked in their favor. It was not
the Spaniards who initiated the war but rather the Filipinos who initially planned a rebellion
against the authority. Lamadrid was killed, and on February 17 1872, GOMBURZA were also
executed and patriots and other abogadillos were suspended by the Audencia. These tragic
events served as warning and punishment of Spaniards to the Filipinos who acted boldly against
them.

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I’d also like to emphasize that the uprising that took place caused the relationship between the
Filipinos and the Spaniards to be tarnished. The Spaniards, as the one who governs, have a

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responsibility to maintain order in their constituency, so suppressing the rebels is just a normal
reaction.

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Dane OPPOSITION: Members of the native clergy led by the GOMBURZA were tried and
executed by garrote, while convicted educated men who participated in the rebellion were
condemned to life in jail. This happened in such a way that the friars, fearing that their influence
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in the Philippines would be a thing of the past, took advantage of the incident and presented it
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to the Spanish Government as a vast conspiracy organized throughout the archipelago with the
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object of destroying Spanish sovereignty. It was confirmed that the Madrid government
believed that the scheme was true without any attempt to investigate the real facts or extent of
the alleged “revolution” reported by Izquierdo and the friars. This episode led to the awakening
of nationalism and eventually to the outbreak of Philippine Revolution of 1896.
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This shows that the Spanish really looked down on Filipinos as laborers only. Yes, they colonized
us for a long period of time, but those times Filipinos suffered a lot. They influenced us in a
positive way but that doesn’t change the fact that Filipinos are treated as slaves for their own
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good. I am here standing as an Opposition, not from the fact that I am a Filipino, but because of
the fact that Filipinos should not be treated as Spaniards have done.
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Moderator: Ladies and Gents, the debate is about to end. Now, judges please complete your
ballots and make a decision. After doing so, you are invited to make constructive comments, but
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I would like to remind you that you are not allowed to indicate which team has won.

Judge 1: Good afternoon everyone! First of all, I would like to congratulate both teams for
successfully presenting their claims. Each team provided strong evidence to support their
position. Once again, congratulations to everyone.

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 Judge 2: Hello Good day everyone. There are actually several points I would like to consider.
Although there are four accounts of the 1872 mutiny, some basic facts remain unchanged:
The first was the fact that there was discontent among the armory workers as well as members
of the native army after their privileges were revoked by General Izquierdo;
Second, General Izquierdo introduced rigid and strict policies that moved the Filipino people
and turned their backs on the Spanish government in disgust;

Judge 3: That's right. I also want to emphasize that the central government did not investigate
what really happened. Instead, they relied on reports from Izquierdo and the brothers as well as
public opinion;

Another fact is that the happy days of the friars were already numbered in 1872 At that time,
the central government of Spain decided to deprive the friars of their right to interfere in public
affairs and the guidance and management of schools, urging the them to commit frantic moves
to extend their stay and power.

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Judge 2: Ah, Yes. Also, the Filipino clergy members actively participated in the secularization

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movement in order to allow Filipino priests to take hold of the parishes in the country making
them prey to the rage of the friars;

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And take note, Filipinos during that time were active participants, they responded to what they
deemed as injustices; and before I forget, the last fact I think is also the most important, the
execution of GOMBURZA was a mistake by the Spanish government, because this act broke the
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sentiments of the Filipino people and the fact that This event inspired Filipino patriots to call for
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reform and ultimately independence. There may be many different versions of this event, but
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one thing is for sure: The Cavite Rebellion of 1872 paved the way for a capital in 1898.

Judge 1: The point given by (Judge 2) is also a point that I consider. I would also like to add that
the road to independence is still arduous and difficult, many famous and unknown patriots have
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shed their blood to carry out the renovation and independence. June 12, 1898 may have been a
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glorious event for us, but we must not forget that before victory was achieved, our ancestors
had suffered enough. As we enjoy our freedom, we can become more aware of our past so we
have a better future ahead of us. And just as Elias said in Noli me Tangere, let's not forget "those
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who fell in the night".

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Moderator: A big thank you to the judges for the clear points summed up in this debate. I like
what judge (1) said, that we should all be more aware of our pasts to have a better future ahead
of us.
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Ladies and Gentlemen! So presentations are over. And thank you again to the speakers who
made informative and interesting presentations.
Of course, before this ends, we are all very happy to know the winner of the debate. And I
won't make you wait any longer. So the winner of this debate is The OPPOSITION (clap)
-short pause -

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 “Our past gives us the opportunity to speak a language and have a vision of our future.”
Hopefully the presentation has benefited everyone. Thank you for your attention and have a
nice day!

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