Rizal’s Life, Works and Writings

Activity #1

Name: Cabotaje, Ma. Laila Lyn C.

Student Number: 15-10099

1. Discuss the abuses perpetrated by the Spaniards against the Filipinos during the
Spanish colonial period in the Philippines.

Some examples of abuses are: Labor, Taxation, Sexual Abuse and Education.

 Labor – Regardless of the age many Filipinos were forced to work on

several jobs like building structures, defending the territory (military),
and trading goods to other countries. Examples: Polo y Servicio,
Galleon Trade, and the Encomienda System.

 Polo y Servicio – The Polo y Servicio is the forced labor without

compensation. In this system, all men 16-60 years old forced to
work heavy work from town activities such as roads, churches,
bridges, schools, government buildings and public structures.

 Encomienda – In the theory, the receiver of the grant was to

protect the natives from warring tribes (given to the receiver)
and to instruct them in the Spanish language and in the Catholic
faith: in return they could extract tribute from the natives in the
form of labor, gold, or other products, in practice, the difference
between encomienda and slavery could be minimal. Many
natives were forced to do hard labor and subjected to extreme
punishment and death if they resisted.

 Taxation – Spaniards tend to have heavy taxes known as the tribute

and bandalâ.

 Tribute – It could be in cash or kind, with tabaco, chicken,

produce gold, blankets, cotton, rice, or other products
depending on the region of the country and was initially fixed at
8 reales, later increased to 15 reales, apportioned as follows:
ten reales buwis, one real diezmos prediales (tithe), one real to
the town community chest, one real sanctorum tax, and three
reales for church support.

 Bandalâ – It is an annual forced sale and requisitioning of goods

such as rice.

 Sexual Abuse – Many Filipino women were sexually abused by a lot of

Spaniards way back then.

 Education – The state of education from the Spanish Colonization is

quite infuriating. It is because of the Spaniards limited the education
 degree as well its teachings so that there would no Filipinos to revolt
or go against them using education.

2. Describe the conditions in the Philippines when Rizal was born

By the late 18th century, political and economic changes in Europe

were finally beginning to affect Spain and, thus, the Philippines. Important as a
stimulus to trade was the gradual elimination of the monopoly enjoyed by the
galleon to Acapulco. The last galleon arrived in Manila in 1815, and by the mid-
1830s Manila was open to foreign merchants almost without restriction. The
demand for Philippine sugar and abaca (hemp) grew apace, and the volume of
exports to Europe expanded even further after the completion of the Suez Canal in
1869. The growth of commercial agriculture resulted in the appearance of a new
class. Alongside the landholdings of the church and the rice estates of the pre-
Spanish nobility there arose haciendas of coffee, hemp, and sugar, often the
property of enterprising Chinese-Filipino mestizos. Some of the families that gained
prominence in the 19th century have continued to play an important role in
Philippine economics and politics.

B- Graphic Organizer

Make a research about “ Bandala System” write an effect of the Bandala System
on the Filipinos during the Spanish colonial period in the Philippines in each empty
circle below. Then explain each briefly in each blank oval.

Filipino farmers were required to sell

their harvest to the government.

There was a quota for the products

The people lost their income and
to be sold to the government in
went bankrupt.
each province.

Effects of the
Bandala system

Only the government make profits

Towns of each provinces contributed
from the products without spending
to reach the total quantity of value any money.
of harvested imposed.
The government usually paid promissory notes
in exchange of the products converted to its
corresponding value because the government
had no fund.
C. Organizing Information

Complete the flowchart below by writing the appropriate positions or offices in the
empty boxes to show how the Spanish colonial government in the Philippines was
organized.

Governor - General

The Residencia

The Visita

The Royal Audiencia