Summar

yoft
he1899Mal
olosConst
it
uti
on:

 The const
it
uti
on was a chal
l
enge to Spani
sh col
onialauthori
ti
es and
est
abli
shedsover
eignt
ytot
hepeopl
e,whodelegat
edgovernmentalf
unct
ions
toci
vi
lsserv
ants.

1. The 1899 Mal ol

os Constit
uti
on was a response tothe Spanish
colonialaut
horit
iesandestabl
ishedsoverei
gnt
ytothepeople.Thismeant
thatthepeopl eretai
nedactualsover
eigntyanddelegat
edgov ernmental
functionstocivi
lservant
s.Thi
swasal egalpri
nci
plethatunderpi
nnedthe
Phili
ppinerevol
ution.

 Tit
leI
Vdetail
edthenaturalri
ghtsandpopularsover
eignt
yofFil
i
pinos,and
Tit
leII
I,Ar
ti
cle V decl
ared f
reedom and equal
it
yofal lbel
ief
s and the
separ
ati
onofchur
chandst at
e.

2.Ti tl
eI V oft he const ituti
on det ailed t he naturalr ights and popular
sovereigntyofFi lipi
nos.Theenumer ationoft heser ight
sdi dnotimplyt he
prohibiti
on ofanyot herr ight
snotexpr esslyst ated.Thi ssect i
on oft he
constituti
onwasadi rectr esponset ot heSpani shgov ernment '
sfeat
ur esin
thePhi li
ppines,wher ethef riar
swer edomi nantagent soft hesstat
e TitleII
I,
Arti
cleVoft heconst i
tuti
ondecl aredt hatt hest aterecogni zesthefreedom
andequal ityofal lbel
iefs,aswel last hesepar ati
onofchur chandstate.This
wasanot herdi rectreactiont ot hei nfluenceoft hef r
iarsi ntheSpani sh
colonialgov ernmentint hePhi l
ippines.

 Thegovernmentwast obepopular
,represent
ati
ve,andr
esponsi
ble,wi
th
l
egi
slat
ive,
execut
ive,
andj
udi
cial
powers.

3.Thef orm ofgov ernmentest abl

ishedbyt heconsti
tut
ionwaspopul ar,
repr
esentat
ive,and r esponsi
ble,wi t
hl egi
sl
ati
ve,execut
ive,and judi
cial
powers.Thi
smeantt hatthegov ernmentwasaccountabletothepeopleand
hadseparat
ebr anchestoensureabal anceofp

 The uni
cameralbody cal
l
ed t
he Assembly ofRepr
esent
ati
ves hel
dt he
l
egi
slati
vepower,wi
thmembersel
ectedforf
our-y
eart
ermsandther i
ghtto
i
ntr
oducebil
ls.

4.Thelegi
slati
vepowerwasv est
edinauni cameralbodycall
edt heAssembl y
ofRepresentati
ves.Membersoft hi
sbodywer eelectedforfour -
yeart er
ms
andcouldintr
oducebill
s.Theassemblyalsohadsomepower snotl egi
slat
ive
i
nnat ur
e,suchast heri
ghttoselectit
sownof fi
cers,ri
ghtofcensur eand
i
nterpel
lat
ion,andtheri
ghtofi
mpeachingcer t
aingovernmentofficials.

 Thepresidentwastheheadoftheexecut
ivepower,el
ect
edbyaconst
it
uent
assemblyforater
m offoury
ear
swithoutr
e-el
ecti
on.

5.Theexecut
ivepowerwasv
est
edi
nthepr
esi
dent
,whowasel
ect
edbya
 consti
tuentassemblyforater
m offouryearswi
thoutre-
elect
ion.Therewas
novicepresident
,andincaseofavacancy,apr
esidentwastobesel ect
edby
theconsti
tuentassembly.

 Theconsti
tut
ionwasneverenfor
cedduetoongoi
ngwarandthetr
ansf
erof
sover
eignt
ytotheUnit
edSt at
esaftert
hesi
gningoft
heTreatyofPari
sin
1898.

6.Unfor
tunatel
y,the1899Malol
osConstitut
ionwasnev erenf
orceddueto
theongoingwari nthePhil
ippi
nesandt het r
ansferofsover
eignt
ytothe
Unit
edStatesaft
erthesi
gni
ngoftheTreat
yofPar i
sin1898.

Theconst i
tuti
onwasdr afteddur i
ngthePhilippi
neRev ol
utionagainstSpanish
colonialrul
e, anditest
ablishedanewf orm ofgovernmentf orthePhil
ippi
nes.
Howev er
,inDecember1898,t heTreatyofPar i
swassi gnedbet weenSpai n
andt heUni tedStates,
transfer
ringsoverei
gnt yofthePhi
lippinestotheUnited
States.

Thet ransferofsov er ei
gntyeff
ectivelymadethe1899Mal ol
osConsti
tution
obsolete.TheUni tedSt atesestabli
shedi t
sowncol onialgovernmentint he
Phili
ppines,whi chwasnotbasedont hepri
nciplesout l
inedintheMal olos
Constitut
ion.I nstead,t he Phil
ippines was ruled by a gov er
nor-
gener al
appointedbyt heUni tedStates,
wi t
hanappoi nt
edPhi l
ippineCommi ssi
ont hat
actedast helegisl
at i
vebody .

Despite notbei ng ful

ly enforced,t he Mal olos Consti
tut
ion remains an
i
mpor tantdocumenti nPhili
ppinehistory.Itrepresentedt
heaspirati
onsofthe
Fi
li
pinopeopl ef orself
-rul
eandest ablishedaf rameworkforademocr atic
governmentt hatwouldbeusedasamodel forfutur
ePhil
ippi
neconst i
tut
ions.
Thepr i
ncipl
esofpopul arsovereignt
y ,naturalri
ghts,andseparat
ionofchurch
and statet hatwer e enshrined int he Mal olos Consti
tut
ion conti
nue to
i
nfl
uencePhi lippi
nepolit
icsandsoci etytot hi
sday .

PHI
LIPPI
NECONSTI
TUTI
ON

Theevol
utionoft hePhil
ippi
neConst i
tut
ionisaf asci
nat
ingandcompl extopi
ct hat
hi
ghli
ght
st hest r
uggleoftheFi l
i
pinopeopleforself-
det
erminati
onanddemocr acy.
ThePhil
i
ppi neshashadsev eralconst
it
uti
onsthroughoutitshist
ory,butthr
eestand
outascr ucialinitsevolut
ion:the1897 Const i
tuti
on ofBiak-na-Bat
o,the1899
Malol
osConst i
tuti
on,andthe1935Commonweal thConsti
tuti
on.

The1897Const i
tuti
onofBi ak-na-Batowast hefir
stwrit
tenconst i
tutioni nAsiaand
wasest abl
isheddur i
ngt hePhili
ppineRev oluti
onagainstSpanishcol onialrul
e.The
consti
tuti
onwasdr aft
ed byt her evoluti
onarygov er
nmentl edbyGener alEmi l
io
Aguinaldoandwassi gnedonNov ember1,1897,i nBi ak-
na-Bat o,Bul acan.The
consti
tuti
onestabli
shedar epubli
candademocr aticf
orm ofgov ernmentwi ththree
branches:executi
ve,legisl
ati
ve,andj udici
al.Theconstit
uti
onalsoi ncludedaBi llof
Rightsthatguaranteedci vi
lli
bert
ies,suchasf reedom ofspeech,r eli
gion,andt he
press.TheBiak-na-
Bat
oConstit
uti
onwassi
gnif
icantbecausei tl
aidthefoundat
ion
forfutur
ePhi l
i
ppineconst
it
uti
onsanddemonst
ratedtheFili
pinos'abi
li
tytogovern
themselves.

Aftert heSpani sh-Amer icanWar ,t hePhi li

ppineswascededt ot heUni t
edSt ates,
whichl edt otheest abli
shmentoft hePhi l
ippi
neCommonweal th.Dur ingt hi
st i
me, the
Fil
i
pi noscont inuedt odemandgr eateraut onomyandsel f-
gov ernance.I n1899,t he
Mal olosConst i
tut
ionwasr ati
fi
edbyt heMal olosCongr ess,est ablishingt heFi rst
Philippi
neRepubl i
c.TheMal ol
osConst i
tuti
onwast hef i
rstf ul l
yr atif
iedPhi l
ippine
const i
tutionandpr ov i
dedf orapr esi denti
alform ofgov er
nmentwi tht hreebr anches:
execut i
v e,l
egisl
ati
v e,andj udi
cial.Theconst it
utionalsoincludedaBi llofRight sthat
guar anteedciv i
lli
ber t
ies,incl
udingf reedom ofspeech,r eligion,andt hepr ess.The
Mal olosConst it
uti
onwassi gni
ficantbecausei tdemonst ratedt heFi l
ipinos'abil
ityt o
gov ernthemsel vesandser vedast hebasi sforfutur
ePhi l
ippineconst ituti
ons.

The1935Commonweal thConst i
tuti
onwasest abli
sheddur ingtheCommonweal th
peri
od,whi chwasat ransiti
onalper i
odbet weenPhili
ppineCommonweal t
handf ull
i
ndependence.Theconst ituti
onwasdr af t
edbyaconst itut
ionalconvent
ionandwas
approved by PresidentFr ankl
in D.Roosev el
ton Mar ch 23,1935.The 1935
Const i
tut
ion pr
ovided fora pr esidentialform ofgov ernmentwi t
h a bicamer al
l
egislatur
eandaSupr emeCour t.Theconst it
uti
onalsoincludedaBi l
lofRightsthat
guaranteedcivi
lli
berti
es,i ncl
udingf reedom ofspeech,r eli
gion,andthepress.The
1935Const it
uti
onwassi gnifi
cantbecausei tservedasthef oundati
onforPhili
ppine
democr acyandprovidedf orgreateraut onomyandsel f-
governance.

Inconcl usion,theev olut

ionoft hePhi li
ppineConst i
tuti
oni sar ef
lect
ionoft he
Fi
lipi
nos' st ruggl
e f or self
-det
ermination and democr acy. The Biak-na-
Bato
Const i
tuti
on,Mal ol
os Constit
uti
on,and 1935 Commonweal t
h Consti
tuti
on are
si
gnificantbecauset heydemonst r
atedt heFili
pinos'abil
i
tytogov er
nt hemselves,
providedf orademocr ati
cform ofgov ernment,andguar anteedcivi
lli
bert
ies.The
Phili
ppineConst i
tut
ioncontinuestoev olv
et oadaptt ochangingsocietyandt o
promot egoodgov er
nanceandaccount abili
ty.

1897:
Const
it
uti
onofBi
ak-
na-
Bat
o

The1897Const it
utionofBiak-na-Batoisashortdocumentthatestabl
ishedthe
Republi
cofBiak-na-Bat
o,arevol
utionarygover
nmentl
edbyGeneralEmil
ioAguinal
do
duri
ngthePhi l
i
ppineRev ol
uti
onagai nstSpani
shcol
oni
alrul
e.Herearesomeoft he
keyprovi
sionsoftheconsti
tuti
on:

Est
abli
shmentofar
epublic:Theconst
it
uti
onestabl
ishedar
epubl
i
canddecl
aredt
he
Phi
li
ppinest
obeanindependentandsover
eignstat
e.

Thr
eebranchesofgover
nment:Theconst i
tuti
onprov i
dedfort hr
eebr
anchesof
gov
ernment,
namel
ytheexecut
ive,
legi
slat
ive,andjudi
cialbr
anches.

Executi
vebranch:Thepresi
dentwastheheadoft
heexecut
ivebr
anchandwas
responsi
blef
orenfor
cingt
helawsoft
herepubl
i
c.
Legi
slat
ivebr
anch:Thelegi
slat
ivebranchwascomposedoftwohouses,t
heSenate
andtheHouseofRepr esentat
ives.Membersofbothhouseswereelect
edbyt he
peopl
e.

Judi
cialbr
anch:Thejudi
cialbr
anchwascomposedofaSupr emeCourtandother
l
owercourts.Thecour
tswereresponsi
blef
ori
nter
pret
ingt
hel
awsandadmini
ster
ing
j
usti
ce.

Bil
lofRi
ghts:Theconst
itut
ionincl
udedaBil
lofRight
sthatguar
ant
eedci
vi
lli
ber
ti
es
suchasfr
eedom ofspeech,rel
i
gion,andt
hepress.

Separati
onofpowers:Theconst
it
uti
onprov
idedfort
hesepar
ati
onofpower
samong
thethreebr
anchesofgover
nmenttoprev
entabusesofpower
.

Protect
ion ofproper
tyr
ight
s:The const
it
uti
on prot
ect
ed t
he pr
opert
yr i
ghts of
ci
tizensandpr ohi
bit
edt
hegovernmentfrom taki
ngpri
vat
epropert
ywithoutjust
compensation.

The1897Const it
uti
onofBi ak-
na-Bat
owassi gnif
icantbecausei twast hefir
stwrit
ten
consti
tuti
oninAsiaandest abl
ishedarepubli
candademocr at
icf orm ofgovernment
withthreebranchesofgov ernment.Theconst i
tuti
onalsoi ncludedaBi l
lofRights
thatguarant
eedcivi
lli
berti
es,suchasfreedom ofspeech,reli
gion, andthepress.The
consti
tuti
onlaidthefoundati
onf orf
uturePhi
li
ppineconstituti
onsanddemonst r
ated
theFil
ipi
nos'abil
i
tytogovernthemselves.

Whyi
tisnotf
ull
yimpl
ement
ed?

The 1897 Const i

tut
ion ofBi ak-
na-Bat
o wasnotf ul
lyimpl
ement ed because the
Phil
i
ppineRev ol
uti
onagai nstSpanishcol
oni
alrul
ewasnotyetsuccessf
ul att
hetime
theconsti
tut
ionwasdr afted.Theconstit
uti
onwassignedonNov ember1,1897,but
i
twasnotunt i
lMay1,1898,t hatthePhil
ippi
nesdecl
aredit
sindependencef rom
Spain.

Furthermor e,thesi gningoft heconstitut

ionwaspar tofthepeacenegot iati
ons
betweent her evolut
ionarygov er
nmentandt heSpanishcol
onialgovernment .The
peacenegot iat
ionsresultedi
nt hesigni
ngoft hePactofBi
ak-na-
Bato,whichgranted
at empor ar yt r
uce bet ween the t
wo par ti
es.Underthe pact,the revol
utionar
y
gover nmentagr eedt ogoi nt
oexi l
ei nHongKong,andt heSpani shgov er
nment
agreed t o pay a l arge sum ofmoney i n exchange f
ort he surr
enderoft he
rev
ol uti
onar yforces.

Despitethet emporarytruce,theSpanishcoloni
algover
nmentdi dnotful
lyuphol
dits
end oft hebar gai
n,and f i
ghti
ngcont i
nued betweent herevolut
ionar
iesand the
Spanish forces.Thi sled tot heresumpt i
on ofhostil
iti
es,and therevol
uti
onary
governmentwasev ent
ual l
ysuccessfulinestabli
shi
ngtheFi r
stPhi l
i
ppi
neRepubl i
c
anddr af
tingt he1899Mal olosConsti
tuti
on.

I
n summar
y,t
he 1897 Const
it
uti
on ofBi
ak-
na-
Bat
o was notf
ull
yimpl
ement
ed
because itwas signed dur
ing a t emporarytruce bet
ween t
he r
evol
uti
onar
y
governmentandtheSpani
shcolonialgovernment
,andthePhil
i
ppi
neRevol
uti
onwas
notyetsuccessf
ulatt
heti
meofi t
sdr aft
ing.

1899:Mal
olosConst
it
uti
on

The1899MalolosConst
it
uti
onist hefi
rstconst
it
utionoftheFir
stPhi
li
ppi
neRepubli
c,
whichwasestabl
ishedaf
terthePhi l
i
ppineRevoluti
onagainstSpani
shcoloni
alr
ule.
Herear
esomeoft hekeyprovi
sionsoftheconstit
ution:

Preamble: The const

it
uti
on'
s pr
eambl
e procl
aimed the est
abli
shment of a
democrati
cgov er
nmentthatwoul
dprot
ectt
her i
ghtsandli
bert
iesoftheFil
ipi
no
peopl
e.

Declarati
on ofRi ghts:The const i
tut
ion i
ncl
uded a Decl
arat
ion ofRightsthat
guaranteed civ
illiberti
es such as fr
eedom ofspeech,rel
igi
on,the press,and
assembl y,andtherighttoafairt
ri
al.

Separati
onofPowers:Theconst
it
uti
onprov
idedfort
heseparat
ionofpowersamong
thethreebranchesofgov er
nment,namel
yt heexecut
ive,l
egisl
ati
ve,andj
udi
cial
branches.

Executi
veBranch:Thepresi
dentwastheheadoft
heexecut
ivebr
anchandwas
responsi
blef
orenfor
cingt
helawsoft
herepubl
i
c.

Legisl
ati
veBr
anch:Thel
egi
slat
ivebranchwascomposedofauni
cameralassembl
y
cal
ledtheCongressoft
hePhili
ppines.Member
sofCongresswereel
ectedbythe
people.

Judi
cialBr
anch:Thejudi
cialbr
anchwascomposedofaSupr emeCourtandother
l
owercourts.Thecour
tswereresponsi
blef
ori
nter
pret
ingt
hel
awsandadmini
ster
ing
j
usti
ce.

Bil
lofResponsi
bil
i
ties:Theconst i
tuti
onincl
udedaBi llofResponsi
bil
i
ties,whi
ch
outl
inedt
heduti
esandr esponsi
bil
i
tiesofFi
li
pinoci
ti
zens.

Nati
onalSymbol
s:Theconst
ituti
onest
abl
ishedthePhil
i
ppi
nef
lag,nat
ionalant
hem,
andcoatofar
msast heof
fi
cialsymbol
softherepubl
i
c.

Educat
ion:Theconst
it
uti
onpr
ovi
dedf
oraf
reeandcompul
sor
ypubl
i
ceducat
ion
syst
em.

ChurchandSt
ate:Theconst
itut
ionest
abl
i
shedt
hesepar
ati
onofchur
chandst
ate,
wit
hnostater
eli
gionr
ecogni
zed.

The1899 Mal olosConst i

tut
ion wassi gnif
icantbecausei testabli
shed t
heFi rst
Phil
ippi
ne Republic as t
he fir
stdemocr at
icr epubli
ci n Asi
a.The const i
tut i
on
guaranteedci
vi
lliber
tiesandprovidedforasepar ati
onofpower samongt het hree
branchesofgovernment.Ital
soestabli
shedt hePhi l
i
ppinefl
ag,nati
onalant
hem, and
coatofarmsast heof f
ici
alsymbol
softherepubl
i
c.Despi
tebei
ngshort-
li
veddueto
thePhili
ppi
ne-AmericanWar ,theconst
it
uti
onservedasani nspi
rat
ionforfut
ure
Phil
i
ppineconsti
tut
ions.

Whyi
sitt
hati
twasnev
erenf
orced?

The1899 Mal ol
osConst i
tut
ion wasnev erful
l
yenf orced duetot hePhil
ippi
ne-
AmericanWar,whicherupt
edjustafewmont hsaftertheconsti
tut
ionwasadopted.
The warl ast
ed forthree y
ears and ended wit
ht he defeatoft he Phi
li
ppine
rev
oluti
onaryf
orcesbythemor et
echnol
ogical
l
yadvancedAmer i
canmili
tar
y.

Duri
ng the war ,the American col
oni
alaut hori
ti
es di
sregarded the Malol
os
Consti
tut
ionandestabli
shedthei
rowngov ernmentinthePhili
ppines.Theyvi
ewed
theconst
itut
ionasil
legi
ti
mateanddidnotrecognizetheFi
rstPhil
ippi
neRepubl
icas
alegi
ti
mat egover
nment.

Afterthewar ,t hePhili
ppineswaspl acedunderAmer i
cancol oni
alrul
e,andthe
Mal ol
osConst it
uti
onwasnev erfull
yi mpl
ement ed.TheAmer icansestabl
ishedt
heir
own gov ernmenti nthe Phi l
i
ppines,wit h a gover
nor-
gener alappoint
ed by t
he
PresidentoftheUni t
edSt atesastheheadofgov ernment.ThePhi li
ppi
neAssembly,
whichwasest abli
shedbyt heAmer icans,hadli
mitedlegi
slat
ivepower sandwasnot
afullydemocraticbody.

Despit
enotbeingfull
yimplement ed,the1899Mal olosConst i
tut
ionremainedan
i
mpor t
antsymbolofFili
pinonationali
sm andser v
edasani nspi
rati
onforf utur
e
Phi
li
ppineconst
it
uti
ons.It
sprovisionsoncivill
ibert
ies,separ
ationofpower s,and
nat
ionalsy
mbolshavebeenref
lectedinsubsequentconstit
uti
onsoft hePhi
l
ippines.

1935:Commonweal
thConst
it
uti
on

The1935Phi l
i
ppineCommonweal thConsti
tut
ionisacompr ehensi
vedocumentthat
outl
i
nes t he fr
amewor k of the gover
nment of t he Phili
ppi
nes during the
Commonweal th per
iod,which l
ast
ed fr
om 1935 until1946.Her e ar
et he main
provi
sionsoft
he1935Phi l
i
ppineCommonweal thConst
itut
ion:

I
.Pr
eambl
e

Thi
ssect
ioni
ntr
oducest
heconst
it
uti
onandst
atesi
tspur
poseandgoal
s.

I
I.ThePhi
l
ippi
nesandi
tsTer
ri
tor
y

Thissecti
ondefi
nest
hePhili
ppi
nesandi
tst
err
it
ori
esanddecl
arest
hatsov
erei
gnt
y
resi
desintheFi
l
ipi
nopeopl
e.

I
II
.Bi
l
lofRi
ght
s

Thi
ssecti
onguaranteesciv i
lli
bert
iesandfundamentalri
ghtstothepeopl
eoft he
Phi
li
ppi
nes,i
ncl
udingfreedom ofspeech,rel
igi
on,andthepress,aswel
lasther
ight
toduepr
ocessandequal protect
ionofthel
aw.
I
V.Ci
ti
zenshi
p

Thi
ssect
iondefineswhoi
saFi
l
ipi
noci
ti
zenandout
li
nest
hepr
ocessf
oracqui
ri
ng
andl
osi
ngcit
izenshi
p.

V.Suf
frage

This sect
ion outl
ines t
he qual
i
ficat
ions f
orsuf
frage and t
he pr
ocedur
es f
or
conducti
ngelect
ions.

VI
.TheLegi
slat
iveDepar
tment

Thi
ssecti
onest
abli
shesabicamer
alCongressofthePhi
li
ppines,consi
sti
ngofa
Senat
eandaHouseofRepr
esent
ati
ves,
whichhav
ethepowertomakel aws.

VI
I.TheExecut
iveDepar
tment

Thissect
ionest
ablishest
hepresidencyast
heheadoft heexecut
ivebr
anch,
wit
hthe
presi
dentbei
ngelectedbythepeopleforat
erm ofsi
xyears.

VI
II
.TheJudi
cial
Depar
tment

Thi
ssecti
onest abl
ishesaSupremeCourtandotherl
owercour
ts,whi
chhav
ethe
powert
ointer
pretthelawsandadmi
nist
erj
usti
ce.

I
X.Const
it
uti
onal
Commi
ssi
ons

Thissect
ionestabl
ishessev er
alindependentconst
it
uti
onalcommissi
ons,i
ncl
udi
ng
theCommi ssi
ononEl ecti
ons,theCivi
lServi
ceCommi ssi
on,andt
heCommi ssi
onon
Audit
,whi
chhav especifi
cfunctionsandpowers.

X.Local
Aut
onomy

Thi
ssecti
onpr
ov i
desf
ort
heest
abl
i
shmentofl
ocal
gov
ernment
sandt
hei
raut
onomy
i
ncert
ainmatt
ers.

XI
.Nat
ional
EconomyandPat
ri
mony

Thi
ssect
ionoutl
i
nestheeconomicpoli
ciesofthegovernment
,incl
udi
ngpr
ovi
sions
onl
andownershi
p,nat
ural
resour
ces,
andf or
eigni
nvest
ments.

XI
I.Gener
alPr
ovi
sions

Thissecti
oncont
ainsmi scel
laneousprov
isi
ons,suchasthedateofef
fect
ivi
tyofthe
consti
tuti
on,
theprovi
sionsfortheamendmentoft heconsti
tuti
on,
andtheprovi
sion
thatnolawshal
lbepassedi mpairi
ngtheobl
igat
ionofcontr
acts.

The1935Phi l
ippi
neCommonweal thConst i
tut
ionisasignif
icantdocumenti
nt he
hist
ory ofthe Phi
lippi
nes,as itestabl
ished a democrati
c governmentwit
ha
separati
onofpower sandguaranteedcivill
ibert
iesandfundamentalri
ght
stothe
people.Theconsti
tuti
onr emai
nedinef f
ectunt i
l1943,whent hePhili
ppi
neswas
occupi
edbyJapanduri
ngWor ldWarII.Aftert
hewar ,t
heconst
it
uti
onwasrest
ored
andremainedi
neff
ectunt
il1973,whenitwasr eplacedbyanewconsti
tut
iondur
ing
themarti
all
awregi
meofPresidentFer
dinandMar cos.

Mor
edet
ail
s

The1935Phi li
ppineCommonweal thConst i
tut
ionwasal andmarkdocumentt hat
established a democr at
ic gover
nmenti nthe Phi
li
ppines.The const i
tut
ion was
drafted by a const i
tuti
onalconv ent
ion composed of202 del egat
es,including
promi nentFil
ipi
nossuchasCl aroM.Rect o,JoseP.Laurel,andManuelRoxas.The
delegat esdrew inspi
rati
onf r
om theconst i
tuti
onsofot hercountri
es,suchast he
UnitedSt at
esandFr ance,andfrom theideal
sofdemocracy ,f
reedom,andjusti
ce.

Oneoft hemostsignificantpr ovi

sionsofthe1935consti
tuti
onwast heBillofRi ghts,
which guar ant
eed civ illiberti
es and fundamentalri
ghtst othe peopl e oft he
Phil
ippi nes.TheBillofRi ghtsincludedprovisi
onsonfr
eedom ofspeech, r
el i
gion,and
thepr ess, aswellast her i
ghtt oduepr ocessandequalprot
ect
ionoft hel aw.These
provisionswer emeantt osaf eguardthepeople'si
ndi
vi
dualri
ght
sandpr eventabuses
ofpowerbyt hegov er
nment .

The1935const i
tuti
onal soestabli
shedasy stem ofgovernmentwi t
hasepar at
ionof
powers,consi st
ingofabi cameralCongress,anexecut iv
ebr anchheadedbyt he
presi
dent,andaj udi
cialbr anchheadedbytheSupr emeCour t.Thi
ssy stem ofchecks
and balances was desi gned to preventany one br anch ofgov ernmentf rom
becomingt oopower fulandt oensurethatthegovernmentact edi
nthebesti nterests
ofthepeopl e.

Theconsti
tut
ionalsoprovi
dedfortheest
abli
shmentofi ndependentconsti
tuti
onal
commissi
ons,suchast heCommissiononElecti
ons,theCi vi
lServi
ceCommi ssi
on,
andtheCommi ssiononAudi t
,whichhadspeci f
icf uncti
onsandpower s.These
commissi
onswer eint
endedtoensuretr
ansparency,accountabil
it
y,andfair
nessi n
thegov
ernment'
soperati
ons.

The1935const it
utionwasi neffectduri
ngaper iodofsigni
fi
cantpoli
ti
calandsocial
changeinthePhi l
ippines.Thecount r
ywast ransit
ioni
ngfrom bei
ngacol onyofthe
Unit
edSt at
est obei ngasel f-
gov er
ningcommonweal t
h,withtheulti
mat egoalof
achi
evingful
lindependence.Theconst i
tut
ionwasseenasasy mboloft hecount
ry'
s
newfoundf r
eedom anddemocr acy,anditplayedani mport
antroleinshapingthe
countr
y'spol
iti
calandsoci al
landscape.

Alt
hought he1935consti
tuti
onwasr epl
acedi
n1973dur ingthemarti
allawr egimeof
Presi
dent Ferdinand Marcos,i ts l
egacy li
ves on i n subsequent Phi l
ippi
ne
consti
tut
ions.Manyofi tspr ov
isi
onsonci v
illi
bert
ies,separat
ionofpower s,and
nati
onalsymbolshavebeenr efl
ectedi
ntheconsti
tut
ionsthatfol
lowed,incl
udingthe
1987Phili
ppineConsti
tut
ion,whichist
hecurr
entconstit
uti
onofthePhili
ppines.
Whyi
sitt
hati
tisbr
ief
lyi
nter
rupt
ed?

The1935Phi l
ippineConsti
tuti
onwasbr i
efl
yinterr
uptedbytheJapaneseoccupati
on
ofthe Phil
ippines dur
ing Wor l
d WarII.In 1941,Japanese for
ces invaded t
he
Phi
li
ppines and occupied the count
ryfort hree year
s,duri
ng which time t
hey
est
abli
shedtheirowngov er
nmentandi mposedt hei
rownl awsandregul
ati
ons.

Duri
ngtheoccupat i
on,thePhili
ppineCommonweal t
hgov ernmentwasforcedt ogo
i
ntoexile,andt he1935Const i
tutionwasef fecti
velysuspended.TheJapanese-
i
nstal
ledgov er
nmentissueditsownconst i
tuti
on, knownast he1943Consti
tut
ionof
theRepublicofthePhil
ippi
nes,whi chwasmodel edaf tertheJapaneseconsti
tuti
on
andrefl
ectedtheoccupier
s'val
uesandi nt
erests.

However,
afterthewarendedi n1945andthePhi l
ippi
nesregainedit
sindependence,
t
he1935Const itut
ionwasr ei
nst
ated,andtheCommonweal t
hgov er
nmentr esumed
i
tsoperat
ions.Thecountr
yt henbegantheprocessofrebui
ldi
ngandr ecover
ingfrom
t
hedevastati
oncausedbyt hewar.

Amongt
he3const
it
uti
on,
whati
sthemostusef
ul?

Eachoft het hr
eeconst i
tuti
onsi nPhili
ppinehistor
yplayedasi gnif
icantrol
ein
shaping t
he count
ry'sgov er
nance and dev el
opment,and each ser
ved a uni
que
purposeduringi
tsrespect
ivetimeperiod.Itisdif
fi
cul
ttosaywhichonei sthemost
usefulaseachhaditsownst r
engthsandweaknesses.

The 1897 Constit

uti
on ofBi ak-na-Bato was the f i
rstat t
emptt o establi
sh a
democrati
cgovernmentint hePhi l
ippines,buti
twasnotf ul
lyimplementedduet oa
var
iet
yoff act
ors,i
ncludi
ngt hef ail
ureoft herevol
utionandt hesubsequentpeace
agr
eementbet ween t he Phil
i
ppi ne Rev ol
uti
onary Gov er
nmentand t he Spani
sh
col
onialaut
hori
ti
es.

The1899Mal ol osConst i
tut
ion,ont heot herhand,wast hefi
rstconsti
tut
iontobe
ful
lydraft
edandr at
if
iedinthePhi l
i
ppi nes,anditestabli
shedthefr
amewor kforthe
countr
y'sfi
rstr epubli
cangov ernment .Howev er
,itwasnev erf
ull
yimplementeddue
tothePhili
ppine- AmericanWar ,whi
chl edt otheestabli
shmentofAmer i
cancolonial
rul
einthePhilippines.

The1935Commonweal t
hConstituti
on,whichwasi neff
ectf
or12y ears,establ
ished
ademocr aticgov er
nmentwi t
hasepar ati
onofpower s,andprov
idedaBi l
lofRights
thatguar anteed fundamentalrightst ot he peopl
e ofthe Phil
ippines.I talso
establ
i
shedi ndependentconsti
tuti
onalcommi ssi
onstoensuret r
anspar encyand
accountabil
it
yi nthegovernment'
soper at
ions.However,i
twasbriefl
yinterrupt
edby
theJapaneseoccupat ionduri
ngWor ldWarI I.

I
nt ermsofpr acti
cal
it
y,t
he1935Consti
tuti
onhadt hemostimpactont hecountr
y's
governanceanddev el
opmentbecausei
testabl
ishedademocr ati
cgovernmentthat
remainedi nplaceforoveradecade,andmanyofi t
spr ovi
sionscontinuetobe
ref
lectedinsubsequentPhi
l
ippi
neconst
it
uti
ons.However,
itisi
mpor t
anttonotethat
each consti
tut
ion pl
ayed a signi
fi
cant r
oleinthe Phil
ippi
nes'st r
uggl
ef or
i
ndependenceanddemocr acyandcontri
but
edtothecount
ry'
spolit
icalandsoci
al
devel
opment.

whatar
ethebasi
soft
hecr
eat
ionof3const
it
uti
on?

Thecreati
onofthethr
eePhil
ippineconst
it
uti
onswasbasedont
hecount
ry'
shi
stor
y,
pol
it
icalcl
imat
e,andsoci
alcontextatt
hetime.

The1897Const itut
ionofBi ak-
na-Batowascr eat
eddur i
ngthePhili
ppi
neRev ol
uti
on
againstSpanish coloni
alr ul
e.Itwas an at t
emptt o establi
sh a democrati
c
governmentthatwouldreplacetheSpani shcoloni
alauthori
ti
es.Theconsti
tut
ionwas
basedont heprinci
plesofdemocr acy,f
r eedom,andindependence,whichwerethe
mainaspir
ati
onsoft herevoluti
onariesatt heti
me.

The1899Mal olosConst
it
uti
onwasdr aftedandr ati
fi
edduringtheearlyyear
soft he
Phil
ippine-
Amer i
canWar.Itwast hefi
rstconsti
tuti
onoft hePhili
ppineRepubli
cand
ref
lectedthecount r
y'
saspirat
ionforindependenceandsel f
-r
ule.Theconstitut
ion
wasbasedont hepri
nci
plesofdemocr acy,soverei
gnty
,andsepar ati
onofpower s,
whichwer einspir
edbytheUnitedStat
esConst i
tuti
onandot herEuropeanmodel sof
government.

The 1935 Commonweal th Constit

ution was created dur ing t
he Commonweal t
h
peri
od,whichfoll
owedtheestabl
ishmentofPhi li
ppineindependencef rom t
heUni t
ed
Stat
es in 1935.The constit
uti
on was based on t he pr i
nci
ples ofdemocr acy,
nati
onali
sm,andsocialjusti
ce,andr efl
ectedthecount r
y'
saspi r
ati
onsf orsel
f-r
ule,
devel
opment ,
andprogress.Theconst i
tut
ionwasal soi nfl
uencedbyt heexperi
ences
ofothercountr
iesandtheirr
especti
veconst i
tuti
ons,includingtheUnitedStat
esand
Austr
ali
a.

Overal
l,eachconst i
tut
ionwascr eat
edbasedont hecountr
y'sspeci
fi
chist
ori
caland
poli
ti
calcontext
, aswellastheaspir
ati
onsandv al
uesofthepeopleatthet
ime.Each
consti
tuti
onr ef
lectedt heevol
vi
ngsoci alandpoli
ti
calcli
mateoft hecountr
yand
provi
dedaf r
amewor kforgover
nanceanddev el
opment.