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Filipino nationalism
Filipino nationalism began with an upsurge of patriotic sentiments
and nationalistic ideals in the 1800s Philippines that came as a
consequence of more than three centuries of Spanish rule. This served
as the backbone of the first nationalist revolution in Asia, the
Philippine Revolution of 1896, and continues up to this day. These
nationalistic sentiments have led to a wide-ranging campaign for
political, social, and economical freedom in the Philippines.
Background
In the years before the 11th century, the Philippines was divided into numerous principalities known as barangays, a
name derived from Malayan boats called balangays. These small political units were ruled by datus, rajahs or
sultans.[1] In 1565, European colonization began in earnest when Spanish explorer Miguel Lpez de Legazpi arrived
from Mexico and formed the first European settlements in Cebu. Beginning with just five ships and five hundred
men accompanied by Augustinian monks, and further strengthened in 1567 by two hundred soldiers, he was able to
repel competing Portuguese colonizers and to create the foundations for the Spanish colonization of the Archipelago.
In 1571, the Spanish occupied the kingdoms of Maynila and Tondo and established Manila as the capital of the
Spanish East Indies. This Spanish colonization united the Philippine archipelago into a single political entity.
Filipino nationalism
Economy
The decline of Galleon trade between
Manila and Acapulco was caused by
the arrival of the ship Buen Consejo in
1765. The Buen Consejo took the
shorter routeWikipedia:Please clarify
via Cape of Good Hope, a rocky
headland on the Atlantic coast
controlled by Portugal. The journey
through the Cape of Good Hope takes
The Manila-Acapulco trade route started in 1568 and Spanish treasure fleets (white) and
three months from Spain to the
its eastwards rivals, the Portuguese India Armadas routes of 14981640 (blue)
Philippines, whereas the journey of the
galleon trade takes five months. The
event proved that Portugal was already past its prime in controlling the route via the Cape of Good Hope, which was
already under Dutch control as early as 1652. Shorter journeys to and from Spain brought faster trade and quicker
spread of ideas from Europe. Also, the growing sense of economic insecurity in the later years of the 18th century
led the Creoles to turn their attention to agricultural production. The Creoles gradually changed from a very
government-dependent class into capital-driven entrepreneurs. Their turning of attention towards guilded soil caused
the rise of the large private haciendas. Various government and church positions were transferred to the roles of the
Peninsulares who were characterized mostly in the 19th century Philippine history as corrupt bureaucrats.
During the 1780s, two institutions were established in order to enhance the economic
capacity of the Philippines. These were the Economic Societies of Friends of the Country and
the Royal Company of the Philippines. The former, introduced by Governor-General Jose
Basco in 1780, was composed of leading men in business, industry and profession, the
society was tasked to explore and exploit the natural resources of the archipelago. It offered
local and foreign scholarships, besides training grants in agriculture and established an
academy of design. It was also credited to the carabao ban of 1782, the formation of the
silversmiths and gold beaters guild and the construction of the first papermill in the
Philippines in 1825. The latter, created by Carlos III on March 10, 1785, was granted
exclusive monopoly of bringing to Manila; Chinese and Indian goods and shipping them
directly to Spain via the Cape of Good Hope. It was stiffly objected by the Dutch and English
who saw it as a direct attack on their trade of Asian goods. It was also vehemently opposed
by the traders of the Galleon trade who saw it as competition.[4]
Education
During the administration of Governor-General Jose Raon, a royal order from Spain, which stated that every village
or barrio must have a school and a teacher, was implemented. The implementation of the order expanded the reach of
basic education during the Spanish era. Also, during the 18th century, modern agricultural tools made many people
leave farming for pursuing academic and intellectual courses. After the arrival of Buen Consejo, the Philippines had
more direct contact to Europe and the ideas circulating . Thus, the Philippines was influenced by the principles
during the Age of Enlightenment and radical changes during the French Revolution.
Filipino nationalism
Secularization of parishes
By royal decree on February 27, 1767, King Carlos III ordered the Jesuits to be
expelled from Spain, and from all her colonies. The decree reached the
Philippines in early 1768, wherein Governor-General Raon tried to do the Jesuits
a favor by delaying the implementation of the royal order in exchange of bribes.
This gave the Jesuit friars to hide all of their possessions and destroy documents
that could be held against them, which were supposed to be confiscated. The first
batch of Jesuits, numbered 64, left Manila only by May 17, 1768. This event
caused Raon to face prosecution from the next Governor-General, as ordered by
the King of Spain. Raon died before the judgment for him was laid.
The expulsion of Jesuit friars from the country resulted to a shortage of priests in
the parishes. This prompted the current Manila archbishop, Basilio Sancho de
Santa Justa, to launch his favorite project: secularization of Philippine parishes.
Portrait of Charles III of Spain, 1761
Sancho reasoned out that friars were only sent to facilitate missions to areas that
are not yet much Christianized. Native priests must be ordained to facilitate the
parishes since the Philippines was already a Christian country. Sancho recruited every Indio he got to become
priests. There was even a joke at the time that there were no one to man the galleons anymore, since Sancho had
made them all priests. The secularization partly failed because many members of the newly formed native clergy
soiled the parishes with their ignorance, sloth, and the like. One achievement of Sancho's secularization project was
the establishment of a school for native boys who aspire to become priests.
Filipino nationalism
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Economic developments also did a part in making up the shape of Filipino
Nationalism. Before the opening of Manila to foreign trade, the Spanish
authorities discouraged foreign merchants from residing in the colony and
engaging in business. In 1823, Governor-General Mariano Ricafort promulgated
an edict prohibiting foreign merchants from engaging in retail trade and visiting
the provinces for purposes of trade. However, by the royal decree of September
6, 1834, the privileges of the Company were abolished and the port of Manila
was opened to trade.
Shortly after opening Manila to world trade, the Spanish merchants began to lose
their commercial supremacy in the Philippines. In 1834, restrictions against
foreign traders were relaxed when Manila became an open port. By the end of
1859, there were 15 foreign firms in Manila: seven of which were British, three
Painting of a Spanish galleon during
American, two French, two Swiss and one German. In response to Sinibaldo de
Manila-Acapulco Trade
Mas' recommendations, more ports were opened by Spain to world trade. The
ports of Sual, Pangasinan, Iloilo and Zamboanga were opened in 1855. Cebu was opened in 1860, Legazpi and
Tacloban in 1873. Like Japan that rushed into modernization and national transformation during the Meiji
Restoration, the Philippines and its people saw that the Spanish and its government is not as invincible as it was two
centuries before. The Indios and the Creoles became more influenced by foreign ideas of liberalism as the
Philippines became more open to foreigners. Foreigners who visited the Philippines had noticed the speed of the
circulation of the ideas of Voltaire and Thomas Paine. Songs about liberty and equality were also being sung at the
time. Some Spanish who foresaw a "fast verging" Indio takeover of the archipelago began to send money out of the
Philippines.
Demonstrations became a norm in Manila during the 1860s. One of the first of a series of demonstrations was during
the transfer of the remains of former Governor-General Simn de Anda y Salazar from the Manila Cathedral after the
1863 earthquake. Anda was a hero for the natives because he fought friar power during his term, and he established a
separate government in Bacolor during the British occupation of Manila. On the day of the transfer, a young Indio
priest approached the coffin and laid a laurel wreath dedicated by "The Secular Clergy of the Philippines" to Don
Simn de Anda. Then, a young Indio student went to the coffin and offered a crown of flowers. Lastly, a number of
gobernadorcillos went to do their own salutations for Don Simn de Anda. Since none of those acts were in the
program, the Spanish saw that it was a secretly planned demonstration. Though no one told who the mastermind was,
Filipino nationalism
there were rumors that it was Padre Burgos. The demonstrations got more frequent and more influential during the
liberal regime of Governor-General Carlos Mara de la Torre (18691871). Only two weeks after the arrival of de la
Torre as Governor-General, Burgos and Joaquin Pardo de Tavera led a demonstration at the Plaza de Santa
Potenciana. Among the demonstrators were Jose Icaza, Jacobo Zobel, Ignacio Rocha, Manuel Genato and Maximo
Paterno. The demo cry was "Viva Filipinas para los Filipinos!". In November 1870, a student movement, denounced
as a riot or motin, at the University of Santo Tomas formed a committee to demand reforms on the school and its
curricula. It later announced support of Philippine autonomy and recognition of the Philippines as a province of
Spain. The committee was headed by Felipe Buencamino.
During this period, a secret society of reformists met in a cistern under a well at the house of
Father Mariano Gmez. The society, headed by Jose Maria Basa, worked mainly on a Madrid
journal called the Eco de Filipinas (not to be confused with the El Eco de Filipinas that was
published much later, in September 1890). The journal exposed problems in the Philippines
and pressed on reforms that they seek for the country. Among the members were Burgos,
Maximo Paterno, Ambrosio Rianzares Bautista, and Father Agustin Mendoza. It served as a
precursor to La Solidaridad. However, Burgos died after the infamous Cavite Mutiny, which
was pinned on Burgos as his attempt to start a Creole Revolution and make himself president
of the Philippines or Rey Indio. The death of Jos Burgos, and the other alleged conspirators,
Mariano Gmez and Jacinto Zamora on February 17, 1872, seemingly ended the entire Creole
movement. Governor-General Rafael de Izquierdo y Gutirrez unleashed his reign of terror in
order to prevent the spread of the Creole ideologyFilipino nationalism.
Carlos Mara de la
Torre y Nava
Cerrada, the 91st
Governor-General
of the Philippines
Another event in history created an impact on Filipino nationalism during this period. Before 1869, the route through
the Cape of Good Hope proved to be a shortest available journey to Europe by Indios and Creoles alike. The journey
takes 3 months travel by sea. On November 17, 1869, the Suez Canal opened after 10 years of construction work. At
its advent, the journey from the Philippines to Spain was further reduced to one month. This allowed a much faster
spread of European ideology and an increase of Filipino presence in Europe itself. The Propaganda Movement would
later benefit from the Suez Canal for the shorter route it provided.
Filipino nationalism
others. Their main work was the newspaper called La Solidaridad (Solidarity), which was first published at
Barcelona on December 13, 1888. Rizal, the foremost figure of the propagandists, created the Noli Me Tngere
(published 1887) and El filibusterismo (published 1891). It rode the increasing anti-Spanish (anti-Peninsulares)
sentiments in the islands and pushed the people towards revolution, rather than discourage them that a revolution
was not the solution for independence.
Post-propaganda era
By July 1892, Rizal returned to the Philippines and established a progressive organization he called the La Liga
Filipina (The Philippine League). However, the organization collapsed after Rizal's arrest and deportation to Dapitan
on July 7. At the same day, a Philippine revolutionary society was founded by Ilustrados led by Andrs Bonifacio,
Deodato Arellano, Ladislao Diwa, Teodoro Plata and Valentn Daz. The main aim of the organization, named
Katipunan, was to win Philippine independence through a revolution and establish a republic thereafter. The rise of
the Katipunan signaled the end of peaceful propaganda for reforms.
Philippine Revolution
The Katipunan reached an overwhelming membership and attracted
almost the lowly of the Filipino class[citation needed]. In June 1896,
Bonifacio sent an emissary to Dapitan to reach Rizal's support, but the
latter refused for an armed revolution. On August 19, 1896, Katipunan
was discovered by a Spanish friar which started the Philippine
Revolution.
Filipino nationalism
Filipino nationalism
Filipino nationalism
Commonwealth era
The Tydings-McDuffie Act provided for the drafting and guidelines of
a Constitution, for a 10-year "transitional period" as the
Commonwealth of the Philippines before the granting of Philippine
independence. On May 5, 1934, the Philippines legislature passed an
act setting the election of convention delegates. Governor General
Frank Murphy designated July 10 as the election date, and the
convention held its inaugural session on July 30. The completed draft
constitution was approved by the convention on February 8, 1935,
approved by U.S. President Franklin Roosevelt on March 23, and
ratified by popular vote on May 14.
Filipino nationalism
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In October 1944, General Douglas MacArthur, the overall commander of American forces in the Pacific, had
gathered enough additional troops and supplies to begin the retaking of the Philippines, landing with Sergio Osmea
who had assumed the Presidency after Quezon's death. The battles entailed long fierce fighting; some of the Japanese
continued to fight until the official surrender of the Empire of Japan on September 2, 1945. The Second Republic
was dissolved earlier, on August 14. After their landing, Filipino and American forces also undertook measures to
suppress the Huk movement, which was originally founded to fight the Japanese Occupation.
Proclamation of independence
General Douglas MacArthur to Carlos Romulo at the recognition of the independence of the Philippines.
On July 4, 1946, representatives of the United States of America and of the Republic of the Philippines signed a
Treaty of General Relations between the two governments. The treaty provided for the recognition of the
independence of the Republic of the Philippines as of July 4, 1946, and the relinquishment of American sovereignty
over the Philippine Islands.
From 1946 to 1961, the Philippines observed Independence Day on July 4. However, on May 12, 1962, President
Diosdado Macapagal issued Presidential Proclamation No. 28 proclaiming June 12, 1962 as a special public holiday
throughout the Philippines. In 1964, Republic Act No. 4166 changed the date of Independence Day from July 4 to
June 12 and renamed the July 4 holiday as Philippine Republic Day.
But in the hearts of eighteen million Filipinos, the American flag now flies more triumphantly than ever.
President Manuel Roxas addressing the crowd after the flag-raising ceremony on July 4, 1946
Despite eventual success of Filipinos to claim political and social independence, a new type of colonialism rose in
the country. It is known as neocolonialism. Neocolonialism is defined as the practice of using economic, linguistic,
and cultural forces to control a country (usually former European colonies in Africa or Asia) in lieu of direct military
or political control. Since most of the country was ravaged by the Second World War, the Philippines depended
mainly on the United States to restore her industries and businesses. The country only began to build local industries
to reduce economic dependence on foreign nations during the term of President Ferdinand Marcos. Nationalism in
the real sense remained stuck up in a false Filipinistic posture. Examples of governmental efforts to enforce
nationalistic policies began with former President Ramon Magsaysay sworn into office wearing the Barong Tagalog,
a first by any Philippine president. It was fervently followed by the nationalist program "Filipino First Policy" of
Carlos P. Garcia.
Filipino nationalism
Radical nationalism
After World War II, the Hukbalahap (Filipino: Hukbong Bayan Laban sa mga Hapon) guerillas continued the
revolutionary struggle to establish a Communist government in the Philippines. Nationalism in the real sense
remained stuck up in a false Filipinistic posture. The radical wing of the nationalists, led by peasant leader Luis
Taruc, renamed themselves as the Hukbong Magpalaya ng Bayan (English: Army to Liberate the People). At its
heyday, the Huk movement commanded an estimated 170,000 armed troops with a base of at least two million
civilian supporters. Ramon Magsaysay, which was then the Secretary of National Defense during the Quirino
administration, was instrumental in halting the Communist movement.
In 1964, Jose Maria Sison co-founded the Kabataang Makabayan (Patriotic Youth) with Nilo S. Tayag. This
organization rallied the Filipino youth against the Vietnam War, against the Marcos presidency, and corrupt
politicians. On December 26, 1968, he formed and chaired the Central Committee of the Communist Party of the
Philippines (CPP), an organization within the Communist Party founded on Marxist-Leninist-Mao Zedong Thought,
stemming from his own experiences as a youth leader and a labor and land reform activist. This is known as the
"First Great Rectification" movement where Sison and other radical youths criticized the existing Party's leadership
and failure. The reformed CPP included Maoism within the political line as well as the struggle for a National
Democratic Revolution in two-stages, consisting of a protracted people's war as its first part to be followed by a
socialist revolution.
Radical nationalism in the Philippines emphasized the Philippine Revolution under Bonifacio as unfinished and
henceforth continued, under working class leadership. Writers such as Teodoro Agoncillo, Renato Constantino
advocated patriotic sentiment by means of revisiting Filipino history in a Filipino perspective.
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Filipino nationalism
on February 26. Many people around the world rejoiced and congratulated Filipinos they knew. Corazon Aquino
succeeded as president of the Philippines.
In 1986, Aquino adopted Original Pilipino Music (OPM, defined as "any musical composition created by a Filipino,
whether the lyrics be in Pilipino, English or in any other language or dialect") by requiring hourly broadcasts of
OPM songs on all radio programs having musical formats in order to conserve, promote and popularize the nation's
historical and cultural heritage and resources, as well as artistic creations, and to give patronage to arts and letters.
Singers like Regine Velasquez, Randy Santiago, Ogie Alcasid, Gary Valenciano, Manilyn Reynes, Donna Cruz and
others are contributed to the President's implementation of Filipino music over the airwaves. Stations like
DZOO-FM, DWLS, etc., are adopted hourly OPMs effectively after the implementation. Aquino also encouraged the
tourism sector to boost the national economy. Under her six-year term, the Department of Tourism launched a
program called The Philippines: Fiesta Islands of Asia in 1989, offers tourist visits in the country to show their
natural wonders, to protect their indigenous peoples, to preserve heritage sites and to contribute historical
importance. In 1987, then President Corazon C. Aquino penned Executive Order No. 118 creating the Presidential
Commission on Culture and Arts. Five years later, in 1992, this presidential directive was enacted into
lawRepublic Act 7356, creating the National Commission for Culture and the Arts (NCCA).
On June 12, 1998, the nation celebrated its centennial year of independence from Spain. The celebrations were held
simultaneously nationwide by then President Fidel V. Ramos and Filipino communities worldwide. A commission
was established for the said event, the National Centennial Commission headed by former Vice President Salvador
Laurel presided all events around the country. One of the major projects of the commission was the Expo Pilipino, a
grand showcase of the Philippines' growth as a nation for the last 100 years, located in the Clark Special Economic
Zone (formerly Clark Air Base) in Angeles City, Pampanga.
During his term, President Joseph Estrada ordered to the National Telecommunications Commission (NTC) to adopt
a Filipino language-based radio format known as masanamed for his icon term Masa (or Masses).[citation needed]
All radio stations adopted the masa format in 1998.[citation needed] Many stations continued to use the masa format
after President Estrada left the presidency in 2001 because the masa format resonated with listeners. Some in the
radio industry decry the effects masa formatting has had.[8]
On August 14, 2010, President Benigno Aquino III directed the Department of Transportation and Communications
(DOTC) and the NTC to fully implement Executive Order No. 255 [9], issued on July 25, 1987 by former Philippines
President Corazon Aquino, requiring all radio stations to broadcast a minimum of four original Filipino musical
compositions in every clock hour of programs with a musical format.
On April 13, 2012, The Manila Times, the oldest English language newspaper in the Philippines, published an
editorial titled "Unpatriotic editing and reporting", taking the Filipino journalistic community to task for their
reporting of what it described as "confrontation between our Philippine Navy and 'law enforcement' ships of the
People's Republic of China" in the Spratly Islands. The editorial opined that Philippine reports should state that
disputed territories are Philippine territory, and characterized those who refer to disputed territories as "being
claimed by the Philippines" as "unpatriotic writers and editors".
On February 14, 2013, National Book Store, the Philippines' largest bookstore chain, has withdrawn Chinese-made
globes, which reflect China's nine-dotted line encompassing the South China Sea, from its shelves. Department of
Foreign Affairs spokesman Raul Hernandez said in a statement that, "[National Bookstore] has taken a patriotic
position to proactively support the Philippine government in advancing Philippine foreign policy objectives." He
said the decision to pull out the globes came after a dialogue with the bookstore management, which claimed they
were unaware of the misinformation contained in the educational materials.
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Filipino nationalism
References
[1] Philippine History by Maria Christine N. Halili. "Chapter 3: Precolonial Philippines" (Published by Rex Bookstore; Manila, Sampaloc St.
Year 2004)
[2] http:/ / jonroyeca. blogspot. com/ 2012/ 11/ sino-ang-mga-orihinal-na-pilipino. html
[3] Renato Constantino, The Philippines: A Past Revisited
[4] , "The charter of the Royal Philippine Company was promulgated on to last for 25 years."
[5] Wong Kwok Chu, "The Jones Bills 1912-16: A Reappraisal of Filipino Views on Independence", Journal of Southeast Asian Studies 1982
13(2): 252-269
[6] (Note: 1. The book cover incorrectly lists author as "Maximo M Lalaw", 2. Originally published in 1921 by The McCullough Printing Co.,
Manila)
[7] See
[8] (requoted with permission)
[9] http:/ / www. lawphil. net/ executive/ execord/ eo1987/ eo_255_1987. html
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Creative Commons Attribution-Share Alike 3.0
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