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The Philippines’ Struggles for Independence

6/25/2018

3 Comments

 
by Jack Demlow
The Philippines’ Struggles for Independence
On June 12th, 2018, the Philippines celebrated the 120th anniversary of their declaration of independence from Spain in 1898. However, like most holidays, the history behind this date is a good deal more complicated than a declaration and a day on a calendar.

Spanish Colonialism

Jose RizalJose Rizal
The Philippines were colonized by Spain in the 16th century and was used for agricultural purposes under the feudal-styled encomienda system, as well as for trade with the East Indies and China. Spain was far from the first foreign power to interact with the Filipinos, who had a history of trading with Chinese and Arab merchants, but Spain would have nearly 300 years of continuous control to gouge out a mark like no other. Traditional religion, methods of governance, systems of agriculture, and more would see significant change under outsider rule. The Spanish crown kept a close eye on the islands, replacing the encomienda system with crown officials to guarantee that the colony was defended, dues were paid, and the Filipinos were instructed in (and restricted to) practicing the Christian faith.
Spanish impositions would gradually ease by the 19th century, but they were still a heavy weight. However, wealthy Filipinos could gain access to education abroad, and through this window the Philippines was exposed to liberal and nationalistic currents. The writer Jose Rizal is credited with rallying many Filipinos to the cause of reform, and his arrest and execution by Spanish authorities resulted in the formation of the Katipunan, an underground revolutionary group. After discovery by the Spanish forced the Katipunan to act quickly with their plan, and the Philippine Revolution began in August 1896. These first hostilities were concluded by a truce and the promise of reform by the Spanish government, but Spain still had not taken steps to meet this promise by 1898, when revolutionary leader Emilio Aguinaldo led his fellow revolutionaries to take advantage of the Spanish-American War and fight for their independence.

The Malalos Republic and Resistance to U.S. Control

Filipino and U.S. forces pushed the Spanish hard, and Aguinaldo and his forces celebrated a wave of victories by declaring independence on June 12th 1898 and forming a governmental system for the newly declared “Malalos Republic,” of which Aguinaldo was president. However, when final victory over the Spanish was declared, the Philippines were not granted official independence; instead, Spain had transferred control of the Philippines over to the United States as part of the 1889 Treaty of Paris. Filipino forces engaged in a guerilla war against U.S. control until Aguinaldo was captured in 1901 and he subsequently encouraged  acceptance of the new regime. The fact that U.S. imperial possessions contradicted principles of self-determination was not lost on Filipinos or many Americans, though ostensibly the American regime was meant to prepare the Philippines for independence. This paternalistic claim was not as disingenuous as it might appear; civil services in the Philippines saw a steady decrease in non-Filipino employees and in 1933 the Tydings-McDuffie Act set 1945 as the date for Philippine independence.

​The Commonwealth of the Philippines and WWII

Manuel QuezonManuel Quezon
Before the Philippines would become completely independent they would have 10 years of U.S.-supervised Filipino self-government. This commonwealth of the Philippines wrote its own constitution and elected Nacionalista Party leader Manuel Quezon as its president. The Commonwealth of the Philippines was officially established on November 15th, 1935, the date of Quezon’s inauguration. The road ahead did not look smooth, however, as Japanese aggression in China bred anxiety in the Philippines, and General Douglas MacArthur became the islands’ military advisor as preparations for defense began.
The Philippines were struck by the Japanese invasion on December 8th, 1941, and had very little preparation in place to fall back on. U.S. and Filipino forces surrendered on May 6th, 1942, but fighting on the islands was far from over. Both army and civilian-organized resistance groups engaged in guerilla warfare over the course of the Japanese occupation, most notably the communist-led Hukbalahap. Almost two years after their initial defeat, U.S. forces returned to the Philippines in October of 1944, landing first on Leyte island then inflicting heavy damage on the Japanese fleet in the battle of Leyte Gulf. MacArthur reported total success of the invasion on July 5th, 1945.


Independence ​

Just shy of a year later, with WWII finally over, the U.S. granted the Philippines independence on July 4th, 1946. After centuries of fighting Spain, then the U.S., and then Japan, and 48 years after Emilio Aguinaldo's assertion of independence, the island nation finally had international legitimacy. Yet, it is June 12th, 1898 that is celebrated today, not July 4th, 1946, a pointed rebuke of both Spain and the United States.
References
  1. DLSU - Manila. "Philippine History." n.d. Pinas. Web Page. 18 June 2018.
  2. Encyclopedia Britannica. "Philippines." 2015 June 2018. Encyclopedia Britannica. Web Page. 18
  3. June 2018.
  4. Gov.PH. "About the Philippines." n.d. Republic of the PHilippines National Government Portal.
  5. Web Page. 18 June 2018.
  6. History.com Staff. "This Day in History: Philippine independence declared." 12 June 2018.
  7. History.com. Web Page. 18 June 2018.

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3 Comments
Lt.col , Eli Cohen,
7/4/2018 08:18:52 am

The Philippines made a huge blunder by closing the subic bay United States Naval base and the clerk Airforce base,both would assisted the Philippines against the Chinese expension in the south China Sea,now with Courrpted dictator in place,acting for China, Philippines will be colonised by China.

Reply
Ernie Lara
7/2/2020 06:24:34 am

The bigger mistake still is that Pilipinos continue to elect corrupt officials just because they are the incumbent warlords in the area. The biggest mistake is them electing a warlord, marcos worshiper for a president. Pinoys vote the name, ie erap, not the qualified person.

Reply
Blue Tenorio
12/2/2020 01:15:13 am

it seems the now politician have forgotten the people who elected and gave them the chair were they are sitting right now. A leader who is afraid of a woman. A die hard fans with bird brains. The ohh so called jokes of their father. A man who is sleeping while a calamity is happening, throw curses in national TV. And shutdown the one of the most important TV station that ended up thousands of employess lost their job while facinmg the pandemic. What a good dog of China.

Reply



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  • Home
    • About >
      • FAQ's - Frequently Asked Questions
    • Support Us >
      • Projects you can support! >
        • Distributing Books
        • Presenting at 112th Annual Meeting of Pacific Coast Branch
        • Summer Research Relocation Fund
    • Contact
  • Stories
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      • Black Hearts (2021)
    • Blog
    • Podcast: Forgotten History
  • Internship
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    • Summer 2020 Internship
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    • Summer 2019 Internship >
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    • School Year 2018-2019 Internship
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    • Summer 2017 Internship >
      • 2017 Summer Showcase & Fundraiser
  • Books
  • Archives
  • Resource Page
    • Supplementary Research Guides >
      • Unit 731 - Guide >
        • Background of Biochemical Warfare Development
        • Imperial Japan's Chemical Warfare Development Program
        • Map of Unit 731
        • Personnel of Unit 731
        • Duties of Unit 731
        • Human Experimentation
        • [GRAPHIC] Germ Warfare Attacks
        • Cover Ups After the War
        • [OLD] Cover Ups After the War
      • Philippines' Resistance - Guide >
        • Philippines World War II Timeline
        • The Japanese Invasion & Conquest of the Philippines
        • Bataan Death March
        • Formation of Underground Philippines Resistance
        • Supplies of the Guerrilla Fighters
        • The Hukbalahap
        • Hunter's ROTC
        • Marking's Guerrillas
        • United States Army Forces in the Philippines of Northern Luzon (USAFIP-NL)
        • The Aetas
        • Chinese and Filipino-Chinese Nationalist Guerrilla Units
        • The Female Faces of the Philippine Guerrillas
      • Rising Sun Flag - Guide >
        • History of the Rising Sun Flag
        • Atrocities Committed Under the Flag
        • Rising Sun Flag in Pop Culture
      • Pinay Guerrilleras - Guide >
        • Japanese Occupation of the Philippine Islands: Pinays Answering the Call to Arms
        • The Fierce Heneralas and Kumanders of the Hukbalahap Guerrillas
        • Amazons of the Pacific Theater
        • Filipina American Veterans: Recovering the Extraordinary Feats of the Ordinary Pinays
        • The Legacy of the Asian Women Soldier
      • Fall of Singapore - Guide >
        • Singapore World War II Timeline
        • History of World War II in the Pacific
        • History of Singapore
        • Japan's Conquest in Asia
        • Japan's Invasion of the Malay Peninsula
        • Sook Ching Massacre
        • Double Tenth Incident
        • Social Changes and Challenges in Singapore
        • Voices from Syonan
        • Return to British Rule
      • Three Years and Eight Months - Guide >
        • Hong Kong before WW2
        • Buildup to World War 2
        • The Battle of Hong Kong
        • Life during 3 Years and 8 Months
        • East River Column Guerrilla Fighters
        • Prisoners of War Camps
        • End of Japanese Occupation
        • War Crimes Trials
      • Siamese Sovereignty - Guide >
        • The Land of Smiles
        • The Thai-Japanese Relationship
        • Phibun’s Domestic and International Policies
        • The Free Thai Resistance Movement
        • Post WW2 Aftermath of Thailand
      • The Khabarovsk War Crimes Trial - Guide >
        • Defendants of Khabarovsk War Crime
        • The Japanese Empire and USSR in WW2
        • The Employment of the Bacteriological Weapon in the War
        • Planning of Japan invasion to USSR
      • Unit 731 Cover-up : The Operation Paperclip of the East - Guide >
        • Establishing Manchukuo
        • The Development of Unit 731
        • Plan Kantokuen and Bacteriological Warfare
        • The Downfall of the Japanese WW2 Era
        • Three Stages of Interrogations
        • Lasting Impacts
      • Marutas of Unit 731 - Guide >
        • How did Ishii Shiro start unit 731?
        • A Beta Testing Site
        • Establishing Pingfan
        • Experiences at the Human Experimentation Complex
        • Vivisection at the Unit 731
        • Anta Testing Grounds
        • Overall Advance from the Laboratory Creations
        • The End of the War
      • Prince Konoe Memoir - Guide >
        • Who is Prince Konoe?
        • Preparation to Tripartite Pact
        • Emperor Hirohito and Prince Konoe
        • The End of Prince Konoe
      • Competing Empires in Burma - Guide >
        • What was the China-Burma-India Theater?
        • When did the China-Burma-India Theater Happen?
        • Who Fought in the China-Burma-India Theater?
        • The Second Sino Japanese War
        • Japan in the South
        • Operation U-Go
      • Battle of Shanghai - Guide >
        • The Battle of Shanghai. Background
        • Shanghai Before War
        • The First Battle of Shanghai 1932
        • Battle of Shanghai 1937
        • Aftermath of Battle for Shanghai
      • Ishi Shiro - Guide >
        • History of Biological Weapons and The Young Ishii Shiro
        • Establishment in Manchuria
        • Pingfang District - Harbin
        • Failures and Corruption
        • Post War
      • Taiwan The Israel of the East - Guide >
        • Background of Formosa
        • Industrialization of Japan
        • China During WWII
        • Taiwan under Kuomintang
        • New Taiwanese National Identity
      • Seeking Justice for Biological Warfare Victims of Unit 731 - Guide >
        • Introduction of Wang Xuan
        • Colonel Memorandum
        • The Beginning of Biological Warfare
        • The Bacteriological Warfare on China
        • Victims in Zhejiang’s Testimonies
        • After the War
      • Rice and Revolution - Guide >
        • The French Colonial Period
        • Anti-Colonial Resistance
        • The Rise of the Communist Movement
        • Imperial Japan’s Entry into Indochina
        • The Portents of Famine
        • The Famine (1944-45)
        • Legacy of the 1944-45 Vietnam Famine
      • Clash of Empires - Guide >
        • Japan’s Imperialist Origins
        • Japan’s Competition against the West: Nanshin-ron and Hokushin-ron
        • Japanese Imperialism Through the Lens of French Indochina
        • The U.S.-Japan Relations and the Pearl Harbor Attack
      • Hunger for Power and Self-SufficiencyI - Guide >
        • The Influence of War Rations on Post-War Culinary Transformations
        • How World War II Complicated Food Scarcity and Invention
        • American Military Innovations
        • Government-Sponsored Food Inventions in Europe during World War II
        • Feeding the Army: The Adaptation of Japanese Military Cuisine and Its Impact on the Philippines
        • Mixed Dishes: Culinary Innovations Driven by Necessity and Food Scarcity
    • Lesson Plans >
      • Reparations
      • Ethics in Science
      • Writing the Narrative of a Pinay Fighter
      • Privilege Journal
      • Environmental Injustices
      • Female Guerrillas
      • Hunter's ROTC
      • Scientific Advancements
      • Seeking Justice: A Humanities Lesson Plan
      • The Hukbalahap
      • Trading Immunity
      • Bataan Death March
      • Biochemical Warfare Development
Contribute