Chapter/ Module 3: Occupations in the Philippines

• Describe and analyze the reaction of the early Filipinos to

Spanish Occupation
• Analyze the different economic policies of the Americans in the
Philippines that made impact to the society during and after the
American rule
• Effectively communicate and articulate the historical analysis
of a particular evemt or issue that could help other people
understand and manage present dat issues and concerns.
d. The Katipunan
The Kataastaasan Kagalanggalangang Katipunan ng mga Anak
ng Bayn, otherwise known as KKK or simply Katipunan, was a secret
society that was established by Andres Bonifacio and some of his
comrades on July 7, 1892. This was a significant event for the Filipinos
because it marked the end of the peaceful campaign for reforms and
the beginning of a movement which aimed to end Spanish oppression
by uniting the Filipinos and achieve independence by means of a
revolution.
To increase the number of members of the organization, and to
stop suspicion on the part of the family members, the Katipunan
accepted women members. The women were least suspected by the
Spanish authorities, so they were able to keep important documents of
the society. They also served as messengers and front for the secret
meetings of the organization (Vivar et al., 1999)
The Katipunan became especially popular in the suburbs of Manila
and in the provinces of Central Luzon. But as the number of its affiliates
increased, the Spanish authorities began to suspect its underground
character. The friars began to denounce the nightly meeting held by
Katipuneros and on August 19, 1896, a certain Patino, a Katipunan
member, exposed the society to Fr. Mariano Gil. With the discovery of
the Katipunan, Bonifacio had no alternative than to take the fieldand
on August 23, at pugadlawin, he and his men declared their intention
to fight to the bitter end. The revolution spread to the other provinces.
In cavite, meanwhile, the two factions of the society were at
loggerheads and Bonifacio was invited to mediate between them. At
Tejeros, it was agreed to change the society with a government
responsive to the demands of the times, and in the election that
followed, Bonifacio was chosen Director of the Interior. Unfortunately,
his election was questioned by Daniel irona. Bonifacio hurt by insult,
 declared the results of the lection null and void. In April, he was ordered
arrested, tried and executed. The Filipinos were at that time losing
battle after battle. Aguinaldo retreated to Baiak-na-Bato, where the
Republic was founded. Later in, December, the Truce of Biak-na-Bato
was concluded between the rebels and the Spanish Government. The
truce, however, was a failure (Agoncillo, 1990).

Lesson 2: Philippines under the American Regime – Self-

government and developments in the Philippines Under
American Colonial Rule
Lesson 2.1 Self-government and developments in the
Philippines Under American Colonial Rule
a. American Government in The Philippines
a. America’s Policy of Occupation
America’s successful suppression of revolutionary resistance
against their colonial rule forced the Filipino elite to shift to an
alternative of peaceful struggle for independence. Using an altruistic
policy for the Philippines, the United States, under President Willliam
Mckinley, enticed the Filipino elites into a compromise with American
Colonialism. Many of the Filipino elite Leaders especially the
“Illustrados,” began to adhere to the well-stated US Policy of President
Mckinley in his message to the US Congress stressing that the
Philippines is theirs not to exploit but to develop, to civilize, to educate,
and to train in the science of self-government. In reality, behind this
policy declaration was America’s other colonial objectives, as follows:
1. To pursue a “manifest destiny” for America as a world
power
2. To use the Philippines as a source of raw materials for
US industries and as market for US manufactured
surplus products
3. To use the Philippines as a military and naval base to
balance the power in Asia
4. To have a refueling port for American ships servicing
their interest in Chine
These ulterior motives of America’s colonial rule later became a reality
when the US government gained complete control of the Philippine
archipelago politically. Finding no other way to repel American motives, the
Filipinos painfully succumbed to compromising their sovereignty to
colonialism by way of serving under American military and civilian rule in
the Philippines.
 a. Filipino involvement in American Government in the Philippines
(1899-1913)
In preparation for the foundation of a civilian government in the
Philippines, the three successive terms of American military governors,
namely General Wesley Merrit (August 16, 1898), General Elwell S. Otis
(1898-1900), and General Arthur McArthur (1900- 1901), focused on
pacifications of campaigns. To win the support of Filipino Elites, the
Americans used a subtle strategy of conquest by introducing the
American school system to civilize and educate Filipinos to embrace
democracy. They organized civil courts and appointed Filipino jurists.
They established towns and provinces and installed pro-American local
leaders to participate in local governmental affairs as apprentices of the
American system of governance.
To train Filipinos to govern their constituencies in the way Americans
want them to towards achieveing their unterior motives, the first
election was held by Gen. Henry W. Lawton in Baliwag, Bulacan. These
patterns of pacification campaign which were employed successfully in
Luzon, Visayas, and Mindanao resulted in readiness of Filipino elite
leaders to collaborate with the US government in the Philippines.
In the central American government, those Filipino elites who
believed in the sovereighnty of the US over the Philippines were
appointed to top executive, legislative, and judicial positions by being
members of the First Philippine Commission, otherwise known as the
Schurman Comission (1899), and the Second Philippine Commission
(1900) also known as the “Taft Commission.”. there were three reasons
why Filipino elite leaders opted to collaborate with the American
authorities. The first reason was to preserve the security of their
privileges as there was a growing demand from the masses for the
redistribution of economic benefits and resources. The second reason
was the elite class, distrust of the masses, nothing that some of them
were branded as bandits or trouble makers, ignorant people who
possess questionable moral conduct. Thirdly, the elite could not entrust
their interests and future to the masses, thus, by co-opting with the
Americans, they were assured of the protection of their wealth, power,
and prestige. To the Americans, the pro-American attitude of the
Filipino elites was advantageous to their colonial purposes and
economic interests in the Philippines.

Collaborative participation of cultural communities in Luzon,

Visayas, and Mindanao was gained through the efforts of American
teachers and missionaries who played their roles in domestication the
tribal leaders. Datus and sultans in Mindanao were used as key persons
in their strategy for collaboration, giving them roles as promoters of
social services to effect social re-orientation favorable to American
interests.
In the Cordilleras, the Americans used a strategy to win the Ifugaos,
and Kalingas to cooperate and accept American rule. The head-hunting
skirmishes between and among the Cordillera tribes, as weel as the
disputes over territorial boundaries and hostilities, were stopped either
with the use of firepower for pacification or with a compromise
settlement. When firepower was not too effective, the Americans
shifted to benevolent treatment of the natives to impress on them their
image as benefactors. Establishment of American local governments in
the Cordillera proved successful after Cordillera natives were appointed
as mayors or cabecillos. Ifugaos who did not make it to political
positions were recruited into the American Constabulary as regular
soldiers who were paid generously.
In Southern Mindanao, the American approach to establish
collaboration was a political co-existence characterized by mutual
respect for personal property and political rights. The sultanate form of
govenmnet of the datus and sultans was a formidable block to improve
American political presence in Mindanao. Sa as not to agitate the
Sultans and datus from usurping their authorities as leaders of the
sultanate government, American authorities negotiated and concluded
treaties with Muslim leaders such as the Bates Treaty (1899) and later,
the Carpenter-Kiriam Agreement (1905). Consequently, these treaties
with the Muslims led to the erosion of power of the sultanate and paved
the way for the total imposition of American sovereighnty in all
territories of the sultanate.
b. The Filipinization of American Government in the Philippines
In 1913, Frances Burton Harrison became th e first Democratic
Governor General of the Philippines. His appointment saw the full
implementation of American policies and substancial participation of
Filipinos in government. As his colonial policy, rapid Filipinization of
government in the Philippines gained momentum then he involved
Filipinos in the various levels of the bureaucracy. Unfortunately,
Filipinization in government was only confined to the Filipino elites who
were actually landlords and capitalists and government employees
during the Spanish period, including those who could read and write.

Filipinization in government involving the participation of Filipino

elites was suitable to the Americans since it was an aid rather than a
hindrance to colonialism. In the purview of the Americans, keeping the
elite involved in government would be beneficial to American economic
interests in the Philippines, because it warranted economic partnership
between Americans and Filipino landlords and capitalists.
This partnership eventually led to a special relationship between the
American and Filipino land owners and capitalists as manifested in the
so-called “free-trade” which was provided for in the Payne-Aldrich Tariff
of 1909 during the Harrison Era, consequently making the Philppines a
US market of surplus goods in Asia. The American capitalists enjoyed
the lion’s share in the benefits from the free trade policy. This lopsided
effect of free trade policy permeated further not only in the economic
aspect of Filipino life, but also in the political, social and cultural fields.
c. The Socio-Cultural Effects of Filipinization in Government during
the American Period
The American democratic political structure in the Philippines
which was largely manned by Filipino elites who were trained under
American tutelage in governance improved modern ways of
American democracy. The pro-American Filipino elites were referred
to outsiders as “little brown American.” They insisted that Filipino
traditional ways should be abandoned if not substituted totally with
modern bureaucracy. A new brand of democracy known as
‘democracy-Filipino style’ emerged. This style as a trend of
Filipinization gave rise to a new breed of Filipinos who were involved
in the introduction of popular American activities in cultural fields
such as sports, entertainment, education, religion, and the arts.
Despite the fact that American democratic styles have found a
distinct place in Filipino life, Filipino values which were anchored on
Filipino tradition were not abandoned by those who co-opted with the
Americans. Large majority of Filipinos saw no contradictions between
the American values and Filipino tradition. This perception of many
Filipinos was contributory to the Americanization of Filipino lifestyle.
d. The American Policy on Philippine Independence
When Filipino nationalists began their advocacy movements for
autonomy and independence, the American authorities in the
Philippines had no effective response. They viewed nationalist efforts
as mere agitations of the leaders of insular politics. As a palliative
measure to downplay the clamor for self-government and
independence, the American colonial authorities promised
independence as soon as a stable form of government could be
established by them. This was affirmed by the passage of the Jones
Law in 1916 by the US Congress which required the establishment of a
stable government first before independence would be granted.
In 1918, just after the World War 1 ended, the Filipinos began to
agitate for the fulfillment of America’s promise of independence to the
Philippines. They were inspired by their belief that political pressures
and consistent campaign efforts could force the US o comply with its
promise. After 1918. Through the leadership of Manual L. Quezon, a
more sustained effort to end American rule and the granting of
independence to the Philippines was directed to the legislators in
Washington, the US seat of government.

b. The Commonwealth Government

The Commonwealth Government was inaugurated on November
15, 1935, witnessed by a crowd of more or less 300,000 Filipinos.
President-elect Manuel L. Quezon delivered his inaugural address
stressing his historic statement which goes, “I would rather have a
government run like hell by Filipinos rather than a government run like
heaven by the Americans.”
The Commonwealth Government of the Philippines, which
became the realization of the real desire of Filipinos for independence,
was able to accomplish the following achievement.
1. Reorganization of the government by creating new offices,
including the Department of National Defense, the Institute of
National Language, the National Council of Education, the
Filipinization of the Judiciary from the supreme Court down to
the municipal courts, the Court of Appeals, and the Court of
Industrial Relations.
2. Granting of women suffrage, after a special national plebiscite
in which 447, 725 women voted in favor of women suffrage
and 44,397 against it.
3. Creation of new chartered cities, namely: Cebu, Iloilo,
Bacolod, Davao, Zamboanga, San Pablo, Quezon City, Cavite,
and Tagaytay.
4. The adoption of Tagalog as the national language.
5. Promotion of social justice (Eight-hour Labor Act) and the
appointment of public defenders to defend the rights of the
poor laborers in the courts.
6. Compulsory military training of able-bodied Filipino youths,
under the supervision of General Douglas MacArthur.
7. Taking of the 1939 official census of the Philippines.
 8. Improvement of the Philippine economy as revealed by the
growth of agriculture, commerce, and industries.

9. Creation of the Joint Preparatory Committee Philippine Affairs

(JPCPA), which recommend the following, (1) granting of Philippine
Independence on July 4, 1946 and (2) extension of Philippine-American
Preferential trade to December 31, 1960.
10. Passage of three amendments to the 1935 Philippine Constitution
which were ratified by the national plebiscite on June 18, 1940.
These amendments were as follows:
a. Tenure of office of the President and Vice-President to was four years
with re-election for another term.
b. Establishment of a bicameral Congress of the Philippines, with the
Senate as Upper House and the House of Representatives as Lower House.
c. Creation of an Independent Commission on Election composed of
three members to supervise all elections.
a. Based on the table above, which aspect(s) of Filipino life was greatly
advanced by the Philippine Commonwealth? Justify.

Lesson 2.2 Development and Progress Under American Rule

a. Economic and Social Progress under American Rule
Given an era of cooperation and good relations between American
authorities and Filipino leaders, development in the Philippines took
great leaps and bounds. Rapid development in agriculture, commerce,
ang trade soared high. Transportation and communications were
modernized. Banking systems were established and manufacturing
industries grew in big proportions. All of these were generated as a
result of the favorable political and socio-cultural climate in the
Philippines. American businessmen, capitalists, and industrialists
flocked to Philippine soil to establish their enterprises using local talents
and labors.
The economic progress under America did not pass without a
great price on the part of the Filipinos. Local production and business
gave way to accommodate American Products and industries. In terms
of who benefited most in terms of economic progress, the Filipinos got
the least, while American capitalists got the most profit using Filipino
skills and labor.
b. Growth of Agriculture in the Philippines
 Agricultural Progress in the Philippines during the American
regime was remarkable for it changed the deplorable state of Philippine
agriculture into a scientifically advanced and modernized one. The
introduction of experimental model farms and livestock production
technology introduced by Americans gradually empowered Filipino
farmers with scientific methods of cultivation. New breeds of livestock
increased production outputs. Modern post-harvest facilities like
warehouses and farm machineries like thresher and rice hullers were
introduced. Irrigation systems and dams were built. Sugar plantations
were established and packaging of farm products was taught. All of
these and other introductions and innovations spurred the growth of
agricultural production in the Philippines. Unfortunately, majority of
Filipino farmers were not favored much by agricultural developments
for reasons that they remained tillers of the lands of landlords and
capitalists.
c. Flourishing of Trade and Commerce
The free trade relations between the US and the Philippines
fostered a giant leap for trade and commerce in the Philippines. Import
and export trade which became a full free trade in

1913 by virtue of the Underwood-Simons Tariff Act of the US Congress

facilitated the opening of ports all over the country.
However, the trade agreement seemed not to favor the Filipino
much because of the fact that Philippine export products were free to
enter American ports within quota limits while American products could
enter Philippine ports without paying duty taxes to the Philippines and
without quota limits. The crux of inequality was the fact that there were
more imports from America than the export products of the Filipinos
entering the US. THE American capitalists got greater profits that their
Filipino counterparts.
d. Industrial Development
The American period facilitated the Industrial Age in the
Philippines. Factories sprang up in towns and cities, producing
commodities such as cigars, coconut oil, sugar, textile, and cordage
using local resources. Mining industries boomed into huge international
industries. The Philippines became known as a gold producer and
supplier of other minerals such as chromate, manganese, copper, iron,
silver and others. Fishing and fish canning became major industries,
placing the Philippines in the limelight of the international market as a
rich ground for deep-sea fishing.
 e. Improvement of Transportation and Communication
The American period affected the modernization of transportation
facilities in the Philippines. Roads and bridges were constructed, which
facilitated transport of products from farms to ports and markets with
ease and convenience. By 1935, there were already 20,826 kilometers
of roads and 8,100 bridges built by American road builders.
In 1905, telephone system was introduced in Manila. Radio-
telephone services were installed in 1933. Towns and provincial capitols
were inter-connected by radio, telegraph lines, and telephones. By
1935, more than a thousand mail offices all over the Philippines were
established, facilitating communications though ordinary mails,
telegrams, money orders, packages, and air mail letters.
These material progress in the Philippines that were achieved
during the American colonial period had an impact on the economic
condition of the Philippines. However, form the perception of Filipino
nationalists, America’s regime in the Philippines transformed the
Philippines into a market of surplus products of the US and a gold mine
of economic resources at the expense of the greater majority of

Filipinos, who gave so much of the expense of the resources, time, and
talents but received the least of benefits.
f. Social Progress under America
The impact of American public education I the Philippines was a
key factor in the improvement of peace and order conditions in the
country. Democracy as an ideology was emphasized in all schools.
Filipinos became conscious of basic freedoms. Political writers began to
express their views with greater impetus and political consciousness
grew among Filipinos in government. Partisan politics was allowed,
enabling Filipinos to form independent political parties wherein a great
majority of Filipino elites agitated for political independence.
Filipino cultural life changed dramatically as the English language
became an official medium, not only in schools, but also in private and
public offices. The influx of ideas from the progressive West acquired
through the knowledge and proficiency in English helped enrich the
English language, which was patrionized by Filipinos, proved itself as
the potent force which changed Filipino cultural life and gave
importance to a Western-oriented cultural environment,

LESSON 3: The Philippines Under Japanese Rule

Japanese Invasion
 During the 10-year period of the Commonwealth government,
Japan arose as Asia’s strongest military power. The Japanese
government, which was controlled by an elite class of military warriors,
embarked on an ambitious scheme to build an economic empire by
uniting all Asian nations against the colonial clutches of Western
imperialist nations. She embarked on a conquest of expansionism
through military invasions over weak countries in Asia. Her conquests
were greatly motivated by her need for territories to accommodate her
excess population and also to have markets for her surplus
manufactured goods.
Establishment of Japanese Military Administration
On January 02, 1942, after the relatively bloodless occupation of
Manila, General Homma, Commander-in-Chief of the Japanese Imperial
Forces in the Philippines, declared the establishment of the Japanese
military administration with the intention of putting under complete
control political, economic, and socio-cultural affairs in Manila and
consequently the whole Philippines. He further declared the end of
American occupation and Placed the country under martial law, and
ordered the confiscation of firearms, ammunitions, and other war
materials. He declared punishment by death for anyone who did not
hostile act against the Japanese army. He placed under Japanese
control all industries, factories, banks, schools, churches, printing
presses, and centers of recreations. He issues a proclamation
prohibiting circulation of American dollars and introduced Japanese war
notes which replaced Philippine currency. He ordered arrests and
punishment to those who caught singing the American National anthem
and any American song. Books, magazines, and newspaper in English
were confiscated and burned. Only Japanese propaganda newspapers
written in Tagalog were allowed for circulation.

The Socio-Cultural Situation under Japanese Occupation

Although there was a Japanese-sponsored republic in existence,
the Filipinos had to contend with five mortal dangers: the guerillas,
hunger, Japanese-paid Filipino spies, lack of medicine, and diseases.
The Japanese military police or “KEMPETAI” had wanton
disregard for human lives. They sowed fear and terror in communities
by raiding houses of occupants with unregistered radios. All those
arrested suspects were severely tortured or executed publicly by
hanging or by firing squad. Oftentimes, torture by water cure, punching
bad or “red-hot iron” or “electric wire” were made public to warn people
not to collaborate in any way or by any means with Japanese enemies.
Worst were public executions by beheading with samurai. Such did not
effectively sow fear but sowed instead hatred for Japanese soldiers.
Spies were also a menace in the social life of Filipinos. Many Filipino
spies who were paid by the Japanese just pointed to anyone whom they
falsely suspected to be pro-American and anti-Japanese. More often
than not, the victims of Japanese-paid spies were unjustly accused,
tortured, and eventually executed.
Guerillas, on the other hand, were also a threat for they quickly
liquidated Filipinos who were suspected to be Japanese collaborators
without due process.
Social evils such as poverty and pretty crimes were rampantly
prevalent. Crimes against property increased for the sake of survival.
Stealing was a usual crime as it was a desperate means to survive
attributed to scarcity of food and hopelessness due to the acute state
of poverty. Scavengers roamed the streets and the public markets
scrounging for food in garbage drums. Some women grave in
desperation had to sustain their family by employing themselves as
comfort women for Japanese soldiers and sex attendants to the
bourgeoisie and plutocrats.
In the cultural context, the Filipinos were forcibly induced for
educational re-orientation. Military Order no.2, the Japanese policy on
education, was issued on February 2, 1942 to inculcate Japanese
culture; promote the dissemination of the principle of Greater East Asia
Co-Prosperity Sphere, spiritual rejuvenation. And the teaching of
Nippongo language; further vocational and elementary education; and
promote the love of labor. The main goal of this Japanese educational
policy was to erase Western cultural influences and to create an
atmosphere of friendship to push through Japanese intentions and war
aims. Schools were re-opened and were forced to strictly observe
Japanese educational policies.

In the field of arts expression, strict prohibitions were enforced

by Japanese authorities. Performers in theatres were not allowed to
present entertainment that were Western-oriented and injurious to
Japanese sensibilities. Writers did not enjoy freedom to expression.
Only a few print media were allowed for circulation with strict
censorship. While encouraging Filipino culture, the Japanese imposed
restrictions so as to ensure that they do not impair Japanese aims of
war.

The Economic Situation in the Philippine under the Japanese

Occupation
 Economic activities in the Philippines during the Japanese
occupation were limited since most of the economic resources were
under Japanese control. Production practically stopped due to the war
and fear of Japanese atrocities. Agriculture production was at its lowest
ebb. This predicament prevailed because work animals decreased and
farms and plantations had been abandoned. The Japanese military
confiscated trucks, cars, rice harvests, and even required farmers and
laborers to serve for the soldiers. Philippine currency was not in
circulation for the banks were controlled by the Japanese. During the
Period of Japanese Rule, Japanese money, called “Micky Mouse Money”
by the Americans and “Yap-yap” by the Filipinos, was the currency
which became a worthless legal tender towards the end of the Second
World War.
The Liberation Period in the Philippines
The Liberation period was one of the most thrilling episodes of
the struggles of Filipinos to restore and preserve their sovereignty. War
historians claim that the two years from 1944-1946 were the most
dramatic part in Philippine history. It was the period when Filipinos
showed their determination to take back their independence which had
they lost, by sheer gallantry and courage through the guerilla warfare
that they waged.
The final phase of the war in the Philippines during World War 2
involved a series of events in which leaders and personalities who were
Either Filipinos or Americans had put their lives at stake or had
somehow perished, all for the sake of a noble cause – freedom from
the clutches of the Japanese hawks of military expansionism.

Chapter/ Module 4: Social, Political, and Cultural Issues in

Philippine History

• To analyze social, political, economic, and cultural issues in the

Philippines using the lens of history.
• To recognize that the problems of today are consequences of
decisions and events that happened in the past.
• To understand several enduring issues in Philippine society
through history
 • To propose recommendations or solutions to present-day
problems based on the understanding ot the past and anticipation
of the future through the study of history.
This chapter is dedicated to enduring issues in Philippine society,
which history could lend a hand in understanding. and hopefully,
proposing solutions. These topics include the mandated discussion on
the Philippine constitution and policies on agrarian reform. It is hoped
that these discussions will help us propose recommendations or
solutions to present-day problem based on our understananding of root
causes and how we anticipate future scenarios in the Philippine setting
Lesson 1 Evolution of the Philippine Constitution
The constitution is defined as a set of fundamental principles or
established precedents according to which a state or other organization
is governed, thus, the word itself means to be a part of a whole, the
coming together of distinct entities into one group, with the same
prineiples and ideals. These principles define the nature and extent of
government.
The Constitution of the Philippines, the supreme law of the
Republic of the Phiippines, has been in effect since 1987. There were
only three other constitutions that have effectively governed the
country: the 1935 Commonwealth Constitution, the 1973 Constitution,
and the 1986 Freedom Constitution. However, there were earlier
constitutions attempted by Filipinos in the struggle to break free from
the colonial yoke.
1897: Constitution of Biak-na-Bato

The Constitution of Biak-na-Bato was the provisionary

Constitution of the Philippine Republic during the Philippine Revolution,
and was promulgated by the Philippine Revolutionary Government on
1 November,1897. The constitution, borrowed from Cuba, was written
by Isabelo Artacho and Félix Ferrer in Spanish, and later on, translated
into Tagalog.
The organs of the government under the Constitution were: (1)
the Supreme Council, which was vested with the power of the Republic,
headed by the president and four department secretaries: the interior,
foreign affairs, treasury, and war; (2) the Consejo Supremo de Gracia
Y Justicia (Supreme Council of Grace and Justice), which was given the
authority to make decisions and affirm or disprove the sentences
rendered by other courts and to dictate rules for the administration of
justice; and (3) the Asamblea de Representantes (Assembly of
Representatives), which was to be convened after the revolution to
create a new Constitution and to elect a new Council of Government
and Representatives of the people.
The Constitution of Biak-na-Bato was never fully implemented,
since a truce, the Pact of Biak-na-Bato, was signed between the
Spanish and the Philippine Revolutionary Army.
Primary Source: Preamble of the Biak-na-Bato Constitution
The separation of the Philippines from the Spanish monarchy and
their formation into an independent state with its own government
called the Philippine Republic has been the end sought by the
Revolution in the existing war, begun on the 24th of August, 1896; and,
therefore, in its name and by the power delegated by the Filipino
people, interpreting faithfully their desires and ambitions, we the
representatives of the Revolution, in a meeting at Biak-na-bato,
November 1, 1897, unanimously adopted the following articles for the
constitution of the State.
1899: Malolos Constitution
After the signing of the truce, the Filipino revolutionary leaders
accepted a payment from Spain and went to exile in Hong Kong. Upon
the defeat of the Spanish to the Americans in the Battle of Manila Bay
on 1 May 1898, the United States Navy transported Aguinaldo back to
the Philippines. The newly reformed Philippine revolutionary forces
reverted to the control of Aguinaldo, and the Philippine Declaration of
Independence was issued on 12 June 1898, together with several
decrees that formed the First Philippine Republic. The Malolos Congress
was elected, which selected a commission to draw up a draft

constitution on 17 September 1898, which was composed of wealthy and

educated men.
The document they came up with, approved by the Congress on
29 November 1898, and promulgated by Aguinaldo on 21 January
1899, was titled "The Political Constitution of 1899 and written in
Spanish. The constitution has 39 articles divided into 14 titles, with
eight articles of transitory provisions, and a final additional article. The
document was patterned after the Spanish Constitution of 1812, with
infuences from the charters of Belgium, Mexico, Brazil, Nicaragua,
Costa Rica, and Guatemala, and the French Constitution of 1793.
According to Felipe Calderon, main author of the constitution, these
countries were studied because they shared Similar social, political,
ethnological, and gOvernance conditions with the Philippines. Prior
 constitutional projects in the Philippines also influenced the Malolos
Constitution, namely, the Kartilya and the Sanggunian Hukuman, the
charter of laws and morals of the Katipunan written by Emilio Jacinto
in 1896; the Biak-na-Bato Constitution of 1897 planned by Isabelo
Artacho; Mabini's Constitutional Program of the Philippine Republic of
1898; the provisional constitution ot Mariano Ponce in 1898 that
followed the Spanish constitutions; and the autonomy projects of
Paterno in 1898.
Primary Source: Preambie ot the Folitical Constitution of 1899
We, the Representatives ot the Pilipno People, lawfully convened,
in order to establish justice, provIde for common defense, promote the
general welfare and insure the benefits of liberty, imploring the aid of
the Sovereign Legislator of the Universe for the attainment of these
ends, have voted, decreed, and sanctioned the following political
constitution.
As a direct challenge to colonial authorities of the Spanish empire,
the sovereignty was retroverted to the people, a legal principle
underlying the Philippine Revolution. The people delegated
governmental functions to civil servants while they retained actual
sovereignty. The 27 articles of Title IV detail the natural rights and
popular sovereignty of Filipinos, the enumeration of which does not
imply the prohibition of any other rights not expressly stated. Title III,
Article V also declares that the State recognizes the freedom and
equality of all beliefs, as well as the separation of Church and State.
These are direct reactions to features of the Spanish government in the
Philippines, where the firiars were dominant agents of the state.
The form of government, according to Title II, Article 4 is to be
popular, representative, alternative, and responsible, and shall exercise
three distinct powers-legislative, executive, and judicial. The

legislative power was vested in a a unicameral body called the

Assembly of Representatives, members of which are elected for terms
of four years. Secretaries of the government were given seats in the
assembly, which meet annually for a period of at least three months.
Bills could be introduced either by the president or by a member of the
assembly. Some powers not legislative in nature were also given to the
body, such as the right to select its own officers, right of censure and
interpellation, and the right of impeaching the president, cabinet
members, the chief justice of the Supreme Court, and the solicitor-
general. A permanent commission of seven, elected by the assembly,
and granted specific powers by the constitution, was to sit during the
intervals between sessions ot the assembly.
Executive power was vested in the president, and elected by a
constituent assembly of the Assembly of Representatives and special
representatives. The president will serve a term ot four years without
re-election. There was no vice president, and in case of a vacancy, a
president was to be selected by the constituent assembly.
The 1899 Malolos Constitution was never enforced due to the
ongoing war. The Philippines was effectively a territory of the United
States upon the signing of the Treaty of Paris between Spain and the
United States, transterring sovereignty of the Philippines on 10
December 1898.
1935: The Commonwealth Constitution
It is worth mentioning that after the Treaty of Paris, the
Philippines was subject to the power of the United States of America,
effectively the new colonizers of the country. From 1898 to 1901, the
Phiippines would be placed under a military government until a civil
government would be put into place.
Two acts of the United States Congress were passed that may be
considered to have qualities of constitutionality. First was the Philippine
Organic Act of 1902, the first organic law for the Philippine Islands that
provided for the creation of a popularly elected Philippine Assembly.
The act specified that legislative power would be vested in a bicameral
legislature composed of the Philippine Commission as the upper house
and the Philippine Assembly as lower house. Key provisions of the act
included a bill of rights for Filipinos and the appointment of two non-
voting Filipino President Commissioners of the Philippines as
representative to the United States House of Representatives. The
second act that functioned as a constitution was the Philippine
Autonomy Act of 1916, commonly referred to as "Jones Law," which
modified the structure of the Philippine government

through the removal of the Philippine Commission, replacing it with a

Senate that served as the upper house and its members elected by the
Filipino voters, the first truly elected national legislature. It was also
this Act that explicitly declared the purpose of the United States to end
their sovereignty over the Philippines and recognize Philippine
independence as soon as a stable government can be established.
In 1932, with the efforts of the Filipino independence mission led
by Sergio Osmeña and Manuel Roxas, the United States Congress
passed the Hare-Hawes-Cutting Act with the promise of granting
Filipinos independence. The bill was opposed by then Senate President
Manuel L. Quezon and consequently, rejected by the Philippine Senate
By 1934, another law, the Tydings-McDuffie Act, also known as
the Philippine Independence Act, was passed by the United States
Congress that provided authority and defined mechanisms for the
establishment of a formal constitution by a constitutional convention.
The members of the convention were elected and held their first
meeting on 30 July 1934, with Claro M. Kecto unanimously elected as
president.
The constitution was erafted to meet the approval of the United
States government, and to ensure that the United States would live up
to its promise to grant independence to the Philippines.
Primary Source: Preamble of the 1935 Commonwealth
The Filipino people, imploring the aid of Divine Providence, in
order to establish a government that shall embody their ideals,
conserve and develop the patrimony of the nation, promote the general
welfare, and secure to themselves and their posterity the blessings of
independence under a regime of justice, liberty, and democracy, do
ordain and promulgate this constitution.
The constitution created the Commonwealth of the Philippines,
an administrative body that governed the Philippines from 1935 to
1946. It is a transitional administration to prepare the country toward
its full achievement of independence. It originally provided for a
unicameral National Assembly with a president and vice president
elected to a six year term without re-election. It was amended in 1940
to have a bicameral Congress composed of a Senate and a House of
Representatives, as well as the creation of an independent electoral
commission, and limited the term or office of the president and vice
president to four years, with one re-election. Rights to sufirage were
originally afforded to male citizens of the Philippines who are twenty-
one years of age or over and are able to read and write; this was later

on extended to women within two years after the adoption of the

constitution.
While the dominant influence in the constitution was American, it
also bears traces of the Malolos Constitution, the German, spanish, and
Mexican constitutions, constitutions of several South American
countries, and the unwritten English Constitution.
 The draft of the constitution was approved by the constitutional
convention on 8 February 1935, and ratified by then U.S. President
Franklin B. Roosevelt on 25 March 1985. Elections were held in
September 1935 and Manuel L. Quezon was elected President of the
Commonwealth.
The Commonwealth was briefly interrupted by the events of the
World War II, with the Japanese occupying the Philippines. Afterward,
upon liberation, the Phiippines was declared an independent republic
on 4 July 1946
1973: Constitutional Authoritarian
In 1965, Ferdinand E. Marcos was elected president, and in 1967
Phillppine Congress passed a resolution calling for a constitutional
convention to change the 1985 Constitution. Marcos won the re-
election " 1969, in a bid boosted by campaign overspending and use of
government funds. Elections of the delegates to the constitutional
convention were held on 20 November 1970, and the convention began
formally on l June 1971, with former President Carlos P. Garcia being
elected as convention president. Unfortunately, he died, and was
succeeded by another former president, Diosdado Macapagal.
Before the convention finished its work, Martial Law was declared.
Marcos cited a growing communist insurgency as reason for the Martial
Law, which was provided for in the 1935 Constitution. Some delegates
of the ongoing constitutional convention were placed behind bars and
others went into hiding or were voluntary exiled. With Marcos as
dictator, the direction of the convention turned, with accounts that the
president himself dictated some provisions of the constitution,
manipulating the document to be able to hold on to power for as long
as he could. On 29 November 1972, the convention approved its
proposed constitution.
The constitution was supposed to introduce a parliamentary-
style government, where legislative power was vested in a unicameral
National Assembly, with members being elected to a six-year term. The
president was to be elected as the symbolic and ceremonial head of
state chosen from the members of the National Assembly. The

president would serve a six-year term and could be re-elected to an

unlimited number of terms. Executive
power was relegated to the Prime Minister, who was also the head of
government and Commander-in-Chief of the Armed Forces who was
also to be elected from the National Assembly.
 President Marcos issued Presidential Decree No. 73 setting the
date of the plebiscite to ratify or reject the proposed constitution on
30 November 1973. This plebiscite was postponed later on since Marcos
feared that the public might vote to reject the constitution. Instead of
a plebiscite, Citizen Assemblies were held, from 10-15 January 1973,
where the citizens coming together and voting by hand, decided on
whether to ratify the constitution, suspend the convening of the Interim
National Assembly, continue Martial Law, or place a moratorium on
elections for a period of at least several years. The President, on 17
January 1973, issued a proclamation announcing that the proposed
constitution had been ratified by an overwhelming vote of the members
of the highly irregular Citizen Assemblies.
The constitution was amended several times. In 1976, Citizen
Asemblies, once again, decided to allow the continuation of Martial Law,
well as approved the amendments: an lnterim Batasang Pambansa to
substitute for the Interim National Assembly, the president to also
become the Prime Minister and continue to exercise legislative powers
until Martial Law was lifted and authorized the President to legislate on
his own on an emergeney basis. An overwhelming majority would ratify
further amendments succeedingly. In 1980, the retirement age of
members of the judiciary was extended to 70 years. In 1981, the
parliamentary system was formally modified to a French-style, semi-
presidential system where executive power was restored to the
president, who was, once again, to be directly elected; an Executive
Committee was to be created, composed of the Prime Minister and 14
others, that served as the president's Cabinet; and some electoral
reforms were instituted. In 1984, the Executive Committee was
abolished and the position of the vice president was restored.
After all the amendments introduced, the 1973 Constitution was
merely a way for the President to keep exeeutive powers, abolish the
Senate, and by any means, never acted as a parliamentary system,
instead functioned as an authoritarian presidential system, with all the
real power concentrated in the hands of the president, with the backing
of the constitution.
The situation in the 1980s had been very turbulent. As Marcos
amassed power, discontent has also been burgeoning. The tide turned

swiftly when in August 1983, Benigno Aquino Jr., opposition leader and
regarded as the most credible alternative to President Marcos, was
assassinated while under military escort immediately after his return
from exile in the United
States. There was widespread suspicion that the orders to assassinate
Aquino came from the top levels of the governmment and the military.
This event caused the coming together of the non-violent opposition
against the Marcos authoritarian regime. Marcos was then forced to
hold "snap' elections a year early, and said elections were marred by
widespread fraud Marcos declared himself winner despite international
condemnation and nationwide protests. A small group of military rebels
attempted to stage a coup, but failed; however, this triggered what
came to be known as the EDSA People Power Revolution of 1986, as
people from all walks of life spilled onto the streets. Under pressure
from the United States of America, who used to support Marcos and his
Martial Law, the Marcos family fled into exile His opponent in the snap
elections, Benigno Aquino Jr.s widow, Corazon Aquino, was installed as
president on 25 February 1986.
1987: Constitution After Martial Law
President Corazon Aquino's government had three options
regarding the constitution: revert to the 1935 Constitution, retain the
1973 Constitution and be granted the power to make reforms, or start
anew and break from the "vestiges of a disgraced dictatorship." They
decided to make a new constitution that, acording to the president
herself, should be "truiy reflective of the aspirations and ideals of the
Filipino people.
In March 1986, President Aquino proclaimed a transitional
constitution to last for a year while a Constitutional Commission drafted
a permanent constitution. This transitional constitution, called the
Freedom Constitution, maintained many provisions of the old one,
including in rewritten form the presidential right to rule by decree. In
1986, a constitutional convention was created, composed of 48
members appointed by President Aquino from varied backgrounds and
representations. The convention drew up a permanent constitution,
largely restoring the setup abolished by Marcos in 1972, but with new
ways to keep the president in check, a reaction to the experience of
Marcos's rule. The new constitution was officially adopted on 2 February
1987.
The Constitution begins with a preamble and eighteen self-
contained articles. It established the Philippines as a "democratic
republican State" where "sovereignty resides in the people and all
government authority emanates from them. It allocates governmental

powers among the executive, legislative, and judicial branches of the

government.
 The Executive branch is headed by the president and his he
appoints. The president is the head of the state and the chief executive,
but his power 1s limited by significant checks from the two other co-
equal branches of government, especially during times of emergency.
This is put in place to safeguard the country from the experience of
martial law despotism during the presidency of Marcos. In cases of
national emergency, the president may still declare martial law, but not
longer than a period of sixty days. Congress, through a majority vote,
can revoke this decision, or extend it for a period that they determine.
The Supreme Court may also review the declaration of martial law and
decide if there were sufficient justifying facts for the act. The president
and the vice president are elected at large by a direct vote, serving a
single six-year term.
The legislative power resides in a Congress divided into two
Houses: the Senate and the House of Representatives. The 24 senators
are elected at large by popular vote, and can serve no more than two
consecutive six year terms. The House is composed of district
representatives representing a particular geographic area and makes
up around 80% of the total number representatives. There are 234
legislative districts in the Philippines that elect their representatives to
serve three-year terms, The 1987 Constitution created a party-list
system to provide spaces for the participation of under-represented
community sectors or groups. Party-list representauves may fil up not
more than 20% of the seats in the House.
Aside from the exclusive power of legislation, Congress may also
declare war, through a two-thirds vote in both upper and lower nouses,
the power of legislation, however, is also subject to an executive check,
as the president retains the power to veto or stop a bill from becoming
a law. Congress may only override this power with a two-thirds vote in
both houses.
The Philippine Court system is vested with the power of the
judiciary, and is composed of a Supreme Court and lower courts as
created by law. The Supreme Court 1s a 15-member court appointed
by the president w1thout the need to be confirmed by Congress. The
appointment the president makes, however, is limited to a list of
nominees provided by a constitutionally specified Judicial and Bar
Council. The Supreme Court Justices may hear, on appeal, any cases
dealing with the constitutionality of any law, treaty, or decree of the
government, cases where questions of jurisdiction or judicial error are
concerned, or cases where the penalty is sufficiently grave. It may
also exercise original jurisdiction over cases involving government or
international officials. The Supreme ourt is also in charge of overseeing
the functioning and administration ot the lower courts and their
personnel.
The Constitution also established three independent
Constitutional Commissions, namely, the Civil Service Commission, a
central agency in charge of government personnel; the Commission on
Elections, mandated to enforce and administer all election laws and
regulations; and the Commission on Audit, which examines all funds,
transactions, and property accounts of the government and its
agencies.
To further promote the ethical and lawful conduct of the
government, the Office of the Ombudsman was created to investigate
complaints that pertain to public corruption, unlawful behavior of public
officials, and other public misconduct. The Ombudsman can charge
public officials before the Sandiganbayan, a special court created for
this purpose.

Only the House of Representatives can initiate the impeachment

of the president, members of the Supreme Court, and other
constitutionally protected public ofhicials such as the Ombudsman. The
Senate will then try the impeachment case. This is another safeguard
to promote moral and ethical conduct in the government.
Attempts to Amend or Change the 1987 Constitution
The 1987 Constitution provided for three methods by which the
Constitution can be amended, all requiring ratification by a majority
vote in a national referendum. These methods were Constituent
Assembly, Constitutional Convention, and People's Initiative. Using
these modes, there were efforts to amend or change the 1987
Constitution, starting with the presideney of Fidel V. Ramos who
succeeded Corazon Aquino. The first attempt was in 1995, when then
Secretary of National Security Council Jose Almonte drafted a
constitution, but it was exposed to the media and it never prospered.
The second effort happened in 1997, when a group called PIRMA hoped
to gather signatures from voters to change the constitution through
people's initiative. Many were against this, including then Senator
Miriam Detensor-Santiago, who brought the issue to court ana won-
with thes upreme Court judging that a people's initiative cannot pusn
through without an enabling law.
 The succeeding president, Joseph Ejercito Estrada, formed a
study Commission to investigate the issues surrounding charter change
focusing on the economic and judiciary provisions of the constitution.
This effort was also blocked by different entities. After President Estrada
was replaced by another People Power and succeeded by his Vice
President, Gloria Macapagal- Arroyo, then House Speaker Jose de
Venecia endorsed constitutional change through a Constituent
Assembly, which entails a two-thirds vote of the House to propose
amendments or revision to the Constitution. This initiative was also not
successful since the term of President Arroyo was mired in controversy
and scandal, including the possibility of Arroyo extending her term as
president, which the Constitution does not allow.
The administration of the suceeding President Benigno Aquino Ill
had no marked interest in charter change, except those emanating
from different members of Congress, inciuaing the speaker of the
House, Feliciano Belmonte Jr., who attempted to muroauce
amendments to the Constitution that concern economic provisions that
aim toward liberalization. This effort did not see the light of day.

Federalism in the Philippines was supported by President Duterte in the

2016 presidential elections, saying that it will evenly distribute wealth in the
Philippines instead of concentrating it in Manila, the capital of the country.
As a form of government, a central governing authority and constituent
political units constitutionally share sovereignty. Applied to the Philippines,
the country will be broken into autonomous regions. Each region will be
further divided into local government units. The regions will have the
primary responsibility of industry development, public safety and
instruction, education, healthcare, transportation, and many more. Each
region will also take charge of their own finances, plans for development,
and laws exclusive to ther area. The national government, on the other
hand, Will only handle matters of national interest such as foreign policy
and defense, among others. In this system, it is possible for the central
government and the regions to share certain powers.
Our current system is that ot a unitary form, where administrative powers
and resources are concentrated in the national government. Mayors and
governors would have to rely on allocations provided to them through a
proposed budget that is also approved by the nation government, a system
prone to abuse.
There are many pros to a federal form of government. Each region may
custom fit solutions to problems brought about by their distinct geographic,
cultural, social, and economic contexts. Regions also have more power over
their finances, since they handle majority ot their income and only
contributes to a small portion to the national government.
 In an upsurge of populism, President Rodrigo Duterte won the
2016 presidential elections in a campaign centering on law and order,
proposing to reduce crime by killing tens of thousands of criminals. He
is also a known advocate of federalism, a compound mode ot
government combining a central or federal government with regional
governments in a single political system. This advocacy is in part an
influence of his background, being a local leader in Mindanao that has
been mired in poverty and violence for decades. On 7 December 2016,
President Duterte signed an executive order creating a consultative
committee to review the 1987 Constitution.
Lesson 2 Policies on Agrarian Retorm
Agrarian reform is essentially the rectification of the whole
system of agriculture, an important aspect of the Philippine economy
because nearly half of the population is employed in the agricultural
sector, and most citizens live in rural areas. Agrarian reform is centered
on the relationship between production and the distribution of land
among farmers. It is also focused on the political and economic class
character of the relations of production and distribution in farming and
related enterprises, and how these connect to the wider class structure.
Through genuine and comprehensive agrarian reform, the Philippines
would be able to gain more from its agricultural potential and uplift the
Filipinos in the agricultural sector, who have been, for the longest time,
suffering in poverty and discontent.
 In our attempt to understand the development ot agrarian reform
in the Philippines, we turn our attention to Our counuy s history,
especially our colonial past, where we could find the root or the agrarian
woes the country has experienced up to this very day.

Landownership in the Philippines under Spain

When the Spaniards colonized the country, they brought with
them a system of pueblo agriculture, where rural communities, often
dispersed and scattered in nature, were organized into apueblo and
given land to cultivate.
Families were not allowed to own their land-the King of Spain
owned the land, and Filipinos were assigned to these lands to cultivate
them, and they paid their colonial tributes to the Spanish authorities in
the form of agricultural products.
Later on, through the Law of the Indies, the Spanish crown
awarded tracts of land to (1) religious orders; 2) repartamientos for
Spanish military as reward for their service; and (3) Spanish
encomenderos, those mandated to manage the encomienda or the
lands given to them, where Filipinos worked and paid their tributes to
the encomendero. Filipinos were not given the right to own land, and
only worked in them so that they might have a share of the crops and
pay tribute. The encomienda system was an unfair and abusive system
as "compras y vandalas" became the norm for the Filipino farmers
working the land-they were made to sell their products at very low price
or surrender their products to the encomenderos, who resold this as a
profit. Filipinos in the encomienda were also required to render services
to the encomenderos that were unrelated to farming.
From this encomienda system, the hacienda system developed in
the beginning or the nineteenth century as the Spanish government
implemented policies that would fast track the entry of the colony into
the capitalist world. The economy was tied to the world market as the
Philippines became an exporter of raw materials and importer of goods.
Agricultural exports were demanded and the hacienda system was
developed as a new form of ownership. In the 1860s, Spain enacted a
law ordering landholders to register their landholdings, and only those
who knew benefitted from this. lands were claimed and registered in
other people's names, and many peasant families who were "assigned"
to the land in the earlier days of colonization were driven out or forced
to come under the power of these people who claimed rights to the land
because they held a title.
 This is the primary reason why revolts in the Phihppines were
often agrarian in nature. Before the colonization, Filipinos had
communal ownership of land. The system introduced by the Spaniards
became a bitter source of hatred and discontent for the Filipinos.
Religious orders, the biggest landowners in the Philippines, also

became a main source of abuse and exploitation for the Filipinos,

increasing the rent paid by the Filipinos on a whim.
Filipinos fought the Philippine Revolution in a confluence of
motivations, but the greatest desire for freedom would be the necessity
of owning land. Upon the end of the Philippine Revolution, the
revolutionary government would declare all large landed estates,
especially the confiscated friar lands as government property. However,
the first Philippine republic was short-lived. The entrance of the
Americans would signal a new era of colonialism and imperialism in the
Philippines.
Landownership in the Philippines under the Americans
The Americans were aware that the main cause of social unrest
in the Philippines was landlessness, and they attempted to put an end
to the deplorable conditions of the tenant farmers by passing several
land policies to increase the small landholders and distribute ownership
to a bigger number of Filipino tenants and farmers. The Philippne Bill
of 1902 provided regulations on the disposal of public lands. A private
individual may own 16 hectares of land while corporate landholders
may have 1,024 hectares. Americans were also given rights to own
agricultural lands in the country. The Philippine Commission also
enacted Act No. 496 or the Land Registration Act, which introduced the
Torrens system to address the absence of earlier records of issued land
titles and conduct accurate land surveys. In 1903, the homestead
program was introduced, allowing a tenant to enter into an agricultural
business by acquiring a tarm of at least 16 hectares. This program,
however, was limited to areas in Northern Luzon and Mindanao, where
colonial penetration had been difficult for Americans, a problem they
inherited from the Spaniards.
Landownership did not improve during the American period; in
fact, it even worsened, because there was no limit to the size of
landholdings people could possess and the accessibility of possession
was limited to those who could afford to buy, register, and acquire fixed
property titles. Not all friar lands acquired by the Americans were given
to landless peasant farmers. Some lands were sold or leased to
American and Filipino business interest. This early land retorm program
was also implemented without support mechanisms-if a landless
peasant 1armer received land, he only received land, nothing more.
Many were torced to return to tenancy and wealthy Filipino hacienderos
purchased or forcerully took over lands from farmers who could not
afford to pay their debts. The system introduced by the Americans
enabled more lands to be placed under tenancy, which: widespread
peasant uprisings, ,such as the Colorum and Sakdal

Uprising in Luzon. Peasants and workers found refuge trom millenarian

movements that gave them hope that change could still happen
through militancy.

During the years of the Commonwealth government, the situation

further worsened as peasant uprisings increased and landlord-tenant
relationship became more and more disparate. President Quezon laid
down a social justice program tocused on the purchase of haciendas,
which were to be divided and sold to tenants. His administration also
created the National Rice and Corn Corporation (NARIC) to assign
public defenders to assist peasants in court battles for ther rights to the
land, and the Court of Industrial Relations to exercise jurisdiction over
disagreements arising from landowner- tenant relationship. The
homestead program also continued through the National Land
Settlement Administration (NLSA). Efforts toward agrarian retorm by
the Commonwealth failed because of any problems such as budget
allocation tor the settlement program and widespread peasant
uprisings. World War II put a halt to all interventions to solve these
problems as the Japanese occupied the country.

Post-War Interventions Toward Agrarian Reform

Rehabilitation and rebuilding after the war were focused on
providing solutions to the problems of the past. The administration of
President Roxas passed Republic Act No. 34 to establish a 70-30
sharing arrangement between tenant and landlord, respectively, which
reduced the interest of landowners loans to tenants at six percent or
less. The government also attempted to redistribute hacienda lands,
falling prey to the woes of similar attempts since no support was given
to small farmers who were given lands.
Under the term of President Elpidio Quirino, the Land Settlement
Development Corporation (LASEDECO) was established to accelerate
and the resettlement program for peasants. This agency later on
became the National Resettlement and Rehabilitation Administration
(NARRA) under the administration of President Ramon Magsaysay.
 Magsaysay saw the importance of pursuing genuine land reform
program and convinced the Congress, majority of which were landed
elites, to pass legislation to improve the land reform situation. Republic
Act No. 1199 or the Agricultural Tenancy Act was passed to govern the
relationship between landholders and tenant farmers, protecting the
tenurial rights of tenants and enforced tenancy practices. Through this
law, the Court of Agricultural Relations was created in 1955 to improve
tenancy security, fix land rentals of tenanted farms, and resolve land
disputes filed by the landowners and peasant organizations. The
Agricultural Tenancy Commission was also established to administer
problems created by tenancy. The Agricultural Credit and Cooperative
Financing Administration (ACCFA) was also created mainly to provide
warehouse facilities and assist farmers in marketing their products. The
administration spearheaded the establishment of the Agricultural and
Industrial Bank to provide easier terms in applying for homestead and
other farmlands.
NARRA accelerated the government's resettlement program and
distribution of agricultural lands to landless tenants and farmers. It also
aimed to convince members of the Huks, a movement of rebels in
Central Luzon, to resettle in areas where they could restart their lives
as peaceful citizens.
Despite a move vigorous effort toward agrarian reform, the
situation for the farmers remained dire since the government lacked
funds and provided inadequate support services for the programs. The
landed elite did not fully cooperate and they criticized the programs.

A major stride in land reform arrived during the term of President

Diosdado Macapagal through the Agricultural Land Reform Code
(Republic Act No. 3844)
Primary Source: Declaration of Policy under RA No. 3844 or
Agricultural Land Reform Code
Source: Section 2. Declaration of Policy--It is the poliey of the State:
1.To establish owner-cultivatorship and the economic family-size farm
as the basis of Philippine agriculture & , as a consequence, divert
landlord capital in agriculture to industrial development;
2.To achieve a dignified existence for the small farmers free from
pernicious institutional restraints and practices;
3.To create a truly viable social and economic structure in agriculture
conducive to greater productivity and higher farm incomes
4.To apply all labor laws equally and without discrimination to both
industrial and agricultural wage earners,
5.To provide more vigorous and systematic land resettlement program
and public land distribution; and
6.To make the small farmers more independent, self-reliant and
responsible citizens, and a source of genuine strength in our
democratic society.
This Code abolished share tenancy in the Philippines and
prescribed a program to convert tenant-farmers to lessees and later on
owner-cultivators. It also aimed to free tenants from tenancy and
emphasize owner cultivatorship and farmer independence, equity,
productivity improvement, and public land distribution. Despite being
one of the most comprehensive pieces of land reform legislation ever
passed in the Philippines, Congress did not make any effort to come up
with a separate bill to fund its implementation, despite the fact that it
proved beneficial in the provinces where it was pilot tested.
Agrarian Reform Efforts under Marcos
President Marcos declared Martial Law in 1972, enabling him to
essentially wipe out the landlord-dominated Congress. Through his
"technocrats," he was able to expand executive power to start a
"fundamental restructuring" of government, including its efforts in
solving the deep structural problems of the countryside. Presidential
Decree No. 27 or the Code of Agrarian Reform of the Philippines became
the core of agrarian reform during Marcos regime.
Primary Source: Presidential Decree No. 27, 21 October 1972

This shall apply to tenant farmers of private agricultural lands

primarily devoted to rice and corn under a system of sharecrop or
lease-tenancy, whether classified as landed estate or not;
The tenant farmer, whether in land classified as landed estate or
not, shall be deemed owner of a portion constituting a family-size farm
of (5) hectares it not irrigated and three (3) hectares if irrigated:
In all cases the landowner may retain an area of not more than
seven (7) hectares if such landowner is cultivating such area or will now
cultivate it; For the purpose of determining the cost of the land to be
transferred to the tenant-farmer pursuant to this Decree, the value of
the land shall be equivalent to two and one-half (2 1/2) times the
average harvest of three normal crop years immediately preceding the
promulgation of this Decree;
The total cost of the land, including interest at the rate of six (6) per
centum per annum, shall be paid by the tenant in fifteen (15) years of
fifteen (15) equal annual amortizations;
In case of default, the amortization due shall be paid by the farmers'
cooperative in which the defaulting tenant-farmer 18 a member, with
the cooperative having a right of recourse against him;
The government shall guaranty such amortizations with shares of stock
in government-owned and government-controlled corporations;
No title to the land owned by the tenant-farmers under this Decree shall
be actually issued to a tenant-farmer unless and until the tenant-
farmer has become a full-fledged member of a duly recognized farmer's
cooperative; Title to land acquired pursuant to this Decree or the Land
Reform Program of the Government shall not be transferable except by
hereditary succession or to the government in accordance with the
provisions of this Decree, the code of Agrarian telorms and other
existing laws and regulations;
The Department of Agrarian Reform through its Secretary is hereby
empowered to promulgate rules and regulations for the implementation
of this Decree.
"Operation Land Transfer" on lands occupied by tenants of. more
than seven hectares on rice and corn lands commenced, and through
legal compulsion and an improved delivery of support services to small
farmers, agrarian reform seemed to be finally achievable. Under the
rice self-sufficiency program "Masagana '99, farmers were able to
borrow from banks and purchase three-hectare plots of lands and
agricultural inputs However, the landlord class still found ways to
circumvent the law. Because only rice lands were the focus of agrarian

reform, some landlords only needed to change crops to be exempted

from the program, such as coconut and sugar lands. Lands worked by
wage labor were also exempt from the program, so the landed elite
only had to evict their tenants and hired workers instead. Landlessness
increased, which made it all the more difficult for the program to
succeed because landless peasants were excluded from the program.
Many other methods were employed by the elite to find a way to
maintain their power and dominance, which were worsened by the
corruption of Marcos and his cronies who were also involved in the
agricultural sector.
Post-1986 Agrarian Reform
The overthrow of Marcos and the 1987 Constitution resulted in a
renewed interest and attention to agrarian reform as President Corazon
Aquino envisioned agrarian reform to be the centerpiece of her
administration's social legislation, which proved difficult because her
background betrayed her -she came from a family of a wealthy and
landed clan that owned the Hacienda Luisita.
On 22 July 1987, Aquino issued Presidential Proclamation 131
and Executive Order 229, which outlined her land reform program. In
1988, the Congress passed Republic Act No. 6657 or the
Comprehensive Agrarian Reform Law (CARD), which introduced the
program with the same name (Comprehensive Agrarian Reform
Program or (CARP). It enabled the redistribution of agricultural lands
to tenant-farmers from landowners, who were paid in exchange by the
government through just compensation and allowed them to retain not
more than have hectares. Corporate landowners were, however,
allowed under law to voluntarily divest a proportion of their capital
stock, equity, or participation in favor of their workers or other qualified
beneficiaries instead of turning over their land to the government.
CARP was limited because it accomplished very little during the
administration of Aquino. It only accomplished 22.5% of land
distribution in six years owing to the fact that Congress, dominated by
the landed elite, was unwilling to fund the high compensation costs of
the program. It was also mired in controversy, since Aquino seemingly
bowed down to the pressure of her relatives by allowing the stock
redistribution option. Hacienda Luisita reorganized itself into a
corporation and distributed stocks to farmers.
Under the term of President Ramos, CARP implementation was
speeded in order to meet the ten-year time frame, despite limitations
and constraints in funding, logistics, and participation of involved
sectors. By 1996, the Department of Agrarian Reform (DAR)

distributed only 58.25% of the total area target to be covered by the

program. To address the lacking funding and the dwindling time for the
implementation of CARP, Ramos signed Republic Act No. 8532 in 1998
to amend CARL and extend the program to another ten years.
CARPER and the Future of Agrarian Reform in the Philippines
The new deadline of CARP expired in 2008, leaving 1.2 million farmer
beneficiaries and 1.6 million hectares of agricultural land to be
distributed to farmers. In 2009, President Arroyo signed Republic Act
No. 9700 or the Comprehensive Agrarian Reform Program Extension
with Reforms (CARPER), the amendatory law that extended the
deadline to five more years. Section 30 of the law also mandates that
any case and/or proceedings involving the implementation of the
provisions of CARP, as amended, which may remain pending on 30 June
2014 shall be allowed to proceed to its finality and executed even
beyond such date.
From 2009 to 2014, CARPER has distributed a total of 1 million
hectares of land to 900,000 farmer beneficiaries. After 27 years of land
reform and two Aquino administrations, 500,000 hectares of lands
remain undistributed. The DAR and the Department of Environment and
Natural Resources (DENR) are the government agencies mandated to
fulfill CARP and CARPER, but even the combined effort and resources
of the two agencies have proved incapable of fully achieving the goal
of agrarian reform in the Philippines. The same problems have plagued
its implementation: the powerful landed elite and the ineffectual
bureaucracy of the Philippine government. Until these two challenges
are surmounted, genuine agrarian reform in the Philippines remains but
a dream to Filipino farmers who have been fighting for their right to
landownership for centuries.

Lesson 3: Biography of a Prominent Filipino

Biography of Macli-ing Dulag
Macliing Dulag also spelt Macli-ing, Macli'ing; c. 1930 – 24 April
1980) was a Kalinga leader of the Butbut tribe in the Cordillera
Administrative Region on the island of Luzon in the Philippines, who
was assassinated for his opposition to the Chico River Dam Project.

Dulag was a chieftain in the highland village of Bugnay,

Tinglayan, Kalinga-Apayao. A farmer by profession, Dulag was also a
road maintenance worker for the Department of Public Works and
Highways. He staunchly opposed construction of the Chico Dam, a
hydroelectric project along the Chico River proposed by President
Ferdinand E. Marcos' government and was to be funded by the World
Bank.
Indigenous peoples in the area, including the Kalinga and the Bontoc,
resisted the project for three decades as the proposed dam's reservoir
threatened to drown 1,400 square-kilometres of traditional highland
villages and ancestral domains in the modern-day provinces of
Mountain Province, Kalinga and Apayao.
On 24 April 1980, elements from 4th Infantry Division of the
Philippine Army opened fire on Dulag at his home, killing him and
wounding a companion. His murder unified the various peoples of the
Cordillera Mountains against the proposed dam, causing both the

World Bank and the

Marcos regime to
eventually abandon the
project a few years after.
Commemoration
The date of Dulag's
death is unofficially
observed as "Cordillera
Day" annually by
indigenous communities
along the Chico River.
Dulag's name is also
inscribed in the Bantayog
ng mga Bayani (Monument of the Heroes) in Quezon City, Metro Manila,
which is dedicated to victims of extrajudicial killings since the Martial
Law era.
Macli-ing as the Cordilleran Defender
To the Marcos dictatorship, the indigenous communities of the
Cordillera mountain range in the north of Luzon could easily be dealt
with as it proceeded with its plan to build a huge dam on the Chico
River.

But the Kalinga and Bontok peoples knew that the project would
flood their ricefields and their homes, communal forests and sacred
burial grounds. It would destroy their lives by changing their
environment forever.

Macliing Dulag was a respected elder of the Butbut tribe in the

tiny mountain village of Bugnay in the 1960s. He was a pangat, one of
those listened to by the community because of their wisdom and
courage. He was also the elected barrio captain of Bugnay, serving out
three terms since 1966. Ordinarily, he tended his rice fields and worked
as a laborer on road maintenance projects (earning P405 a month).
In 1974, the regime tried to implement a 1,000-megawatt
hydroelectric power project, to be funded by the World Bank, along the
Chico River. The plan called for the construction of four dams that would
have put many villages under water, covering an area of around 1,400
square kilometers of rice terraces (payew), orchards, and graveyards.
As many as 100,000 people living along the river, including Macliing’s
Bugnay village, would have lost their homes.
Macliing became a strong and articulate figure in this struggle which
pitted small nearly powerless communities in the Cordilleras against
the full powers of the martial law regime. Kalinga and Bontok leaders
were offered bribes, harassed by soldiers and government mercenaries,
even imprisoned. But the anti-dam leaders, including Macliing, stayed
firm in their opposition to the project. They argued that development
should not be achieved at such extreme sacrifice.

“If you destroy life in your search for what you say is the good
life, we question it,” Macliing said”. Those who need electric lights are
not thinking of us who are bound to be destroyed. Should the need for
electric power be a reason for our death?”

Macliing expressed the people’s reverence for the land, affirming

their right to stay: “Such arrogance to say that you own the land, when
you are owned by it! How can you own that which outlives you? Only
the people own the land because only the people live forever. To claim
a place is the birthright of everyone. Even the lowly animals have their
own place…how much more when we talk of human beings?”
Resistance to the dam project unified the Cordillera region.
Macliing and other Cordillera leaders initiated a series of tribal pacts
(bodong or vochong), which helped cement this unity and create a very
broad alliance of the communities and their supporters. They
recognized the leader of the Butbut as their spokesperson, for although
Macliing had had no formal education, he always found the right words
for what they needed to say.
Macliing was murdered by government soldiers on April 24, 1980.
They surrounded his house one night and sprayed it with bullets. His
assassination merely solidified opposition to the dam and won it
sympathizers from all over the country and even abroad. Even the
World Bank, which would have funded the dam construction,

withdrew from the project, finally forcing the martial law government
to cancel its plans.

Four of Macliing’s killers were charged and in 1983 tried before a

military tribunal. An army lieutenant and a sergeant were subsequently
found guilty of murder and frustrated murder. The lieutenant was later
reinstated in the army, rose to become a major, and then himself was
killed in 2000 by the New People’s Army.

Lesson 4: Philippine Modern Issues

COVID 19

In December 2019, reports emerged that a coronavirus that specialists

had never before seen in humans had begun to spread among the
population of Wuhan, a large city in the Chinese province of Hubei.

Since then, the virus has spread to other countries, inside and outside
of Asia, leading the World Health Organization (WHO) to declare this as
a pandemic.

To date, the novel coronavirus — called severe acute respiratory

syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) — has been responsible for
millions of infections globally, causing hundreds of thousands of deaths.
The highest number of deaths has occurred in the United States.

What do we really know about this virus? To what extent is it likely to

affect the global population?

Medical News Today have contacted the WHO, collected information

from public health organizations, and looked into the newest studies in
peer reviewed journals to answer these and other questions from our
readers.

As of today (August 10, 2020) the World Health Organization has a

total record of 20,026,161 cases around the world, 734,020 deaths and
12,900, 625 recoveries.

In the Philippines, the Department of health has recorded a total of

129,913 Covid-19 cases, 2,270 death and 67, 637 total recoveries.
 REFERENCES

Candelaria, J. L., & Alphora, V. C. (2018). Readings in Philippine History.

Quezon City: Rex Printing Company, inc.

Torres, J. V. (2018). BATIS Sources in Philippine History. Quezon City: C & E

Publishing, Inc.
Christopher F. B., Raymond E. B, Julie C. L., Fatima F. R., Tecah C. S. (2006)
Philippine History Coursebook, Trinitas Publishing. INC.
Annalyn Salvador Amores, Honoring Mac-liing Dulag, defender of the
Cordillera (2015) https://newsinfo.inquirer.net/686979/honoring-
macli-ing-dulag-defender-of-the-cordillera

Biography:http://www.bantayog.org/dulag-macli-ing/
https://peoplepill.com/people/macliing-dulag/

Medical News Today. Novel corona virus: your questions answered

today https://www.medicalnewstoday.com/articles/novel-
coronavirus-your-questions-answered
https://www.worldometers.info/coronavirus/?
https://www.worldometers.info/coronavirus/country/philippines/

REFERENCES

Candelaria, J. L., & Alphora, V. C. (2018). Readings in Philippine History.

Quezon City: Rex Printing Company, inc.

Torres, J. V. (2018). BATIS Sources in Philippine History. Quezon City: C & E

Publishing, Inc.
Christopher F. B., Raymond E. B, Julie C. L., Fatima F. R., Tecah C. S. (2006)
Philippine History Coursebook, Trinitas Publishing. INC.

Annalyn Salvador Amores, Honoring Mac-liing Dulag, defender of the

Cordillera (2015) https://newsinfo.inquirer.net/686979/honoring-
macli-ing-dulag-defender-of-the-cordillera

Biography:http://www.bantayog.org/dulag-macli-ing/
https://peoplepill.com/people/macliing-dula