MODULE 4
Content and Contextual Analysis of Selected
Primary Sources in Philippine History (Part 2)
Introduction
In this module, we are going to analyze two primary sources coveting the events marking
the downfall of the Spanish Regime and the onset of American occupation. This particular
historical period will be evaluated using primary sources and its content in terms of historical
value, and examine the context of their production. The primary source that we are going to
analyze is the “Proclamation of the Philippine Independence” and Political Caricature in Alfred
McCoy Philippine Cartoons Political Caricature of the American Era (1900-1941).
Learning Outcomes
At the end of this module, students should be able to:
1. To determine the contribution of different kinds of primary sources in understanding
Philippine history;
2. To analyze the content and context of different kinds of primary sources; and
3. To develop critical and analytical skills with exposure to primary sources.
44
Lesson 1. Proclamation of the Philippine Independence (1898)
Reading the "Proclamation of the Philippine Independence”. Every year, the country
commemorates the anniversary of the Philippine Independence proclaimed on 12 June 1898 in
the province of Cavite. Indeed, such event is a significant turning point in the history of the
country because it signaled the end of the 333 years of Spanish colonization. There have been
numerous studies done on the events leading to the independence of the country but very few
students had the chance to read the actual document of the declaration. This is in spite of the
historical importance of the document and the details that the documents reveal on the rationale
and circumstances of that historical day in Cavite. Interestingly, reading the details of the said
document in hindsight is telling the kind of government that was created under Aguinaldo, and
the forthcoming hand of the United States of America in the next few years of the newly created
republic. The declaration was a short 2,000-word document, which summarized the reason behind
the revolution against Spain, the war for independence, and the future of the new republic under
Emilio Aguinaldo at Library of Congress (2011).
Figure 16. Aguinaldo and the Proclamation of Independence
The proclamation commenced with a characterization of the conditions in the Philippines
during the Spanish colonial period. The document specifically mentioned abuses and inequalities
in the colony. The declaration says:
45
"..taking into consideration, that their inhabitants being already weary of
bearing the ominous yoke of Spanish domination, on account of the
arbitrary arrests and harsh treatment practiced by the Civil Guard to the
extent of causing death with the connivance and even with the express
orders of their commanders, who sometimes went to the extreme of
ordering the shooting of prisoners under the pretext that they were
attempting to escape, in violation of the provisions of the Regulations of
their Corps, which abuses were unpunished and on account of the unjust
deportations, especially those decreed by General Blanco, of eminent
personages and of high social position, at the instigation of the Archbishop
and friars interested in keeping them out of the way for their own selfish
and avaricious purpose, deportations which are quickly brought about by
a method of procedure more execrable than that of the Inquisition and
which every civilized nation rejects on account of a decision being
rendered without a hearing of the persons accused"
The proclamation mentioned demonstrates the justifications behind the revolution
against Spain. Specifically cited are the abuse by the Civil Guards and the unlawful shooting
of prisoners whom they alleged as attempting to escape. The passage also condemned the
unequal protection of the law between the Filipino people and the eminent personages."
Moreover, the line mentioned the avarice and greed of the clergy like the friars and the
Archbishop himself. Lastly, the passage also condemned what they see as the unjust
deportation and rendering of other decision without proper hearing, expected of any civilized
nation.
It also proceeded with a brief historical overview of the Spanish occupation since
Magellan's arrival in Visayas until the Philippine revolution, with specific details about the latter,
especially after the Pact of Biak-na-Bato has collapsed. The document narrated the spread of
the movement "like an electric spark" through different towns and provinces like Bataan,
Pampanga, Batangas, Bulacan, Laguna, and Morong, and the quick decline of Spanish forces
in the same provinces.
46
The revolt also reached Visayas thus the independence of the country was ensured. The
document also made mention of Rizal's execution, calling it unjust. The execution, as written in
the document, was done to please the greedy body of friars in their insatiable desire to seek
revenge upon and exterminate all those who are opposed to their Machiavellian purposes, which
tramples upon the penal code prescribed for these islands." The document also narrated the
Cavite Mutiny of January 1872 that caused the infamous execution of the martyred native priests,
Mariano Gomez, Jacinto Zamora and Jose Burgos whose innocent blood was shed through the
intrigues of those co-called religious orders" that incited the three secular priests in the said
mutiny.
The proclamation of independence also invoked that the established republic would be
led under the dictatorship of Emilio Aguinaldo. It was first mention was at the very beginning of
the proclamation. It stated:
"In the town of Cavite Viejo, in this province of Cavite, on the twelfth of
June eighteen hundred and ninety-eight, before me, Don Ambrosio
Rianzares Bautista, Auditor of War and Special Commissioner appointed to
proclaim and solemnize this act by the Dictatorial Government of these
Philippine Islands, for the purposes and by virtue of the circular addressed
by the Eminent Dictator of the same Don Emilio Aguinaldo Y Famy.”
The same was repeated toward the last part of the proclamation. It states:
"We acknowledge, approve and confirm together with the orders that
have been issued there from the Dictatorship established by Don Emilio
Aguinaldo, whom we honor as the Supreme Chief of this Nation, which this
day commences to have a life of its own, in the belief that he is the
instrument selected by God, in spite of his humble origin, to effect the
redemption of this unfortunate people, as foretold by Doctor Jose Rizal in
the magnificent verses which he composed when he was preparing to be
shot. “Liberating them from the yoke of Spanish domination in
punishment of the impunity with which their government allowed the
commission of abuses by its subordinates."
47
An additional detail in the proclamation that is worth looking at is its explanation on the
Philippine flag that was first waved on the same day. The flag was made in Hong Kong by Marcela
Agoncillo, Lorenza Agoncillo, and Delfina Herboza. It was accompanied by the Marcha Filipina
Magdalo, as the national anthem, now known as Lupang Hinirang, which was composed by Julián
Felipe and played by the San Francisco de Malabon marching band.
The document explained:
"And finally, it was unanimously resolved that this Nation,
independent from this day, must use the same flag used heretofore,
whose design and colors and described in the accompanying
drawing, with design representing in natural colors the three arms
referred to. The white triangle represent the distinctive emblem of the
famous Katipunan Society, which by means of its compact of blood
urged on the masses of the people to insurrection, the three stars
represent the three principal Islands of this Archipelago, Luzon,
Mindanao and Panay, in which this insurrectionary movement broke
out; the sun represents the gigantic strides that have been made by
the sons of this land on the road of progress and civilization, its eight
ray symbolizing the eight provinces of Manila, Cavite, Bulacan,
Pampanga, Nueva Ecija, Bataan, Batangas, Laguna.
48
Proclamation of Independence Document (1898)
Figure 17. Proclamation of Independence Document (1898)
49
Lesson 2. A Glance at Selected Philippine, Political Caricature in Alfred
McCoy Philippine Cartoons Political Caricature of the American Era
(1900-1941)
Political cartoon, according to Knieper (2018) are drawings (often including caricature)
made for the purpose of conveying editorial commentary on politics, politicians, and current
events. Such cartoons play a role in the political discourse of a society that provides for freedom
of speech and of the press. They are a primarily opinion-oriented medium and can generally be
found on the editorial pages of newspapers and other journalistic outlets, whether in print or
electronic form. Their subject matter is usually that of current and newsworthy political issues,
and, in order for them to be understood, they require that readers possess some basic background
knowledge about their subject matter, ideally that provided by the medium in which they are
published.
Philippine political cartoons gained full expression during the American era. Filipino artists
recorded national attitudes toward the coming of the Americans as well as the changing mores
and times. While the 377 cartoons compiled in this book speak for themselves, historian Alfred
McCoy’s extensive research in Philippine and American archives provides a comprehensive
background not only to the cartoons but to the turbulent period as well. Artist-writer Alfredo Roces,
who designed the book, contributes an essay on Philippine graphic satire of the period.
Figure 18. Cover page of Alfred McCoy’s Philippine Cartoons Political Caricature
[Link]
50
McCoy (1985) stated that viewed from the vantage point of half century and more, these
prewar political cartoons are an evocative record of a half-forgotten history. The scandals,
struggles and social changes of the American colonial period gain an immediacy in these graphic
images that eludes even the most eloquent historical prose. The four decades of American
colonial rule were a formative period in Philippine history. Under a US colonialism that was
simultaneously brutal and beneficent, grasping and generous, the Philippines moved forward from
an authoritarian Spanish regime to autonomy and independence, In the process, Filipinos shaped
many of the institutions and cultural characteristics which are still central to life in the modern
republic. Under US tutelage, the Philippines experienced a process of Americanization and
modernization that has left a lasting legacy.
There are a lot of issues covered by the book focusing heavily on commentary on politics
and politicians, corruptions, society and many more. Here are some political cartoons which
appeared in the book.
Ang Paisano: Pulis, totoo
nga ba ang balitang
nagbibigay sila riyan ng
karneng kulang sa timbang?
Pulis: Gayon nga ang sabi.
Ang Paisano: Ay saan
naman nagbibigay ng
karneng walang bayad?
Figure 19. Manila: The Corruption of a City
51
Figure 20. Manila: The Noisiest City in the World
Figure 21. A New Wrinkle in the Art of Thieving
52
Figure 22. The New Democracy
Figure 23. Ang Mga Mapapalad
53
Lesson 3. Corazon Aquino's Speech Before the U.S. Congress
Escobar (2018) narrates that when former President Corazon Aquino spoke before a joint
session of the United States Congress in September of 1986, the dust was only beginning to
settle. It was her first visit to America since the dictator Ferdinand Marcos had been deposed in
February of the same year, and the Philippines was reckoning with everything his administration
had inflicted. That included $26 billion in total foreign debt, and a communist insurgency that grew,
throughout the Marcos era, from 500 armed guerillas to 16,000. We were just at the start of a long
road to recovery.
So former President Cory Aquino put up a petition for support. Addressing the House, she
gave a historic address to the US Congress that paved way to sway in our favor the vote for an
emergency $200-million aid appropriation. In the moving speech penned by her speechwriter
Teddy Locsin, Jr., the former first female president of the Philippines safeguarded her stand on
the communist uprising—a delicate issue in the United Stated during that time, given that this was
1986—and requested for monetary assistance towards rebuilding the country’s economy.
IMAGE RTVMalacanan
Figure 24. Corazon C. Aquino during her speech at the US Congress
54
Speech
of
Her Excellency Corazon C. Aquino
President of the Philippines
During the Joint Session of the United States Congress
[Delivered at Washington, D.C., on September 18, 1986]
(Speech taken from the Official Gazette of the Republic of the Philippines
[Link]
session-of-the-u-s-congress-september-18-1986/)
“Three years ago, I left America in grief to bury my husband, Ninoy Aquino. I thought I had left it
also to lay to rest his restless dream of Philippine freedom. Today, I have returned as the president
of a free people.
In burying Ninoy, a whole nation honored him. By that brave and selfless act of giving honor, a
nation in shame recovered its own. A country that had lost faith in its future found it in a faithless
and brazen act of murder. So, in giving, we receive, in losing we find, and out of defeat, we
snatched our victory.
For the nation, Ninoy became the pleasing sacrifice that answered their prayers for freedom. For
myself and our children, Ninoy was a loving husband and father. His loss, three times in our lives,
was always a deep and painful one.
Fourteen years ago, this month was the first time we lost him. A president-turned-dictator,
and traitor to his oath, suspended the Constitution and shut down the Congress that was
much like this one before which I am honored to speak. He detained my husband along with
thousands of others – senators, publishers and anyone who had spoken up for the democracy
as its end drew near. But for Ninoy, a long and cruel ordeal was reserved. The dictator already
knew that Ninoy was not a body merely to be imprisoned but a spirit he must break. For even
as the dictatorship demolished one by one the institutions of democracy – the press, the
Congress, the independence of the judiciary, the protection of the Bill of Rights – Ninoy kept
their spirit alive in himself.
55
The government sought to break him by indignities and terror. They locked him up in a tiny, nearly
airless cell in a military camp in the north. They stripped him naked and held the threat of sudden
midnight execution over his head. Ninoy held up manfully–all of it. I barely did as well. For 43
days, the authorities would not tell me what had happened to him. This was the first time my
children and I felt we had lost him.
When that didn’t work, they put him on trial for subversion, murder and a host of other crimes
before a military commission. Ninoy challenged its authority and went on a fast. If he survived it,
then, he felt, God intended him for another fate. We had lost him again. For nothing would hold
him back from his determination to see his fast through to the end. He stopped only when it
dawned on him that the government would keep his body alive after the fast had destroyed his
brain. And so, with barely any life in his body, he called off the fast on the fortieth day. God meant
him for other things, he felt. He did not know that an early death would still be his fate, that only
the timing was wrong.
At any time during his long ordeal, Ninoy could have made a separate peace with the dictatorship,
as so many of his countrymen had done. But the spirit of democracy that inheres in our race and
animates this chamber could not be allowed to die. He held out, in the loneliness of his cell and
the frustration of exile, the democratic alternative to the insatiable greed and mindless cruelty of
the right and the purging holocaust of the left.
And then, we lost him, irrevocably and more painfully than in the past. The news came to us in
Boston. It had to be after the three happiest years of our lives together. But his death was my
country’s resurrection in the courage and faith by which alone they could be free again. The
dictator had called him a nobody. Two million people threw aside their passivity and escorted him
to his grave. And so began the revolution that has brought me to democracy’s most famous home,
the Congress of the United States.
The task had fallen on my shoulders to continue offering the democratic alternative to our people.
Archibald Macleish had said that democracy must be defended by arms when it is attacked by
arms and by truth when it is attacked by lies. He failed to say how it shall be won.
56
I held fast to Ninoy’s conviction that it must be by the ways of democracy. I held out for
participation in the 1984 election the dictatorship called, even if I knew it would be rigged. I was
warned by the lawyers of the opposition that I ran the grave risk of legitimizing the foregone results
of elections that were clearly going to be fraudulent. But I was not fighting for lawyers but for the
people in whose intelligence I had implicit faith. By the exercise of democracy, even in a
dictatorship, they would be prepared for democracy when it came. And then, also, it was the only
way I knew by which we could measure our power even in the terms dictated by the dictatorship.
The people vindicated me in an election shamefully marked by government thuggery and fraud.
The opposition swept the elections, garnering a clear majority of the votes, even if they ended up,
thanks to a corrupt Commission on Elections, with barely a third of the seats in parliament. Now,
I knew our power.
Last year, in an excess of arrogance, the dictatorship called for its doom in a snap election. The
people obliged. With over a million signatures, they drafted me to challenge the dictatorship. And
I obliged them. The rest is the history that dramatically unfolded on your television screen and
across the front pages of your newspapers.
You saw a nation, armed with courage and integrity, stand fast by democracy against threats and
corruption. You saw women poll watchers break out in tears as armed goons crashed the polling
places to steal the ballots but, just the same, they tied themselves to the ballot boxes. You saw a
people so committed to the ways of democracy that they were prepared to give their lives for its
pale imitation. At the end of the day, before another wave of fraud could distort the results, I
announced the people’s victory.
The distinguished co-chairman of the United States observer team in his report to your President
described that victory:
“I was witness to an extraordinary manifestation of democracy on the part of the Filipino people.
The ultimate result was the election of Mrs. Corazon C. Aquino as President and Mr. Salvador
Laurel as Vice-President of the Philippines.”
57
Many of you here today played a part in changing the policy of your country towards us. We,
Filipinos, thank each of you for what you did: for, balancing America’s strategic interest against
human concerns, illuminates the American vision of the world.
When a subservient parliament announced my opponent’s victory, the people turned out in the
streets and proclaimed me President. And true to their word, when a handful of military leaders
declared themselves against the dictatorship, the people rallied to their protection. Surely, the
people take care of their own. It is on that faith and the obligation it entails, that I assumed the
presidency.
As I came to power peacefully, so shall I keep it. That is my contract with my people and my
commitment to God. He had willed that the blood drawn with the lash shall not, in my country, be
paid by blood drawn by the sword but by the tearful joy of reconciliation.
We have swept away absolute power by a limited revolution that respected the life and freedom
of every Filipino. Now, we are restoring full constitutional government. Again, as we restored
democracy by the ways of democracy, so are we completing the constitutional structures of our
new democracy under a constitution that already gives full respect to the Bill of Rights. A jealously
independent Constitutional Commission is completing its draft which will be submitted later this
year to a popular referendum. When it is approved, there will be congressional elections. So within
about a year from a peaceful but national upheaval that overturned a dictatorship, we shall have
returned to full constitutional government. Given the polarization and breakdown, we inherited,
this is no small achievement.
My predecessor set aside democracy to save it from a communist insurgency that numbered less
than 500. Unhampered by respect for human rights, he went at it hammer and tongs. By the time
he fled, that insurgency had grown to more than 16,000. I think there is a lesson here to be learned
about trying to stifle a thing with the means by which it grows.
I don’t think anybody, in or outside our country, concerned for a democratic and open Philippines,
doubts what must be done. Through political initiatives and local reintegration programs, we must
seek to bring the insurgents down from the hills and, by economic progress and justice, show
them that for which the best intentioned among them fight.
58
As President, I will not betray the cause of peace by which I came to power. Yet equally, and
again no friend of Filipino democracy will challenge this, I will not stand by and allow an insurgent
leadership to spurn our offer of peace and kill our young soldiers, and threaten our new freedom.
Yet, I must explore the path of peace to the utmost for at its end, whatever disappointment I meet
there, is the moral basis for laying down the olive branch of peace and taking up the sword of war.
Still, should it come to that, I will not waver from the course laid down by your great liberator: “With
malice towards none, with charity for all, with firmness in the rights as God gives us to see the
rights, let us finish the work we are in, to bind up the nation’s wounds, to care for him who shall
have borne the battle, and for his widow and for his orphans, to do all which may achieve and
cherish a just and lasting peace among ourselves and with all nations.”
Like Lincoln, I understand that force may be necessary before mercy. Like Lincoln, I don’t relish
it. Yet, I will do whatever it takes to defend the integrity and freedom of my country.
Finally, may I turn to that other slavery: our $26 billion foreign debt. I have said that we shall honor
it. Yet must the means by which we shall be able to do so be kept from us? Many conditions
imposed on the previous government that stole this debt continue to be imposed on us who never
benefited from it. And no assistance or liberality commensurate with the calamity that was visited
on us has been extended. Yet ours must have been the cheapest revolution ever. With little help
from others, we Filipinos fulfilled the first and most difficult conditions of the debt negotiation the
full restoration of democracy and responsible government. Elsewhere, and in other times of more
stringent world economic conditions, Marshall plans and their like were felt to be necessary
companions of returning democracy.
When I met with President Reagan yesterday, we began an important dialogue about cooperation
and the strengthening of the friendship between our two countries. That meeting was both a
confirmation and a new beginning and should lead to positive results in all areas of common
concern.
Today, we face the aspirations of a people who had known so much poverty and massive
unemployment for the past 14 years and yet offered their lives for the abstraction of democracy.
Wherever I went in the campaign, slum area or impoverished village, they came to me with one
59
cry: democracy! Not food, although they clearly needed it, but democracy. Not work, although
they surely wanted it, but democracy. Not money, for they gave what little they had to my
campaign. They didn’t expect me to work a miracle that would instantly put food into their mouths,
clothes on their back, education in their children, and work that will put dignity in their lives. But I
feel the pressing obligation to respond quickly as the leader of a people so deserving of all these
things.
We face a communist insurgency that feeds on economic deterioration, even as we carry a great
share of the free world defenses in the Pacific. These are only two of the many burdens my people
carry even as they try to build a worthy and enduring house for their new democracy that may
serve as well as a redoubt for freedom in Asia. Yet, no sooner is one stone laid than two are taken
away. Half our export earnings, $2 billion out of $4 billion, which was all we could earn in the
restrictive markets of the world, went to pay just the interest on a debt whose benefit the Filipino
people never received.
Still, we fought for honor, and, if only for honor, we shall pay. And yet, should we have to wring
the payments from the sweat of our men’s faces and sink all the wealth piled up by the
bondsman’s two hundred fifty years of unrequited toil?
Yet to all Americans, as the leader of a proud and free people, I address this question: has there
been a greater test of national commitment to the ideals you hold dear than that my people have
gone through? You have spent many lives and much treasure to bring freedom to many lands
that were reluctant to receive it. And here you have a people who won it by themselves and need
only the help to preserve it.
Three years ago, I said thank you, America, for the haven from oppression, and the home you
gave Ninoy, myself and our children, and for the three happiest years of our lives together. Today,
I say, join us, America, as we build a new home for democracy, another haven for the oppressed,
so it may stand as a shining testament of our two nation’s commitment to freedom.”
Speech taken from the Official Gazette of the Republic of the Philippines
[Link]
joint-session-of-the-u-s-congress-september-18-1986/
60
SUMMARY
Emilio Aguinaldo on June 12, 1898, between four and five in the afternoon, in the presence
of a huge crowd, proclaimed the independence of the Philippines at Cavite el Viejo (Kawit). The
Proclamation document gave significance to the fallen Martyrs of the struggle and the cruel
administration of the Spanish government in the Philippines. The political and social condition that
paved the way to the Philippine revolution and the declaration of Philippine Independence. It also
emphasized the waving of the Philippine flag that symbolized the Philippine Independence which
Act was read by Ambrosio Rianzares Bautista. It was highlighted by the national anthem, now
known as Lupang Hinirang, which was composed by Julián Felipe and played by the San
Francisco de Malabon marching band.
McCoy (viewed from the vantage point of half century and more, these prewar political
cartoons are an evocative record of a half-forgotten history. The scandals, struggles and social
changes of the American colonial period gain an immediacy in these graphic images that eludes
even the most eloquent historical prose.
President Cory Aquino put up a petition for support. Addressing the House, she gave a
historic address to the US Congress that paved way to sway in our favor the vote for an
emergency $200-million aid appropriation.
61
ASSESSMENT TASK 4-1
NAME: SECTION:
MODULE 4
Analysis of the Proclamation of the Philippine Independence. Write a short analysis on the
following:
(1) Importance of the document.
(2) Background of the text author (Aguinaldo).
62
(3) Context of the document.
(4) Contribution of the document in understanding Philippine History.
63
ASSESSMENT TASK 4-2
Analyze the following political cartoon from various sources and answer the questions
below.
[Link]/wiki/File:[Link] [Link]
[Link] [Link]
64
How were the Filipinos depicted in the four
political cartoons? Describe their physical
characteristics.
As a Filipino, do you agree with the illustrator
as to how we are being described in the
newspapers which are being sold around the
world?
Based on the political cartoon, what can you
say about the treatment the Americans gave
us?
Explain further: Under a US colonialism that
was simultaneously brutal and beneficent,
grasping and generous
65
ASSESSMENT TASK 4-3
Based on the speech delivered by the former President Corazon C. Aquino on the joint
session of the US Congress, what part of the speech do you think caught the attention and move
the American Lawmakers to grant the country the financial aid we are requesting? Highlight the
sentence or paragraph and explain why. (10 points)
66
REFERENCES
Agoncillo, T. (1990) History of the Filipino People, Quezon City, Garotech Publishing.
Escobar, Miguel (2018), Revisit Cory Aquino’s Historic 1986 Speech Before The US Congress,
Esquire Magazine, Retrieved August 30, 2020 from
[Link]
before-the-us-congress-a00207-20180125
Gripaldo, Rolando M. (2009) Jacinto’s Libertarian Philosophy of Revolution Filipino philosophy:
Traditional Approach. Part I, Sec. 1. Quezon City: C & E Publishing, Inc.,
Knieper, Thomas (2018) Political cartoon, Encyclopædia Britannica Retrieved August 30, 2020
from [Link]
McCoy, A. W., & Roces, A. R. (1985). Philippine cartoons: Political caricature of the American
era, 1900-1941. Quezon City, Philippines: Vera-Reyes.
Official Gazette of the Republic of the Philippines (1986) Speech of President Corazon
Aquino during the Joint Session of the U.S. Congress, September 18, 1986 Retrieved
August 30, 2020 from [Link]
president-corazon-aquino-during-the-joint-session-of-the-u-s-congress-september-18-
1986/
The Editorial Team (n.d.) Philippine Cartoons: Political Caricature of the American Era, 1900-41
Retrieved August 30, 2020 from [Link]
philippine-cartoons
Library of Congress (2011) The World of 1898: The Spanish-American War Retrieved August
30, 2020 from [Link]
67