‘If Asean truly matters as the epicenter of growth, then the observance of August as National History Month and as Asean Month must emphasize the Southeast Asia Zone of Peace, Freedom and Neutrality.’
SINCE the National Historical Commission of the Philippines wants to liberate history for the folks (“Pagpapalaya ng Kasaysayan para sa Sambayanan”), let us view their call sheet.
- The Hunters-ROTC Historical Society joined the 10th Local Historical Committees Network General Assembly at the New Dawn Hotel Plus, Cagayan de Oro City. This is the national network of local historical bodies, national professional historical organizations, local government culture units, local studies centers, higher education institutions, and non-governmental organizations engaged in local history and heritage work that was created by virtue of Section 21 of Republic Act No. 10086 (Strengthening People’s Nationalism through Philippine History Act).
- The NHCP commemorated the 126th death anniversary of Andres Bonifacio last 10 May 2023 at the NHCP Museo ng Paglilitis ni Andres Bonifacio, Maragondon, Cavite. It was 10 May 1897 when the Bonifacio brothers were executed at Mt. Nagpatong, Maragondon, Cavite by the faction of Emilio Aguinaldo. “His death greatly demoralized revolutionaries amid continued resistance against the Spanish and immortalized his name as a symbol and rallying point for Filipinos of future generations to struggle for freedom and justice.” [https://nhcp.gov.ph/news_and_updates/nhcp-commemorates-the-126th-death-anniversary-of-andres-bonifacio/]
- Antique cars are grand relics of the past; which will always have a special place in history. Preserving them is a great and costly undertaking that the NHCP has done with the Presidential Car Museum. The Vintage Vehicle Law (Republic Act 11698) covers cars that are currently or previously owned by any President of the Philippines, cars regularly used by the President or officially designated by the Presidential Security Group, cars used as private vehicles of the President during their term on a regular basis, cars used for historic events or even once owned by a person of historic significance as recognized by NHCP, vehicles used in events of historic significance, vehicles considered one of a kind or unique and those used in the olden days before the common use of cars in the country. [https://nhcp.gov.ph/news_and_updates/nhcp-spearheads-signing-ceremony-for-vintage-vehicle-act-in-presidential-car-museum/]
- The NHCP, along with the Philippine Veteran’s Affairs Office, celebrated the 81st Araw ng Kagitingan by screening the documentary ‘Unsurrendered 2: The Hunters ROTC Guerillas’ for free last 05 April 2023 at the Metropolitan Theater in Manila. The film premiere is part of Kasaysayan sa MET, a partnership of the NHCP with the National Commission for the Culture and Arts to showcase historical films and documentaries from the NHCP and its local partners by providing a venue for public engagement with Philippine history and culture. Produced by Spyron-AV Manila and sponsored by Philippine Veterans Bank, “Unsurrendered 2: The Hunters ROTC Guerillas” is a 53-minute multi-awarded documentary that tells the history of an underground army who fought against the fascist Japanese in World War II. These ‘unsurrendered’ were the Hunters ROTC Guerillas, one of the first and youngest of the Philippine resistance fighters. [https://nhcp.gov.ph/news_and_updates/nhcp-screens-unsurrendered-2-the-hunters-rotc-guerillas-at-the-met/]
Let us add to the NHCP call sheet: 60 years ago, Soekarno (President of the Republic of Indonesia) and Diosdado Macapagal (President of the Philippines) and Tunku Abdul Rahman Putra Al-haj (Prime Minister of the Federation of Malaya) affirmed “that the three nations shall combine their efforts in the common struggle against colonialism and imperialism in all their forms and manifestations and for the eradication of the vestiges thereof in the region in particular and the world in general.” Reading about the “regular consultations at all levels to be known as Mushawarah Mapilindo” ought to be counted in the process of “Democratizing History for the People” (as bandied by the NHCP). This Manila Declaration by the Philippines, the Federation of Malaya and Indonesia on 03 August 1963 reaffirmed the trio’s adherence to the principle of equal rights and self-determination of peoples as enunciated in the United Nations Charter and the Bandung Declaration must be lined up with all major historical events occurring within the National Historical Month of August from the 1890’s up to the present day.
August of every year is Asean Month (Presidential Proclamation No. 282 dated July 31, 2017 Amending Proclamation No. 1008 dated May 21, 1997). For which the Department of Education bids to incorporate the Filipino core value of Bayanihan (coming together for a common goal), to support the Makabayan core value of DepEd and the Makabansa component of the Matatag Agenda by adopting in this year’s celebration the theme of “Bayanihan like Asean: Leveraging Cooperation in Education to Strengthen Asean Identity.” We contribute by sharing Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo’s assessment: “I would like to think that Asean had a forerunner in the brief Maphilindo union founded in a Manila summit in 1963 among Malaysia, the Philippines, and Indonesia, when my father, Diosdado Macapagal, was President of the Philippines. He was then reviving the dream of a united Malay race which went back much earlier, to Filipino heroes like Wenceslao Vinzons in our 1935—1940 Commonwealth period under American tutelage, and the father of Filipino nationalism himself, ‘The Great Malay’ Jose Rizal.
“My father believed that after centuries of colonial rule, the three Malay countries should work together on ‘Asian solutions for Asian problems,’ following the Musyawarah principle of mutual consultation. Indonesian President Sukarno helped flesh out this vision during frequent trips to Manila, and Malaya’s Prime Minister Tunku Abdul Rahman later came on board.”
“Though Maphilindo was short-lived, the dream lived on. Speaking before a million people in Bandung in February 1964, Presidents Sukarno and Macapagal again dwelt upon the idea of a pan-Malay union. After 3 years, their Asia-centric aspirations found fulfillment in the formation of Asean, with Singapore and Thailand in addition to the three Malay states as the founding five members.” [Asean@50 Volume 1, pp. 55-56]
If Asean truly matters as the epicenter of growth, then the observance of August as National History Month and as Asean Month must emphasize the Southeast Asia Zone of Peace, Freedom and Neutrality.
Spotlight as well this assessment: “The real measure of foreign direct investment’s contribution to development is not the headline-friendly quantity of investment, firm employees, or even exports. It’s how much technology is transferred, the opportunities created for local content suppliers, reinvestments in the wider economy, and other long-term contributions to domestic economic development.” [Ibon Policy Notes, March 2022]
