Photo reblogged from Pinoy-Culture ~ A Filipino Cultural & History Blog with 120 notes
“He who does not know how to look back at where he came from, will never get to his destination.” -Jose Rizal
HAPPY INDEPENDENCE DAY, PILIPINAS!
Source: google.ca
Photo reblogged from Someone's Sketchpad with 2 notes
“What is the use of independence if the slaves of today will be the tyrants of tomorrow? says the dying Simoun to Padre Florentino in Rizal’s “El Filibusterismo”.
Jose Rizal’s words were relevant then as it is relevant now.
As our Philippines celebrates the 114th year of Independence, let us be reminded of the lessons of history so that this day will not just be another non-working holiday to spend on pageantry.
Let us be reminded of a most relevant timeline:
-June 12, 1898, a Declaration of Independence by the Aguinaldo government that was neither recognized by Spain nor America;
-December 10, 1898, the Treaty of Paris was signed. This marked the end of Spain’s colonial power over the Philippines and the rise of the power of the United States of America over the Pacific;
-July 4, 1946, is the date the United States of America chose to give independence to the Philippines through the Treaty of Manila.
The dates validate what Rizal wrote in his manifesto that expressed his disapproval of the armed revolution against Spain, he opposed and made clear that armed revolution was futile and disastrous. Reforms must not be violent and transitory.
Rizal, like any Filipino then and now, desired our country’s freedom but his plea to genuine emancipation was rarely heard. Centuries hence, EDUCATION and HARD WORK that he stressed so often that makes the Filipino people worthy of that freedom is still ignored by many:
“Our liberty will not be secured at the sword’s point… We must secure it by making ourselves worthy of it. And when the people reach that height, God will provide a weapon, the idols will be shattered, tyranny will crumble like a house of cards, and liberty will shine out like the first dawn.” (from “El Filibusterismo”)
“Ignorance is bondage, because like mind, like man. A man without will of his own is a man without personality. The blind who follows other’s opinion is like a beast led by a halter.” (from “Letter to the Women of Malolos”)
“Man works for an object. Remove that object and you reduce him into inaction.” (from “Indolence of the Filipino”)
For Rizal,
“The gift of reason with which we are endowed must be brightened and utilized” (from “Letter to the Women of Malolos”)
so that our people can overcome ignorance which empowers tyrants and causes a cycle of slavery.
True love of country is not about mouthing empty pride over which that is not our own, it is claiming the pride by making OUR PHILIPPINES, a noun synonymous to humility, service, community, excellence and honor. Let us all claim emancipation and genuine independence!
“The place matters not—cypress or laurel or lily white,
Scaffold or open plain, combat or martyrdom’s plight,
T’is ever the same, to serve our home and country’s need.” (from “Mi Ultimo Adios”)
Photo courtesy of http://www.charleskeng.com/note.htm:
“The reverse side depicts the re-enactment of the declaration of Philippine Independence at the Aguinaldo Shrine in Kawit, Cavite on June 12, 1998 by President Fidel V. Ramos and also features the Philippine Centennial Commission logo.
The security features of the note include a 3-dimensional cylinder mould-made portrait watermark of the two presidents and the years 1898-1998, iridescent band, color-shift windowed security thread, latent image and perfect see-through register.”
