By Joshua Corcuera
Andres Bonifacio — one of the most prominent Philippine heroes — was born on this day 157 years ago. Often referred to as the father of the Philippine Revolution, he helped establish and lead the Katipunan — a movement which fought for Philippine independence and freedom from the Spaniards. As we celebrate Bonifacio Day this end of November, it is essential to look at the lessons we learned from our ancestors in fighting for a greater cause.
As the 19th century met its final years, more and more Filipinos were fighting for freedom. For three centuries, Spain — which was one of the largest empires in the world back then — finally saw an overwhelming resistance in the Philippines during the 1890s.
As a matter of fact, there was already an increasing level of nationalist and anti-colonial uprisings in other parts of the world at the same time.
Meanwhile, the Spaniards’ rule over the Asian archipelago was in peril and later signed the Treaty of Paris with the United States. As a result, the Philippines was still colonized by the Americans until after the Second World War.
Despite what transpired, the oppressed Filipino people of that generation showed that they can fearlessly fight for freedom against an enormous and strong oppressor. This lesson would remain relevant up to this day, especially that imperialism and foreign aggression are still evident at present.
In the 21st century, mainland China has been aggressive in asserting its national interests, even if such interests are contrary to international law. For instance, China constantly claimed the West Philippine Sea (WPS) as theirs. At the same time, their powerful military — together with Chinese fishing vessels — have affected Filipino fishermen.
In our own backyard, Filipinos working hard to make ends meet are aggrieved as evidenced by the Gem-Ver vessel which was sunk by foreign intruders in 2019. Beyond reasonable doubt, foreign oppressors still exist as we Filipinos are being oppressed by their malevolent actions.
With this in mind, it is timely to apply what we have learned from our history classes, to learn and further understand the words of our patriots in the past. When dealing with aggressive foreign intruders, it is imperative to be united so that we can strongly assert our national interests.
We can start by resisting and condemning imperialism and neocolonialism to prevent our fellow countrymen from being affected negatively by foreign forces.
Some might claim that modern China is gargantuan and powerful, hence we must be careful in our actions. To be careful in our actions does not mean, however, that we should condone their wrongful acts — especially their aggression in the WPS.
Furthermore, asserting our rights and interests in the WPS does not mean that a war would result between the Philippines and China. More importantly, people must not cower or shirk from a fight — even against powerful forces — when our freedom and sovereignty are at stake.
