The Filipinos' epic kagitingan

From Lapulapu to Dr. Jose Rizal, Gat Andres Bonifacio, and generals Antonio Luna, Gregorio del Pilar, and Miguel Malvar, the Filipinos' historic valor or "kagitingan" is beyond the shadow of any doubt. From the shores of Mactan to the barracks of Corregidor and Bataan, from Pugadlawin to Biak na Bato, from Cavite and Barasoain to Tirad Pass and Besang Pass, no one can question the gallantry of Filipino heroes. Today, immediately after Holy Week, we celebrate the legendary heroism, gallantry, and epic valor of Filipino patriots.

This important milestone in Philippine history used to be called "The Fall of Bataan", recalling the event on April 9, 1942, when the 76,000 defenders of the Philippines, both Americans and Filipino, starving, fatigued, disease-ridden, and undersupplied, under the command of US Armed Forces Major General Edward King surrendered to the Japanese Imperial Army led by Lieutenant General Masaharu Homma. On May 6, 1942, Lieutenant General Jonathan Wainwright surrendered all US and Filipino troops to the Japanese. But the April 9 event was more historic because of the Death March where all 76,000 soldiers were forced to walk from Bataan to Capas, Tarlac, via San Fernando, Pampanga, or a long, deadly march of 140 kilometers under the scorching heat of the sun.

Along the way, thousands died of heat stroke, dehydration, starvation, exhaustion, or were summarily executed by Japanese for attempting to escape or get water along the way. The Japanese soldiers were overly cruel and inhumane that they wouldn’t even allow the prisoners a few minutes of rest or a few drops of water. Those who were lucky enough to make it to San Fernando, Pampanga, were still made to walk another 40 kilometers to Capas, Tarlac, in Camp O'Donnell where the survivors were held as prisoners under very harsh and cruel conditions. The Japanese didn’t have any mercy for the prisoners. Their atrocities and extreme cruelties could parallel those of Hitler in the Holocaust. For this reason, many Filipinos still harbor hatred against the Japanese today.

In 1961, President Diosdado Macapagal signed into law RA 3022 which declared April 9 as Bataan Day. In 1987, President Corazon Aquino issued Executive Order 203 renaming it Araw ng Kagitingan. And rightly so, we would hasten to concur. For, instead of focusing on the surrender or the defeat, we as a nation and people, should mark this day in our history as one where the heroism and gallantry of the Filipinos was tried and tested. In 2007, President GMA signed into law RA 9492, which made this holiday movable to the nearest Monday to April 9 under the principle of Holiday Economics. Presidents PNoy and Duterte maintained that practice. President BBM issued Proclamation 90 declaring that this year's Araw ng Kagitingan should be celebrated today, April 10, since April 9 fell on Easter Sunday.

In the US, this historic day is also recognized as a milestone day of freedom and democracy. As early as April 8, 1954 the US Congress, both the Senate and the House of Representatives, passed a joint resolution declaring April 9 as the Historic Fall of Bataan. On April 8, 1987, President Ronald Reagan, acting favorably on another Senate and House joint resolution, declared April 9 as the National Prisoner of War Recognition Day. President Joe Biden continued this annual observance. He signed his own declaration of April 9 as such historical landmark in the US and Philippine defense of freedom and democracy in the Philippines in the World War II. The Americans and the Filipinos are bound together in history and common values, principles, and love for freedom.

Until today, as a son of a war veteran who was wounded and scarred in that war, I still harbor bitterness against the Japanese for their inhumane treatment of Filipinos, worst of which were their atrocities during the Death March. No amount of Japanese assistance, aid, and PR money could ever assuage the anguish that Japan inflicted on the Filipino psyche. No less than one million Filipinos died in World War II. I have lost many uncles and close relatives, both soldiers and civilians. The Philippine economy was devastated and even many of our historic sites and cultural relics were pulverized by Japanese bombs. Our women were made sex slaves and until now Japan refuses to apologize. I am proud of Filipino valor. I thank America for the liberation of the Philippines from Japan. And I cannot forgive the Japanese for their extreme cruelty against our people.