Biyaheng Bonifacio: A Hero’s journey

MANILA, Philippines - Here’s something you can do this summer: Walk through history and learn about the life of the “Father of the Philippine Revolution” Andres Bonifacio – all in just one day.

This is what the Department of Tourism (DOT), in partnership with the National Historical Commission of the Philippines (NHCP), aims to achieve in launching “Biyaheng Bonifacio: Biyaheng Bayani ng Bayan,” a tourism heritage promotional campaign that seeks to heighten the interest of the public about the revolutionary hero.

The project seeks to encourage the public, particularly the youth, to rediscover and revisit 16 sites in Luzon associated with the life of the working-class hero and promote domestic tourism at the same time.

NHCP chair Maria Serena Diokno said the launching of the travel campaign is just one of the many activities lined up for the Bonifacio Sesquicentennial this year.

President Aquino signed Administrative Order No. 27 on Aug. 2, 2012, directing the NHCP to lead the organization of a program of activities in commemoration of Bonifacio’s 150th birth anniversary this coming Nov. 30.

“We need to promote and preserve our cultural heritage. People who live in places visited by Bonifacio must feel that their places are important, because through this they develop a pride in their place,” says Tourism Operation Officer II Ryan Sebastian.

The Biyaheng Bonifacio itinerary includes sites in the heart of the metropolis like the Tutuban Mall and the Katipunan foundation site along C.M. Recto Avenue, Manila; Binondo Church in Manila; the Cry of Pugad Lawin in Bahay Toro, Quezon City; Krus na Ligas in Quezon City; Pinaglabanan Shrine in San Juan City; Hagdang Bato in Mandaluyong City; Pasig Catholic Church/Valentin Cruz Residence in Pasig City.

Also included in the tour are Imus Plaza in Imus, Cavite; Tribunal in Noveleta, Cavite; Tejeros Convention in Rosario, Cavite; Pinagbarilan in Indang, Cavite; Casa Hacienda de Naic in Naic, Cavite; the trial house in Maragondon, Cavite; execution site also in Maragondon; and Pamitinan Cave in Rodriguez, Rizal.

According to Sebastian, there are a total of 28 sites associated with Bonifacio based on the stories of his wife Gregoria de Jesus.

“Some of them are owned by families so we cannot open them to the public,” he says.

“If you visit the Bonifacio sites in Metro Manila and Cavite that will take you one day to finish the tour. If you will visit 15 sites you have to spend two days, and three days if you plan to include the Pamitinan Cave,” Sebastian says.

Pamitinan Cave is located in Sitio Wawa, Barangay San Rafael in Rodriguez, Rizal. It is the place where Bonifacio, along with other revolutionaries, conducted secret initiation rites of the Katipunan and wrote on the walls of the cave the words, “Viva la Independencia!”

“With the help of the local government units of the said cities and provinces, we try to create new interest in these historical places. This is also part of the DOT’s efforts to preserve the nation’s heritage for future generations,” says Tourism Undersecretary Rolando Canizal.

Bonifacio is regarded as one of the “genuine Filipinos” based on a national survey conducted by the Social Weather Stations (SWS) in March 2011, next to Jose Rizal.

In 2011, the tourism department launched a similar campaign dubbed, “Lakbay Jose Rizal @ 150” to commemorate the national hero’s 150th birth anniversary.

“We want to make them (national heroes) more meaningful and relevant to the youth of today,” Sebastian says.

He, however, stressed that visits to historical sites like the Tejeros Convention in Cavite remain part of educational tours.

“But we noticed that people forget to visit other historical places like the Casa de Naic and Pinagbarilan in Indang Cavite. We want them to revisit these places,” adds Sebastian.

The Kabataan Partylist filed in 2011 a bill which seeks to include in the college curricula a course on the life, works and ideals of Bonifacio.

House Bill 4353 or the “Andres Bonifacio Act of 2011” is a novel measure that aims to “strengthen the values of nationalism and patriotism among the youth” through subjects on Bonifacio.

“Including a course on the life, works and ideals of Andres Bonifacio in college will help strengthen the values of nationalism and patriotism among the youth. Bonifacio is a luminary whose challenges and lessons in nation-building remain very relevant up to this day,” Kabataan Rep. Raymond Palatino said in a previous statement.

Andres Bonifacio was the eldest of six children of Santiago Bonifacio, a tailor who served as teniente mayor of Tondo, Manila, and Catalina de Castro, a mestiza housewife of Spanish and Filipino-Chinese descent.

He stopped his schooling when he was 14 to start working to help support his family. He sold walking canes and paper fans. He then worked as a clerk-messenger and agent for Fleming and Company, a Manila-based, foreign owned business firm.

His first marriage was to his neighbor Monica, who died from leprosy just a year after their marriage.

He was one of the founders and later the supreme leader of the Kataastaasang Kagalanggalangang Katipunan ng mga Anak ng Bayan or Katipunan, a movement which sought Philippine independence from Spanish colonial rule.

Bonifacio and his brother Procopio were killed on May 10, 1897 in Brgy. Pinagsanhan, Maragondon, Cavite. His trial and execution form a chapter of Philippine revolutionary history that is controversial to this day.

For Gary Bonifacio, a great-grandnephew of Bonifacio, the Biyaheng Bonifacio: Biyaheng Bayani ng Bayan project will go a long way towards educating the public about the sacrifices of our national heroes to achieve independence.

“The Bonifacio family is thankful to the NHCP, DOT and the SM Malls for launching the project to bring closer to the heart of every Filipino the bravery and love for the country not only of Andres Bonifacio but all the Filipino heroes,” he says.

“We want the Filipinos to remember the words written and uttered by the Katipuneros which showed their love for our country and by sacrificing their lives for our independence,” Diokno says.

‘Be a Bonifacio pilgrim’

To encourage more people to visit the Bonifacio sites, the DOT and the NHCP are giving away prizes to the first 100 tourists who will complete the tour.

The tourists can get a copy of the Biyaheng Bonifacio: Biyaheng Bayani ng Bayan travel brochure from the DOT main office and, when they visit the sites, take their pictures and paste themon the brochure.

The first 100 tourists to complete the tour will receive a token and a Biyaheng Bonifacio: Biyaheng Bayani ng Bayan certificate which they can claim at the office of the Historic Sites and Education Division of the NHCP located along T.M. Kalaw Street in Ermita, Manila.

Sebastian said the competition is open to all domestic and international tourists.