VP Sara tells Filipinos to be inspired by Bonifacio, rekindle patriotism

Published November 30, 2022, 12:45 PM

by Betheena Unite

Vice President Sara Duterte expressed hopes that Filipinos would take inspiration from Andres Bonifacio to rekindle their “deep sense of patriotism.”

Vice President Sara Duterte keynotes the 48th Philippine Business Conference (PBC) and Expo organized by the Philippine Chamber of Commerce (PCCI) at the Manila Hotel on Oct. 19, 2022. (Noel B. Pabalate/MANILA BULLETIN)

Duterte, who also heads the Department of Education (DepEd) in a concurrent capacity, joined the nation in commemorating the 159th birth anniversary of Andres Bonifacio, also known as the Father of Philippine Revolution, on Wednesday, Nov. 30.

She enjoined the nation to emulate Bonifacio’s “courage and heroism” in overcoming the difficulties it faces.

“May his extraordinary love of our country continue to inspire us to be constantly united in overcoming the difficulties we face as a nation and realize our shared aspirations of a better life for all,” the Vice President said.

“And may the fire he started in the name of freedom rekindle a deep sense of patriotism among us as we usher in a future strongly forged by our unyielding solidarity and our own acts of selflessness, courage, and bravery for our country and our fellow Filipinos,” she added.

Duterte also urged the citizenry to keep loving the Philippines.

Andres Bonifacio’s heroism honored in perpetuity in Filipinos’ hearts and minds

Published November 30, 2022, 12:05 AM

by Manila Bulletin

Andres Bonifacio’s heroism is honored today by the Filipino nation on his 159th birth anniversary. His preeminent stature as a national hero whose birth date is declared a non-working public holiday is anchored on his role as the Father of the Philippine Revolution.

His “Monumento” is a popular landmark located on a rotunda that marks the northern terminal of the country’s most well-known national highway, EDSA in Caloocan City, Metro Manila. While Jose Rizal died at age 35, Bonifacio’s death occurred at age 34, underlining the gallantry of the youthful leaders of the revolution that sought to end more than three centuries of Spanish colonialism.

He is hailed as the Father of the Philippine Revolution. In 1892, he joined Rizal in establishing La Liga Filipina that advocated for political reforms in Spain’s colonial government in the Philippines. This triggered Rizal’s deportation to Dapitan in Zamboanga. Together with Apolinario Mabini and others, Bonifacio revived La Liga in Rizal’s absence and was active in organizing local chapters in Manila. He also became its chief propagandist. 

It could be gleaned that Bonifacio discerned, too, the need for a gradualist approach in bringing about social change. But he and his youthful fellow reformists must have felt the severity of the Spanish response that pushed them into eventually waging an armed revolution to overthrow an unjust and well-entrenched colonial regime.

Thus, he and his colleagues decided to establish the Kataastaasan, Kagalanggalangang, Katipunan ng mga Anak ng Bayan (KKK) or more commonly known as the Katipunan, a movement which sought the independence of the Philippines from Spanish colonial rule and started the Tagalog Revolution.

Noted historians Teodoro Agoncillo and Milagros Guerrero cite Bonifacio as having “reorganized the Katipunan into a revolutionary government, with himself as president (pangulo) of a nation-state called “Haring Bayang Katagalugan” (‘Sovereign Nation of the Tagalog People’ or ‘Sovereign Tagalog Nation,’) also “Republika ng Katagaluguan” (‘Tagalog Republic,’ Republica Tagala in Spanish), wherein “Tagalog” referred to all those born in the Philippine islands and not merely the Tagalog ethnic group. Hence, some historians have argued that he should be considered the first president of the Philippines.”

It has become well-known that, following a power struggle with the Cavite-based forces of Emilio Aguinaldo, he was killed in Maragondon, Cavite. Subsequently, Aguinaldo proclaimed Philippine independence from the balcony of his home in Kawit, Cavite. 

History and posterity have given ample recognition to Andres Bonifacio’s heroism and greatness. Apart from the observance of a non-working public holiday on his birth anniversary he has been honored extensively in other ways. The headquarters of the Philippine Army was named after him. It is now one of the leading commercial, financial and residential hubs in Metro Manila. There is a Liwasang Bonifacio near the Manila City Hall.

But it is in the hearts and minds of millions of grateful Filipinos where the heroism of Andres Bonifacio lives in perpetuity.

156th Bonifacio Day

Impressions from the commemorating the 156th Birth Anniversary of the Great Plebeian, Gat. Andres Bonifacio at the Bonifacio Circle, corner C.M. Recto and Magallanes Street in Davao City.

Thank you very much for the invitation City Government of Davao City thru City Administrator Attorney Zuleika Lopez.

The Honorary German Consulate in Davao City joined also by participating in the floral offering.

ANDRES BONIFACIO

Andres Bonifacio (November 30,1863 – May 10,1897)

Portrait of Andres BonifacioAndres Bonifacio was born on November 30, 1863 to Santiago Bonifacio and Catalina de Castro in Tondo located in Manila Philippines. He was a Filipino revolutionary hero who founded the Kataastaasan Kagalanggalang na Katipunan ng mga Anak ng Bayan (KKK) or Katipunan a secret society devoted to fighting the Spanish occupation of the Philippines. He was the first one to have a clear vision of what a Filipino nation should be—The Father of the Filipino Nation. He would later be known as Supremo; destined to change the history of the Filipino people.

Bonifacio was not born and raised a plebeian, his mother was half-Spanish and he was privately tutored by a certain Guillermo Osmeña. But things became tough for him when his parents died when he was 14 years old forcing him to quit his studies and look after his 5 younger brothers and sisters. He earned a living as a craftsman and seller of canes and fans and then he became clerk and agent for a foreign commercial firm, Fleming and Company. In spite of his lack of formal education, he taught himself to read and write in Spanish and Tagalog, and was actually so good at it that he later got a job as a clerk-messenger for the German trading firm Fressel and Company. It was said that Bonifacio was interested in Western classic rationalism and read the works of Victor Hugo, Jose Rizal, and Eugene Sue. He had a deep interest in reading books on the French Revolution and the lives of the presidents of the United States and acquired a good understanding of the socio-historical process. Although it must be argued that the main thing that made his later organizing activities successful would be his savvy to appropriate local consciousness and ancient Filipino concepts to the Katipunan—Inang Bayan, sandugo, kapatiran, kaginhawaan, and katimawaan or kalayaan. His passion for changing the plight of his countrymen under colonialism encouraged him to join La Liga Filipina. La Liga Filipina was organized in July 3, 1892 by Jose Rizal with the purpose of uniting the people under “one compact homogenous body” which is the nation, instituting reform, education and cooperation, building the nation in the grassroots.

Rise of the Katipunan

Four days after the establishment of the Liga, July 7,1892, the arrest and banishment of Jose Rizal the day before made it practically nonexistent as an organization. Andres Bonifacio along side Ladislao Diwa, Teodoro Plata and others decided to continue the struggle and formed the Kataastaasan Kagalanggalang ang Katipunan ng mga Anak ng Bayan (KKK) or Katipunan at the home of Deodato Arellano in Calle Azcarraga, Manila. A small room lit only by a table lamp they signed a solemn compact with blood drawn from their forearm to symbolized the birth of the Katipunan the sandugo was not just a blood pact but a pledge to love each compatriot as brothers and sisters as the ancients did when they consolidate the bayan—kapatiran.

Only when people have mabuting kalooban (good intentions, thus the Kartilya) for each other, will true kaginhawaan (total well-being) and kalayaan (freedom) be attained. Thus it must be said that the Katipunan was not just a mere organization that wanted to unite the people to topple the Spanish Empire, but wanted a true unity of mind and hearts among the Tagalogs (Taga-ilog, river people, referring to peoples/mga bayan from the whole archipelago) under one Inang Bayan seeking the enlightened and straight path, an original Filipino concept of the nation. After two previous Supremos, the humble founder of the Katipunan Andres Bonifacio finally agreed to be Supremo of the Katipunan.

An Excursion to the Mountains

As a theater actor himself, Bonifacio had a favourite character to play—Bernardo Carpio, the mythical Tagalog king trapped in between two mountains who will soon be freed to fight and free the people from the bondage of colonialism. On Good Friday of 1895, he went to the caves of Mt. Tapusi, Montalban, Rizal with his men. They wrote through charcoals on the walls of the caves “Naparito ang mga Anak ng Bayan, hinahanap ang Kalayaan. Mabuhay ang Kalayaan.” (The Sons of the People came here searching for freedom. Long live freedom!) Definitely, it was not a coincidence why he chose that time place for this, a declaration of independence: The Katipunan will be the Bernardo Carpio who will free Inang Bayan. They are willing to sacrifice their lives for the altar of freedom.

(Members of the Diplomatic Corps during the commemorating)

Photo Courtesy: Pibi Ann Neri Balcom, German Honorary Consulate, Davao City.

Andres Bonifacio of The Philippines

Photo of Philippines nationalist hero Andres Bonifacio, prior to his 1897 execution.

Andres Bonifacio simmered with rage and humiliation. The movement that he had created to oppose Spanish colonial rule in the Philippines had just voted (likely in a rigged election) to make his rival Emilio Aguinaldo president in his stead. Bonifacio was given the lowly consolation prize of an appointment as Secretary of the Interior in the revolutionary government.

When this appointment was announced, however, delegate Daniel Tirona objected on the grounds that Bonifacio did not have a law degree (or any university diploma, for that matter). Incensed, the fiery rebel leader demanded an apology from Tirona. Instead, Daniel Tirona turned to leave the hall; Bonifacio pulled out a gun and tried to shoot him down, but General Artemio Ricarte y Garcia tackled the former president and saved Tirona's life.

Who was this scrappy and hot-headed rebel leader, Andres Bonifacio? Why is his story still remembered today in the Republic of the Philippines?

Bonifacio's Birth and Early Life:

 

Andres Bonifacio was born on November 30, 1863 in Tondo, Manila. His father Santiago was a tailor, a local politician and a boatman who operated a river-ferry; his mother, Catalina de Castro, was employed in a cigarette-rolling factory. The couple worked extremely hard to support Andres and his five younger siblings, but in 1881 Catalina caught tuberculosis ("consumption") and died. The following year, Santiago also became ill and passed away.

At the age of 19, Andres Bonifacio was forced to give up plans for higher education and begin working full-time to support his orphaned younger siblings. He worked for the British trading company J.M. Fleming & Co. as a broker or corredor for local raw materials such as tar and rattan. He later moved to the German firm Fressell & Co., where he worked as a bodeguero or grocer.

Family Life:

 

Andres Bonifacio's tragic family history during his youth seems to have followed him in to his adulthood. He married twice, but had no surviving children at the time of his death.

His first wife, Monica, came from the Palomar neighborhood of Bacoor. She died young of leprosy (Hansen's disease).

Bonifacio's second wife, Gregoria de Jesus, came from the Calookan area of metro Manila. They married when he was 29 and she was just 18; their only child, a son, died as an infant.

Establishment of Katipunan:

 

In 1892, Bonifacio joined Jose Rizal's new organization La Liga Filipina, which called for reform of the Spanish colonial regime in the Philippines. The group met only once, however, since Spanish officials arrested Rizal immediately after the first meeting and deported him to the southern island of Mindanao.

After Rizal's arrest and deportation, Andres Bonifacio and others revived La Liga to continue pressure on the Spanish government to free the Philippines. Along with his friends Ladislao Diwa and Teodoro Plata, however, he also founded a group called Katipunan.

Katipunan, or Kataastaasang Kagalannalangang Katipunan ng mga Anak ng Bayan to give its full name (literally "Highest and Most Respected Society of the Children of the Country"), was dedicated to armed resistance against the colonial government. Made up mostly of people from the middle and lower classes, the Katipunan organization soon established regional branches in a number of provinces across the Philippines. (It also went by the rather unfortunate acronym KKK.)

In 1895, Andres Bonifacio became the top leader or Presidente Supremo of the Katipunan. Along with his friends Emilio Jacinto and Pio Valenzuela, Bonifacio also put out a newspaper called the Kalayaan, or "Freedom." Over the course of 1896, under Bonifacio's leadership, Katipunan grew from about 300 members at the beginning of the year to more than 30,000 in July. With a militant mood sweeping the nation, and a multi-island network in place, Bonifacio's Katipunan was prepared to start fighting for freedom from Spain.

Philippines Uprising Begins:

 

Over the summer of 1896, the Spanish colonial government began to realize that the Philippines was on the verge of revolt. On August 19, the authorities tried to preempt the uprising by arresting hundreds of people and jailing them under charges of treason - some of those swept up were genuinely involved in the movement, but many were not.

Among those arrested was Jose Rizal, who was on a ship in Manila Bay waiting to ship out for service as a military doctor in Cuba (this was part of his plea bargain with the Spanish government, in exchange for his release from prison in Mindanao). Bonifacio and two friends dressed up like sailors and made their way onto the ship and tried to convince Rizal to escape with them, but he refused; he was later put on trial in a Spanish kangaroo court and executed.

Bonifacio kicked off the revolt by leading thousands of his followers to tear up their community tax certificates or cedulas. This signaled their refusal to pay any more taxes to the Spanish colonial regime. Bonifacio named himself President and commander-in-chief of the Philippines revolutionary government, declaring the nation's independence from Spain on August 23. He issued a manifesto, dated August 28, 1896, calling for "all towns to rise simultaneously and attack Manila," and sent generals to lead the rebel forces in this offensive.

Attack on San Juan del Monte:

 

Andres Bonifacio himself led an attack on the town of San Juan del Monte, intent on capturing Manila's metro water station and the powder magazine from the Spanish garrison. Although they were vastly outnumbered, the Spanish troops inside managed to hold off Bonifacio's forces until reinforcements arrived.

Bonifacio was forced to withdraw to Marikina, Montalban, and San Mateo; his group suffered heavy casualties. Elsewhere, other Katipunan groups attacked Spanish troops all around Manila. By early September, the revolution was spreading across the country.

Fighting Intensifies:

 

As Spain pulled all its resources back to defend the capital at Manila, rebel groups in other areas began to sweep up the token Spanish resistance left behind. The group in Cavite (a peninsula south of the capital, jutting into Manila Bay), had the greatest success in driving the Spanish out. Cavite's rebels were led by an upper-class politician called Emilio Aguinaldo. By October of 1896, Aguinaldo's forces held most of the peninsula.

Bonifacio led a separate faction from Morong, about 35 miles (56 kilometers) to the east of Manila. A third group under Mariano Llanera was based in Bulacan, north of the capital. Bonifacio appointed generals to establish bases in the mountains all over Luzon island.

Despite his earlier military reverses, Bonifacio personally led an attack on Marikina, Montalban, and San Mateo. Although he initially succeeded in driving the Spanish out of those towns, they soon recaptured the cities, nearly killing Bonifacio when a bullet went through his collar.

Rivalry with Aguinaldo:

 

Aguinaldo's faction in Cavite was in competition with a second rebel group headed by an uncle of Gregoria de Jesus, Bonifacio's wife. As a more successful military leader and a member of a much wealthier, more influential family, Emilio Aguinaldo felt justified in formed his own rebel government in opposition to Bonifacio's. On March 22, 1897, Aguinaldo rigged an election at the rebels' Tejeros Convention to show that he was the proper president of the revolutionary government.

To Bonifacio's shame, he not only lost the presidency to Aguinaldo, but was appointed to the lowly post of Secretary of the Interior. When Daniel Tirona questioned his fitness even for that job, based on Bonifacio's lack of a university education, the humiliated former president pulled a gun and would have killed Tirona if a bystander had not stopped him.

Sham Trial and Execution:

 

After Emilio Aguinaldo "won" the rigged election at Tejeros, Andres Bonifacio refused to recognize the new rebel government. Aguinaldo sent a group to arrest Bonifacio; the opposition leader did not realize that they were there with ill intent, and allowed them into his camp. They shot down his brother Ciriaco, seriously beat his brother Procopio, and some reports say that they also raped his young wife Gregoria.

Aguinaldo had Bonifacio and Procopio tried for treason and sedition. After a one-day sham trial, in which the defense lawyer averred their guilt rather than defending them, both Bonifacios were convicted and sentenced to death.

Aguinaldo commuted the death sentence on May 8, but then reinstated it. On May 10, 1897, both Procopio and Andres Bonifacio likely were shot dead by a firing squad on Nagpatong Mountain. Some accounts say that Andres was too weak to stand, due to untreated battle wounds, and was actually hacked to death in his stretcher instead. Andres was just 34 years old.

Andres Bonifacio's Legacy:

 

As the first self-declared President of the independent Philippines, as well as the first leader of the Philippine Revolution, Andres Bonifacio is a crucial figure in that nation's history. However, his exact legacy is the subject of dispute among Filipino scholars and citizens.

Jose Rizal is the most widely recognized "national hero of the Philippines," although he advocated a more pacifist approach of reforming Spanish colonial rule rather than overthrowing it by force. Aguinaldo is generally cited as the first president of the Philippines, even though Bonifacio took on that title before Aguinaldo did. Some historians feel that Bonifacio has gotten short shrift, and should be set beside Rizal on the national pedestal.

Andres Bonifacio has been honored with a national holiday on his birthday, however, just like Rizal. November 30 is Bonifacio Day in the Philippines.