Our national birthday not popularly observed

Yesterday, the nation commemorated the 104th anniversary of President Emilio Aguinaldo’s proclamation of our independence in Kawit, Cavite. That occasion marked two other important events. It was on that same day that the Filipino flag was officially unfurled and that our national anthem was first played. In the Declaration of Independence read from the window of the Aguinaldo house, it was made clear that the red, white and blue of our flag came from "the flag of the United States of North America, as a manifestation of our profound gratitude towards this Great Nation for its disinterested protection which it lent us and is continuing to lend us."

At that time, the Americans were our ally. By February, they were the enemy. The help they gave Aguinaldo was not "disinterested". They were not helping Filipinos defeat the Spanish forces in the Philippines. They were using the Filipinos in their war against Spain.

That is why in the early nineteenth century, the American flag was called the red, white and blue, ours was the red, white and blue with the sun shining through. The triangle in the flag represented the rallying cry of the French Revolution – liberty, equality, brotherhood!

As for our national anthem, with the possible exemption of Switzerland, it is the only anthem that has been sung in three languages – the original Spanish, English and then Tagalog. The irony is that the original lyrics were in Spanish and that it started being officially sung in Tagalog during the Japanese times.

When our national anthem was first sung, its official title was Marcha Filipina Magdalo. Later, it was changed to Marcha Nacional Filipina. The Banda de Malabon that played it was from Gen. Trias, Cavite and not from Malabon, Rizal. Like France’s La Marseillaise, it was composed in a period of great crisis.

Our declaration of independence was more dramatic than the American declaration. The July 4 Independence Day that the United States observes marks the day on which their Declaration of Independence was officially adopted by the Continental Congress in 1776. Aguinaldo’s declaration marked the first military victory against Spain.

In a proclamation dated July 4, 1946, President Harry S. Truman issued a proclamation recognizing, not granting, the independence of the Philippines. And so for many years, we celebrated our Independence day on July 4. Then, on May 12, 1962, President Diosdado Macapagal moved the celebration of Independence Day from the time the Americans recognized it to the moment President Aguinaldo declared it. We were the first Asian nation to declare and attain our independence from Western colonial rule.

A national holiday should not be just a non-working day. What is important is how it is celebrated. The mode of the celebration must answer the question: Why are we commemorating this national event?