Day of Filipino valor, US imprudence, and Japanese barbaric atrocity

Today, April 9, used to be called, The Fall of Bataan or Bataan Day under Republic Act 3022 signed into law on April 6, 1961 by President Carlos P. Garcia. President Ferdinand Marcos renamed it Araw ng Kagitingan on November 26, 1980 by issuing Letter of Instruction 1087 under his martial law powers. President Cory Aquino made it a law, Executive Order 203 that she issued under the Freedom Constitution on June 26, 1987.

The Tagalog word "kagitingan" should be understood well and explained to Visayans, Bicolanos, Warays, Ilongos, and our Muslim compatriots because Marcos was an Ilocano, Cory was a Capangpangan, and Garcia was a Cebuano-speaking Boholano. We should make sure that we have a common understanding of the word kagitingan. It carries a lot of meaning, like bravery, boldness, dignity, heroism, patriotism, and even statesmanship, but what I like most is valor. The Philippines is a cradle of noble heroes, a nation of decent, honorable and dignified people. That could be the reason why, the name Fall of Bataan was changed to Araw ng Kagitingan because Marcos, a guerrilla fighter himself, decided that our people should not glorify our defeat, but should stand proud that our soldiers preferred to die standing up rather than live on their bended knees.

Although we need to forget our past wounds as a people and continue to move on, on this day I want my children, grandchildren, and relatives to remember that the deaths of many of our uncles and grandfathers in the Death March was a result of the reckless imprudence of Gen. Douglas MacArthur and his overall Philippine commander, Gen. Jonathan Wainwrights, who allowed more a hundred thousand starving, sick, tired, weak ill-trained, and ill-equipped men to stay and defend Bataan and Corregidor. And they did defend these areas against the Japanese’ ceaseless bombings, without reinforcement in food, water, armaments, ammunition, and supplies. Many were dying each day of malaria, dengue, dehydration, starvation, and there were no medicines.

Against the military orders of MacArthur and Wainwright, Luzon commander Edward King Jr., on April 9, 1942 surrendered to the Japanese 76,000 hungry and sick soldiers, composed of 64,000 Filipinos and 12,000 Americans. They were compelled by the Japanese to make the Death March from Mariveles, Bataan, to Capas, Tarlac, a distance of 140 kilometers under the scorching April sun. No food, no water, no rest. Those who broke ranks and tried to get water along the way were shot, bayoneted, or beheaded. Because of the barbaric atrocities of the Japanese, no less than 22,000 died en route, and only 54,000 almost dying soldiers reached Capas. Later, many of them died because of lack of food, medicines, and other supplies. Because of these extreme cruelties, General Masaharu Homma was tried by the US military commission in Manila and executed by firing squad on April 3, 1946.

Filipinos should never forget that it was a war between the US and Japan and the Philippines had nothing to do with it. It was like your two neighbors were fighting and they used your house as the arena, burning your dwelling, raping your daughters, and killing your sons. And both of them refuse to apologize for all of those extreme cruelties. At least the US somehow tried to help, but in too little ways and too late, and always with strings attached. The Japanese have a lot of debts to pay to our people. My father was a young guerilla fighter under the age of 20, he was wounded and traumatized with war shock. He died with wounded feelings and heavy resentment against the Japanese. I will carry that memory to my grave. And I want my descendants to remember that always. Magigiting ngunit pinagsamantalahan ng mga malulupit na dayuhan.