World War II battle re-enacted

MANILA, Philippines - In a world of modern technology where enemies can be dealt a fatal blow with pinpoint accuracy from afar and video games on battles abound, it is an educational experience to see how World War II was fought face-to-face in the 1940s using vintage firearms. This was what drew droves of people, young and old, to Fort Bonifacio to witness Kagitingan, the re-enactment of the Battle of Abucay, Bataan in 1942.

The re-enactment was done with authentic World War II costumes and weapons for both Japanese and Philippine Scouts combatants. There were also the ever-reliable Jeeps and even pyrotechnics to add realism to the event. Cannons boomed to the amazement of the crowd in the gallery.

“This is the third re-enactment we have done with a group of re-enactors called Buhay na Kasaysayan. We did our first in Clark in 2011 and the second at Intramuros last year. Both were very successful,” said Rommel Juan, CEO of jeep body builder MD Juan Enterprises, one of the prime movers behind the project. “We all hope that through this re-enactment, more people will relive and learn about our glorious history, about what our gallant men and women in our armed forces had to go through to get us to where we are now – a truly free and democratic country. We hope we will also be able to impart to the youth of today our rich history and introduce them to the gallantry of our brave heroes of yesteryears and of the present.”

Co-organizing the re-enactment was the Hero Foundation, Inc., an organization that supports the families of soldiers who either died or is injured in the line of duty. Children of these modern-day heroes are given scholarships by Hero Foundation.

“We reckoned that to make it more meaningful, we needed to connect these events to our historical past. For there is no better way to connect with our past heroes than to connect with our current heroes, the brave men and women of the Armed Forces of the Philippines,” said Juan.

Michelle Chan, director for Marketing and Resource Mobilization of Hero Foundation, said: “This will go a long way towards helping the children of our fallen, modern-day heroes. This will be our own small way of saying ‘Thank you’ to our current, real-life heroes, our beloved soldiers who continue to fight to preserve our democracy and keep our beloved country safe and sound for us to enjoy. This is our small token of gratitude to those who have fallen, just a reminder to them and those they have left behind that their heroism has not been in vain.”