From “Fall of Bataan” to “Day of Valor”

Today is the 82nd anniversary of what used to be called "The Fall of Bataan and Corregidor". Because we do not want to celebrate our defeat against the Japanese Imperial Army, our leaders renamed the holiday to a more positive one, "Araw ng Kagitingan" or "Day of Valor. Such a PR masterstroke, making a tragic historical experience into one which sounds more politically correct. A clever spin indeed.

In the early morning of April 9, 1942, Major General Edward King of the US Army, against the order of his superiors, decided to surrender 76,000 battle-weary, hungry, tired, and some quite sick and wounded troops, consisting of Filipinos, Americans, and a few Chinese, to the conquering battalions of better-armed and better-supported Japanese troops. Had General King persisted not to surrender, most of them would have died of hunger, diseases and utter disillusionment for lack of reinforcement in food, supplies, and ammunition. The extremely-cruel Japanese troops ordered them to do the Death March from Bataan to Tarlac that spanned 150 kilometers, passing through Pampanga. They walked, many barefooted, under the scorching heat of summer sun, without food, water, and any rest. Along the way, no less than 20,000 of them died either by exhaustion or were shot or killed with bayonets.

Today, we should all reflect on those barbaric atrocities inflicted by Japan on the Philippines. And we should all learn from it if only to make this day valuable to each Filipino. This writer, being a son of a guerilla fighter, finds this celebration truly meaningful, as it reignites in my consciousness once again, as it happens each year, the reminiscing of many insights that I should transmit to my children and grandchildren. I focus on at least 10 important lessons from April 1, 1942. First, in the light of contemporary developments, that tragic event should remind us that, even with America at our side, we can be defeated by China if we do not prepare ourselves enough and improve our alliances in Asia-Pacific and in many other parts of the world.

Second, we should remember that we were attacked by Japan because we were then, as we are now, allied with the US. We had no conflict with Japan in the 1940's. It was the US which was bombed by the Japanese on December 8, 1941. We were attacked only as collateral damage, in order to disable the Americans in the Philippines then. Japan had to weaken America in the Philippines so that the Japanese Empire could lord it over the whole East Asia. Thus, our friendship with America today has its advantages and disadvantages. America may be using us as a pawn so that they can defend the South China Sea, which is a vital maritime route for more than 60% of American imported oil and other goods.

Third, and I am quite passionate about this, we should always remember that Japan has not fully paid its debts to the Philippines. Japan killed no less than one million Filipinos from 1941 to 1945. Japan ravished many of our women and made them sex slaves as comfort women. The Japanese never owned up these highly-damaging atrocities committed against the people of the Philippines. They ravaged our cities, destroyed our historical sites, and practically demolished our national wealth, and our means of livelihood. They burned our ancestral homes and inflicted on the national soul and psyche of each Filipinos some indelible wounds that cannot just be assuaged by their symbolic grants of assistance and loans.

My father was wounded in hand-to-hand combat and, until his death, carried the war shock and trauma of Japanese barbarism. The ancestral house of my maternal grandparents were commandeered by the Japanese and made a temporary garrison. Many of my relatives were subjected to the cruelties of the Kempeitai and killed because they were guerrilla soldiers or supporters. That house was burned by the Japanese and my grandparents never received any war reparation for all the damages inflicted on our family.

I always pray to God to heal me of my anger and resentment against all Japanese people. But every April 9, I discover that the pains are still here. Today, I hope the new generations of Filipinos should learn the bitter lessons of history and know who are truly our allies and who are our enemies. Today, it is becoming clearer and clearer.