PH commemorates 125th anniversary of war with US

The National Historical Commission of the Philippines (NHCP) on Sunday led the commemoration of the 125th anniversary of the start of the Philippine-American War in Sampaloc, Manila.

NHCP said a flag-raising and wreath-laying ceremony was held at the site of the first encounter between the Philippine and US Army forces at the corner of Sociego and Silencio Streets in Manila.

A historical reenactment group, Historia Vivente Manila, also reenacted the first shots of the war.

ACT Teachers Party-list Representative and House Deputy Minority Leader France Castro who served as guest of honor, stressed the importance of continuing to fight for the country’s true freedom and independence.

“Hindi ba’t dapat tunggaliin, sa halip na gunitain, ang dayuhang pwersa na tinuligsa maging ng sarili nitong mamamayan bilang isang 'vulgar, commonplace empire, controlling subject races and vassal states, in which one class must forever rule and other classes must forever obey'?” Castro said, citing the words of Senator George Hoar during a debate on the ratification of the Treaty of Paris.

(Shouldn't we fight, instead of commemorating, the foreign power that has been denounced even by its own people as a 'vulgar, commonplace empire, controlling subject races and vassal states, in which one class must forever rule and other classes must forever obey'?)

The congresswoman also called on the nation to resist any attempt to violate Philippine sovereignty.

She also said that history should not be forgotten for the sake of the Filipinos who sacrificed their lives for the country.

“Kung hindi natin ito babantayan, para na rin natin kinalimutan ang mga nabuwal sa dilim ng Digmaang Pilipino-Amerikano,” Castro added.

(If we forget this, we have also forgotten those who fell in the darkness of the Philippine-American War.)

According to the NHCP, the Philippine-American War broke out on February 4, 1899 as the US sought to impose its sovereignty over the Philippine archipelago when the country was bought from the Spanish following the Treaty of Paris.

The first shot was fired by Private William Grayson of the First Nebraska Volunteers at the corner of Sociego and Silencio Streets at 8 p.m. on Feb. 4, 1899, according to a historical marker at the site.

“Throughout the more than decade long conflict, the resistance against US imperialism was led by the First Philippine Republic and its subordinate units, the resistance movements in Luzon, Visayas, and Mindanao; and the Moro peoples of Mindanao,” the commission said.

“The milestone is part of the 125th Anniversary of Philippine Independence and Nationhood 2023-2026 which commemorates the events that led up to Philippine Independence and the development of our nation from 1898 to 1901," it added. —KG, GMA Integrated News