Followers

Monday, August 28, 2017

Bayani


BAYANI

Hero and bayani do not have the same meaning. Bayani is a richer word than hero because it may be rooted in bayan as place or in doing something great, not for oneself, but for a greater good, for community or nation.

Old heroes were those who contributed to the birth of a nation. Maybe the modern bayani is one who pushes the envelope further by contributing to a nation in a global world.

 
—Ambeth R. Ocampo, “‘Bayani’ a richer word than ‘hero’,” Philippine Daily Inquirer (September 2, 2016) 
 
TATLONG BAYANI

Old heroes:


New heroes:


WHAT MAKES A HERO?

Through Executive Order No. 75 issued on March 28, 1993, former president Fidel Ramos created the National Heroes Commission, which is tasked to study and recommend national heroes to be recognized for their character and contributions to the country.

The commission was also tasked to evaluate, recommend, and come up with the criteria to determine how a historical figure qualifies as a national hero.

The committee came up with the following criteria:

- Heroes are those who have a concept of nation, and aspire and struggle for the nation’s freedom
- Heroes define and contribute to a system or life of freedom and order for a nation
- Heroes contribute to the quality of life and destiny of a nation

Additional criteria were adopted by the Technical Committee of the National Heroes Committee on November 15, 1995:

- Heroes are part of the people’s expression
- Heroes think of the future, especially of the future generations
- The choice of heroes involves the entire process that made a particular person a hero

On November 15, 1995, the technical committee of the National Heroes commission chose 9 Filipino historical figures to be considered national heroes:

- Jose Rizal
- Andres Bonifacio
- Emilio Aguinaldo
- Apolinario Mabini
- Marcelo H. Del Pilar
- Sultan Dipatuan Kudarat
- Juan Luna
- Melchora Aquino
- Gabriela Silang

Link: https://www.rappler.com/newsbreak/iq/180016-fast-facts-filipino-national-hero-criteria-heroes-day-philippines?utm_source=facebook&utm_medium=social

—Hannah Mallorca, “FAST FACTS: What makes a Filipino historical figure a national hero?” Rappler.com, August 28, 2017

MARCOS NOT A HERO

In a 26-page pamphlet entitled, “Why Ferdinand E. Marcos Should Not Be Buried at the Libingan ng mga Bayani”, the NHCP disputed Marcos’ record as a soldier during World War II, saying that it is “fraught with myths, factual inconsistencies, and lies.”

The commission said that Marcos “lied about receiving the Distinguished Service Cross, Silver Star, and Order of the Purple Heart,” a claim he supposedly made as early as 1945.

The NHCP earlier said it was the US Medal of Honor that Marcos claimed he received, but the commission on Monday, August 8, clarified it was the Distinguished Service Cross, along with the two other awards.

Marcos’ supposed guerrilla unit, Ang Mga Maharlika, was also “never officially recognized and neither was his leadership of it,” said the NHCP.

US officials, added the NHCP, “did not recognize Mr. Marcos’ rank promotion,” from major in 1944 to lieutenant colonel by 1947.

The former president’s actions as a soldier during WWII were likewise “officially called into question” by the US military.

Along with other sources, the NHCP referred to two documents from the Guerrilla Unit Recognition Files (1942-1948) in the Philippine Archives Collection.

The Ang Mga Maharlika file “contains letters, memoranda, reports, and accounts relating to the guerrilla unit Maj. Marcos claimed to have founded and led.”

Meanwhile, the Allas Intelligence Unit file “pertains to the organization led by Cipriano Allas, which claimed to be the intelligence unit of Ang Mga Maharlika.”

When a historical matter is doubtful, like Marcos’ WWII record, the NHCP wrote in the study’s executive summary that it “may not be established or taken as fact.”

“A doubtful record also does not serve as sound, unassailable basis of historical recognition of any sort, let alone burial in a site intended, as its name suggests, for heroes,” the NHCP added.

…Published on July 12, the pamphlet was the result of NHCP’s study as part of its mandate under Republic Act 10086 “to conduct and disseminate historical research and resolve historical controversies.”

Link: https://www.rappler.com/nation/142145-nhcp-objects-marcos-burial-libingan-bayani
 
—Michael Bueza, “NHCP objects to Marcos burial at Libingan ng mga Bayani,” Rappler.com, August 6, 2016
 
 
 
Indio Bravo (1880) by Juan Luna

5 comments:

  1. August 28, 2017 is National Heroes’ Day in the Philippines.

    Gonzalinho

    ReplyDelete
  2. AN EXEMPLARY FILIPINO
    By: Joel Ruiz Butuyan - @inquirerdotnet
    Philippine Daily Inquirer / 05:08 AM July 02, 2018

    We are living at a time when the behavior of so many of our country’s leaders engenders extreme dismay and anger. They curse and commit blasphemy. They boast of their extramarital affairs. They exhibit no remorse for their plundered wealth. They don’t feel dishonor in changing political parties. They show no shame for their political dynasties.

    Our youth are vulnerable to being desensitized to the corruption, immorality and offensive conduct of those in public office. There is a danger that they will grow up thinking these forms of behavior are acceptable traits in our leaders.

    It has become very stressful to read and watch the news, because we are bombarded with constant reminders of the miscreant nature of our politicians.

    Notwithstanding the distressing characters of our leaders, we have exceptional individuals among our people who we can look up to as role models in various fields. Our prototypes of exemplary Filipinos should not be confined to dead heroes. There are remarkable Filipinos living in our midst who shun fame and fortune, and who are dedicating their lives to the public good.

    I have my own list of outstanding Filipinos. I will feature each one of them starting today to highlight positive personalities, and to serve as a break from my usual writings on negative issues. I hope this will start a conversation on model leaders, and to take away the limelight from leaders who deaden us with hopelessness.

    First on my list is Rene Saguisag, who I consider to be a remarkable Filipino in the field of politics. His stint as an elected politician ended 25 years ago, but it is precisely the fact that he readily gave up power that makes him worthy of exaltation. I don’t know him personally, but I’ve been observing and admiring him from a distance.

    Saguisag possesses all the academic and work credentials that guarantee fame and fortune. He went to San Beda College and Harvard University for his law degrees. He was a bar topnotcher, a prominent human rights lawyer during the Marcos dictatorship, a Cabinet member during the Corazon Aquino administration, and an elected senator from 1987 to 1992.

    But these are not the qualifications that earn him a place in my list. After all, the same bona fides are possessed by many of his contemporaries who have wreaked havoc on this country.

    To be continued

    ReplyDelete
  3. AN EXEMPLARY FILIPINO (continued)

    What makes Saguisag worthy of praise is that he did not take advantage of his credentials, his close connections to the centers of power, and his national stature to gain fame and fortune. He did not perpetuate himself in power, acquire filthy wealth for his family, and create his own political dynasty. He is so unlike many of his colleagues who cling to power even to this day, and who have misused that power to gain riches for their families.

    Saguisag occupied public office and wielded power for the sole purpose of serving his country. And he readily walked away from power without a whimper. In one article he wrote, he said: “It wasn’t hard to give up power, because I told my staff and myself, ‘We’re here only for a short visit.’”

    Saguisag continued his involvement in politics as an activist citizen who filed public interest cases against government actions that he deemed antipeople. He was an acerbic gadfly who spoke and wrote stinging rebukes against the powers-that-be.

    Shorn of illicit wealth amassed from public office, he faces the same fears being felt by his ordinary countrymen who are in the sunset years of their lives. Saguisag wrote recently: “Now, finally I admit to being scared of one thing — long, lingering, hopeless illness. And if that happens to me, the little that we have would be spent on my care for nothing. So I just hope that the good Lord will continue to take care of me as another lily of the field. That has been the story of my life. I took seriously what I read in the Bible that the odds are worse for a rich man than a camel passing through the eye of a needle.”

    Rene Saguisag is a living exemplar of the Filipino race.

    Comments to fleamarketofideas@gmail.com

    Read more: http://opinion.inquirer.net/114312/an-exemplary-filipino#ixzz5NGCW432q

    Gonzalinho

    ReplyDelete
  4. Marcos did not eradicate corruption, contrary to what Duterte implied. Marcos centralized it: he decided who can steal with impunity among his officials and cronies, but he made sure he got the lion’s share. He stole enough to make it to the Guinness Book of World Records.

    Luis V. Teodoro, @luisteodoro
    Philippine Daily Inquirer (June 19, 2019)

    Gonzalinho

    ReplyDelete
  5. FIVE FORGOTTEN HEROES OF THE PHILIPPINE SENATE
    They championed advocacies and fought uncompromisingly for their ideals
    By: Javier Vilchez
    Philippine Daily Inquirer / 05:20 AM August 31, 2019

    Geronima Pecson
    Lorenzo Tañada Sr.
    Jose W. Diokno
    Jovito Salonga
    Raul Roco

    …History shows that the greatest senators championed advocacies and fought uncompromisingly for their ideals.

    History is filled with everyday people who stepped up to the plate because they saw a systemic wrong and tried to correct it.

    Read more: https://lifestyle.inquirer.net/344364/five-forgotten-heroes-of-the-philippine-senate/#ixzz6SSULHe1n

    Gonzalinho

    ReplyDelete